BASF Refinish Coatings Academy celebrates one year

BASF's partnership with ADVETI for Refinish Coatings Academy celebrates one year.

Technology across all industries is moving forward at a pace never experienced before. In the automotive industry, this is not different, progress is changing the working lives of stakeholders on a daily basis. Practical training is fundamental to keep pace and quality.

The month of June marks the anniversary of the official launch of BASF's first Refinish Coatings Academy in the Middle East.

One year ago, on June 10th, 2019, BASF, the world's leading chemical company, in partnership with The Abu Dhabi Vocational Education and Training Institute (ADVETI), inaugurated a state-of-the-art spray-painting vocational training centre targeting skill enhancement for young, talented Emiratis. And also providing training to all BASF's automotive refinish customers and distribution partners. BASF's premium paint line, Glasurit, has built its reputation through quality products and invaluable support for its customers. With our long-standing partnerships and experience of more than 130 years in the refinish business, at our RCA, we provide training programs to benefit and advance key stakeholders in a body shop.

"During the first year, our Refinish Coatings Academy was intensively utilized for technical training, workshops with our distribution partners, and our Advanced Bodyshop Solutions seminars for customers. Besides that, we were delighted to host various regional roundtable meetings of trusted automotive OEM partners in our facility. With more than 800 sqm and three dedicated training areas - the application centre, the colour lab and the classroom for seminars and workshops – the RCA enables us to facilitate 3 trainings or customer events in parallel. It's great to see, that our Glasurit Refinish Team receives very positive feedback both from our customers as well as from our Emiratization partner ADVETI, said Sven Israel, Regional Business Manager Middle East.

Together with governmental education partner ADVETI, the Glasurit team will roll out the 1st vocational training program for young Emirati Car Painters. In this transition of the UAE towards a knowledge-based economy, vocational training and technical skill enhancement are playing a vital role. As the first Automotive Industry Partner, Al Masaood Automobiles – a key player in the United Arab Emirates Automotive Industry – has joint the Emiratization initiative and is committed to creating a bright future for young Emirati automotive talents.

"The opening of our training centre reaffirms our dedication in helping our customers to become more profitable and successful. We are able to identify the key areas for training and support of our partners to unveil the potential of a body shop painter and processes optimization", says Ryan Puckey, Technical Manager Middle East.

Refinish Coating Academy is hitting the mark for bodyshops and important influencers within the industry. It serves to provide the skills, knowledge, and understanding to tackle todays and future challenges and opportunities in our industry together with our business partners.