PPG announced that it has inaugurated a center of excellence at its Quattordio, Italy site that will increase the efficiency for automotive color development and application. The $2.6 million (2.3 million euros) investment combines color development and application in a single process, reducing the lead time to bring new colors to market, optimizing costs and maximizing color performance.

The facility is equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) tools that will be used in the color development and quality control processes. These include a statistical and machine learning tool that can reduce the number of color adjustment steps, reducing costs and overall cycle time during the development of basecoats and colored products.

“With this new facility, PPG will elevate its color development to a new level, utilizing digital tools to simplify and modernize the processes,” said Federico Menta, PPG global director, decorative business, Automotive Coatings. It is also a critical enabler to fulfill our customer expectations in terms of speed, accuracy and quality.”

Quattordio is a key production site and innovation hub for PPG’s Automotive Coatings in Europe. It also has a styling center, which is used to support the study and development of new automotive colors.

“This project reflects PPG’s ambition to be the first-choice partner to meet customers’ evolving needs for innovative paints and coatings and provide industry-leading solutions that provide productivity and sustainability benefits,” said Isabella Ercole, PPG operations director EMEA, Industrial Coatings, segment.” This new center of excellence, an end-to-end combination of the development and application of colors, is also an investment in our employees, who will benefit from an innovative workspace and will be able to improve their skills working together as a One PPG Team.”