DuPont Refinish offers advice on managing waste
Health, safety and environmental issues can pose problems for the refinish industry. Legislation about waste management is constantly updated, and the need for paint brands to provide support to their bodyshops and refinishers is greater than ever. The DuPont Refinish core values are reflected in the waste management support the brand gives to its bodyshops and refinishers.
The key environmental issues during the refinishing process are waste disposal and solvent recovery. To ensure these are carried out in an appropriate and legal manner, DuPont Refinish offers solutions to all its bodyshops, helping to reduce the impact on the environment.
Dealing with paint waste
A key DuPont Refinish waste management product is 16.30, a coagulant which separates pigment residue from wastewater, allowing for safe recycling of any remaining liquid. By simply adding the powder to the contaminated water and mixing it in with a rotary mixer for about ten minutes, refinishers will see the solid flakes separate from the water and settle. The process is complete when the wastewater looks perfectly clear. The pigment residue should then be filtered out and removed as chemical waste. The remaining clear water can be disposed of in line with local regulations.
Education is also vital when it comes to waste disposal, which is why DuPont Refinish is committed to providing assistance for bodyshops to meet local and European health, safety and environmental requirements. All DuPont Refinish bodyshops have easy access to information and consultancy services on health and safety – including legal and social responsibilities to employees and the environment – and the practical benefits of good practice.
Anthony Cashel, DuPont Refinish brand marketing coordinator UK and Ireland, says, “respect for the environment is one of the DuPont Refinish core brand values, which is why we strive to provide more efficient products, services and advice so our bodyshops meet waste management standards.”
In 2011, DuPont Refinish launched a new HSE initiative called Eco Pro: a programme that allows bodyshops to inform their customers and their local communities that they too care about the environment – a fact well-known to the industry for many years, but not necessarily to the general public. Eco Pro aims to communicate the message that paint brands and bodyshops do their utmost to create products and processes that are as environmentally conscious as possible.
Anthony Cashel, brand marketing coordinator, DuPont Refinish UK and Ireland, says, “Eco Pro supports a bodyshop’s communication to its customers that its products and processes are in line with the strictest of local environmental legislation. DuPont Refinish takes its commitment to the environment very seriously and we wanted to provide our bodyshops something that could clearly identify them as environmentally conscious which might make the difference when a customer chooses a bodyshop.”
