BASF Coatings AG, Ludwigshafen, Germany, said it has consolidated and significantly expanded its UV-curing coatings operations with the creation of a "center of compliance" at the company's M¿nster, Germany, site. With the opening of the center, the company is consolidating UV-cure coatings R&D functions formerly housed at different sites around the world. The company said the heart of the R&D center is a new, 1.2-million-euro pilot plant where development efforts are focusing on the coating and curing of complex, three-dimensional parts and large-size components.