Coating for RV Industry Comes at an Advantageous Time

According to the RV Industry Association (rvia.org), the purchase of recreational vehicles — motorhomes and towables — is on an upward swing, with RV shipments in December 2020 (40,382) being 46.8% greater than they were in December 2019 (27,516).

So RV manufacturers ought to be interested in two new coatings from Axalta Coating Systems: Imron Elite ColorPLUS and Imron Elite Direct-to-Plastic basecoat.

Imron Elite ColorPlus was developed specifically for the paint schemes now being used on RVs.

Importantly from a processor’s point of view, the product consumption of ColorPLUS is 25-30% less than competitive products. And full system application times coupled with oven cure time result in a 30%+ improvement in overall cycle time.

Yes, significantly less material is used and significant improvements in cycle time can be achieved.

Axalta says that ColorPLUS companion clearcoats, 8460S and 8463S, provide both durability and system appearance.

As for the other coating, the Imron Elite Direct-to-Plastic basecoat, it, too provides process improvement.

"Imron Elite Direct-to-Plastic basecoat improves productivity and performance for our customers by eliminating the need for a conventional adhesion promoter and simplifying the coating process from three steps to two," said Marko Strukelj, Director, Global Transportation Product Engineering at Axalta.

The basecoat can be used with or without activation; dries quickly; has excellent adhesion; delivers great hiding, smooth application and flake control over multiple plastic substrates; and is available in solid, metallic, pearlescent and special-effect colors.

This productivity and material-use advantage can be beneficial to the RV industry because according to RV Industry Association president Craig Kirby, “The forecast for 2021 confirms the expectation that order activity will continue to rise this year.”