COVENTRY, UK — Following the results of the British Coatings Federation’s 2017 Indicators of Performance (IoP) study, it was revealed that the coatings industry has made noticeable improvements from 2016, especially in regards to safety and environmental performance. Data from 36 manufacturing sites making paints, coatings and printing inks have been surveyed every year since 1996.

2017 was a milestone year as it represented the lowest ever figure for injuries per 100,000 hours worked. Over a long-term trend, the rate has come down from a high of 0.85 in 1996 to a low of 0.16 in 2017. The amount of waste sent to landfill decreased, and the proportion of participants reporting zero landfill increased dramatically, from 38% in 2016 to 47% in 2017. Recycling now accounts for 63% of all the waste created by BCF’s members, compared to 17% in 1996. In contrast, waste to landfill has plummeted from 75% at a peak, to 8% today.

Two other metrics going in the right direction are energy used per tonne of production, which was 3.7% lower than in 2016, and organic solvents purchased per tonne of production, which decreased by 5.8%.

British Coatings Federation (BCF) Chief Executive, Tom Bowtell commented, “The BCF are delighted with the results from the 2017 Coatings Care IoP study, and we will be striving to encourage our members to continue the excellent results, in terms of their outstanding environmental and safety performance.”