AkzoNobel’s powder coatings business and Swiss startup coatingAI are developing software that uses AI to help customers improve the application process and reduce their carbon footprint.
AkzoNobel said the industry-first technology, called Flightpath, optimises equipment settings to reduce defects and overspray while improving powder consumption, helping to reduce costs, avoid rework and save time and energy.
The AI-based software has been in development for two years and an exclusivity agreement has now been signed by both parties, who joined forces after first crossing paths during AkzoNobel’s Paint the Future start-up challenge in 2021.
“We’re delighted to team up with coatingAI and strengthen our technical service capabilities,” said Remco Maassen van den Brink, Marketing Director of AkzoNobel’s Powder Coatings business. “We proactively look for ways to support customers in becoming more sustainable in their operations and this will significantly improve our ability to help them get better results while contributing to our own ambition of halving carbon emissions across the value chain by 2030.”
AkzoNobel said the software enables customers to optimise equipment settings such as gun motion and achieve more uniform, consistent coverage with fewer flaws thanks to AI-powered recommendations. It does not require complex integration, and as conditions change, it continually adapts its recommended parameters.
“Collaborating with a startup like coatingAI – who are pushing boundaries to transform the coatings industry – means we can accelerate our own powder revolution and provide services like no other,” said Maassen van den Brink. “It’s the latest example of how we constantly innovate and look for new ways to offer customers the most progressive and sustainable solutions.”
Marlon Boldrini, CEO of coatingAI, said: “The collaboration with AkzoNobel has helped to accelerate our vision since day one. Our solution, built on the power of artificial intelligence and AkzoNobel’s technical expertise, will not only increase efficiency for their customers, but also drive greater sustainability within the powder coatings industry.”