PHILADELPHIA - Axalta Coating Systems announced that a new manufacturing plant for high-performance automobile, commercial vehicle and industrial coatings will be constructed in Nanjing, China. The facility will be built on more than 170,000 m2 of land located at Nanjing’s National Chemical Industrial Park. The plant is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2020 with a product distribution center and initial manufacturing capability expected to come online by early 2019. The project will build on Axalta’s total investments in China to date of close to $100 million since 2013. The project is subject to final approvals by the company and by government and local authorities.

The facility will manufacture a broad range of Axalta products, including primers, basecoats, clearcoats and resin intermediates. It will also produce Axalta’s AquaEC™ line of electrocoats and Voltatex family of Energy Solutions coatings. Additionally, the facility will serve as a logistics center and distribution point for Axalta’s leading Refinish and Industrial products for customers located in southern and central parts of the country. The Nanjing plant will eventually be Axalta’s third-largest global operations center.

“China is a strategic market for us, and we continue to invest in our manufacturing capacity and network there to enable us to more effectively serve our customers and to raise our service standards to support their growth,” said Charlie Shaver, Axalta Chairman and CEO.

Preparation work is in full swing as Axalta has begun to work closely with the local authorities to start the design phase and development of engineering specifications for the new facility. Construction of the new Nanjing plant will utilize the latest generation technology from engineering design, materials and equipment to production processes. The facility will also employ the latest emission mitigation systems and technology available to minimize energy consumption, waste discharge and resource utilization. These features will enable the new facility to align with Axalta’s global sustainability guidelines.