Sherwin-Williams Italy and all its various brands have always dedicated their best resources to Research and Development. OECE, historical brand present on the market for more than 50 years, has defined the milestones of the evolution of wood and glass coatings and special effects. The Sherwin-Williams brand has been in existence for over 150 years and the Sherwin-Williams group is the world’s leading paint manufacturer.
What has guided the path of these brands through the history of paint is the company’s supreme dedication to research, its decision to take on increasingly ambitious targets, its vision of innovation as a prediction of what can be achieved, its ability to think up new solutions and its anticipation of both customer and market requirements.
The Sherwin-Williams Italy Research and Development laboratory is made up of over forty researchers specialised in various market segments.
Today the company has decided to take another step in the direction of innovation and the invention of new solutions by setting up a research unit focused entirely on innovation. And by innovation we do not mean developing or improving existing products, but creating completely new products for the market.
The team, led by Giampaolo Zilli, a researcher with over twenty years’ experience and a natural aptitude for finding original solutions will focus on research and exploration, guided by the twin leitmotifs of meeting the customer’s need for increasingly high performance products and simplifying production.
The group will work on all the different types of product currently on the market: waterborne, solvent-based, indoor, outdoor and fire resistant etc.
In addition to exploring new solutions, it will also research products that can improve the performance levels currently available on the market in terms of physical, chemical and mechanical characteristics (like stain resistance, pencil hardness, etc.). The group will work in close synergy with raw material suppliers and customers and conducting research on the entire production chain, from the raw material producer to the end user.
The common theme behind the creation of these products is to succeed in having ever “lighter” labels, which means researching components that contain less and less harmful substances for those who apply them.
As far as solvent-based products are concerned, the group will focus on products with a high solid content and therefore with very low emissions. These features have clear benefits in terms of respecting the environment, improving user friendliness and having a low impact on operational organisation.
Lastly, the research group focuses on products formulated with components based on bio-renewable sources .
Giampaolo Zilli, the leader of the group, commented on his new position as follows: ”After twenty years’ experience in the world of paints dedicated mainly to waterborne products, a new and exciting chapter has begun. The team is made up of expert researchers, each of whom have an individual wealth of experience that will give the group the tools it needs to reach its targets. The overall aim is to assess a series of both alternative and traditional solutions put forward from this melting pot of experiences, many of which come from outside our specific sector.”
Alessandro Pirotta, the CEO of Sherwin-Williams Italy, was also visibly thrilled by this decision: “We have always been seen as a trendsetter in this market, but because innovation means constantly looking forward in order to be one step ahead of everyone else, I firmly believe that having a research group that focuses on pure innovation is a winning idea that will bring huge satisfaction to both ourselves and the market!”.
