Manufacturers in the coatings industry are responding to growing competitive pressure by re-examining every step in their process, searching for opportunities for improvement. In mature businesses, where coating processes are well-understood and process lines have been in place for many years, the gains are likely to be small. But even small, incremental gains can add up quickly. Especially in a high-volume manufacturing environment, a sustained improvement program can eventually pay off with a big competitive advantage.
“In recent years, with capital budgets locked down, process improvement has required a lot of creativity on the plant floor,” says John Paterson, Vice President at Ross Mixing and an expert in dispersion for coatings applications. “Forward-thinking process engineers are adopting a new perspective – a more holistic approach than before. Rather than focus narrowly on each piece of equipment, looking at each process step individually and considering only traditional, predictable strategies, they’re looking at the challenge of process improvement through a wider lens.