Mohamed S. El-Aasser, dean of the P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science at Lehigh University, will receive the prestigious Roy W. Tess Award in Coatings for 2002.

PPG Industries Inc.'s Pittsburgh Paints brand, a part of the company's Architectural Finishes unit, announced the launch of a new line of zero-VOC premium interior paints, named Pure Performance paint.

Bayer Corp. announced the opening of its $1.5 million Powder Coatings Global Research and Development Competency Center, located at the company's Pittsburgh campus.

PPG Industries Inc. announced that Executive Vice President Frank A. Archinaco will retire and Executive Vice President Charles E. "Chuck" Bunch has been elected president and chief operating officer.

Akzo Nobel N.V. announced plans to "instensify" cost-cutting actions despite only a slight decline in net earnings in 2001 from the previous year.

PPG Industries Inc. captured a PACE Award for automotive-product innovation for the company's recently introduced FrameCoat electrodeposition coatings for automotive and light-truck chassis components.

Eastman Chemical Co. has canceled a previously announced plan to spin off its specialty chemicals and plastics business into separate companies.

PPG Industries Inc. representatives said they planned to appeal a federal jury's decision to award Marvin Windows and Doors $136 million in a breach-of-warranty suit against the coatings manufacturer.

Rohm and Haas Co., in a move the company said will boost its technical support of the marine antifouling-paint market, announced plans to move the technical-support functions of its Sea-Nine 211 marine antifoulant from Spring House, PA, to the company's Acima subsidiary, based in Buchs, Switzerland.

The Cleveland and Pittsburgh Societies for Coatings Technology announced program details for the two groups' 45th Annual Symposium, "Sink or Swim 2002," scheduled for April 18-19 at the Airport Marriott hotel, Cleveland.