The International Coatings Expo takes place October 30-November 1 at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center New Orleans. The expo will be held in conjunction with the Federation of Societies for Coatings Technology's 80th Annual Meeting and the International Coatings Technology Conference.

The exposition will feature the products and services of supplier companies to the international coatings, printing inks, adhesives and construction chemicals industries. Staff members from over 340 supplier companies are expected to be available to present their company's latest advances.

Annual Meeting

The FSCT's 80th Annual Meeting is scheduled for October 30-November 1. Technical paper presentations focusing on the theme "Global Connectivity" will introduce attendees to the advances from the world of coatings. Highlights of the program include the Mattiello Memorial Lecture, Technical Focus Lecture, award competition papers, Exhibitor Spotlights and Poster Sessions. On Friday, a new Executive Briefing will feature a panel of coatings experts who will examine: Global Competitiveness: What is in it for You?

Mattiello Lecture

"Automotive Paint System Weathering Performance: Reading Test Panels Like Open Books and Some Accelerated Weathering Test Thoughts" is this year's Mattiello Lecture, to be presented by Dr. John Gerlock, Ford Research Laboratories, Dearborn, MI. The lecture will be given as part of the Annual Meeting Opening Session on Wednesday, October 30.

Dr. Gerlock is known for his studies on the development of a means to anticipate the long-term weathering performance of modern automotive paint systems. He initiated research on the migration and longevity of stabilizing additives such as ultraviolet light absorbers (UVAs), and was the first to determine that UVAs were consumed during coating weathering, leading to a loss of protection. His research is based on the premise that it should be possible to relate the chemical composition changes that occur in automotive paint systems during outdoor exposure to their long-term weathering performance and thereby greatly augment the information afforded by traditional weathering performance metrics. Therefore, he developed a method to measure the rate of formation of free radicals during the earliest stages of paint weathering under natural exposure conditions.

Heckel Award

Freidun Anwari, technical director for Kelly-Moore Paint Co. Inc., San Carlos, CA, is the 2002 recipient of the George Baugh Heckel Award, the organization's highest honor. Presentation of the Heckel Award will be made at the Opening Session on October 30.

Anwari received a B.S. degree in Chemistry from North Dakota State University, and an M.S. degree in Chemistry from Cleveland State University. He was employed as an R&D chemist at Coatings Research Group (1985-93) and BFGoodrich (1993-99). He joined Kelly-Moore as a Group Leader in 1999. Anwari has been active in the coatings industry for over 17 years.

Officer and Board Nominations

Richard M. Hille of The Flood Co. and Frederick ("Fritz") H. Walker of Air Products and Chemicals have been nominated for President-Elect and Secretary-Treasurer, respectively.

Richard Hille (Cleveland Society) is currently FSCT Secretary-Treasurer. He is a member of the FSCT Executive Committee, and the Board of Directors. A Trustee of the CIEF, Hille has served as Chair of several FSCT Committees, including Manufacturing (1983-97), Program (1988), and Host (1980), and was a Charter Member of the Professional Development Committee, serving from 1984-1990. A member of the coatings industry for 34 years, Hille graduated with a B.S. degree in Chemistry from the University of Kansas in 1968. He is presently Vice President, Operations, with The Flood Co., Hudson, OH, and also serves as a member of its Board of Directors.

Frederick Walker (Philadelphia Society) is a Research Associate for the Performance Chemicals Technology Division at Air Products and Chemicals. Dr. Walker began his industrial career in 1982 with the Pioneering Research Group at Rohm and Haas, and in 1988 became Director of the Michigan Polymer Laboratory for Akzo Coatings. Dr. Walker joined Henkel's Corporate Research Lab in 1991, and in 1993 joined Air Products and Chemicals in Allentown, PA. Dr. Walker received a B.A. Degree in Behavioral Biology from Bloomfield College, and M.S. and Ph.D. Degrees in Physical-Organic Chemistry from Yale University, where his dissertation on the chemistry of small, strained ring propellanes was awarded the Richard Wolfgang Memorial Prize.