I have attended many trade shows in my professional career – everyone who works in sales has done so. Preparing for the trade fair and setting up the stand. Arriving and meeting colleagues the evening before. Arriving early on the first day and being full of curiosity about what the trade fair might bring. But this one was exceptional somehow.
At this ACS, the first day was a big boost. The first visitor showed up at 9 a.m. on the dot and the whole day was full of open-minded and interested people. We revisited the topic of smart paint production (Smart Paint Factory) and it was great to see how many people now support it. All of our products and services feed into this idea and it was encouraging to get such great feedback.
When Metromation was founded in 2023, I wasn’t as confident as I am today that we were on the right track. We continue to drive change in this industry and look forward to serving it.
Another highlight was the stage. Believe it or not, I still get nervous when I perform – even when I have my pocket trumpet on the stand and a playback band playing in the background. And why is that? It’s still the fear that people might not like what I’m saying. I mean “say”, because music is communication.
The same applies to presentations. My aim is to make a presentation a bit entertaining or at least authentic.
And being authentic means having the courage to show yourself as you are. A normal person who tries to get involved and always encourages themselves to overcome the fear that there are people who don’t like what I say.
https://metromation.co/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/1714578246257.jpg600800metromationhttps://metromation.co/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Logo-Metromation-300x87-1.pngmetromation2024-05-08 15:39:342024-05-08 15:39:37American Coatings Show 2024
Since 2001, I have been working in the paint and coatings industry. I have seen paint production sites in a lot of countries and still wonder why this industry is so reluctant with innovation.
It would be unfair to generalize this; there are companies with a high level of technologies, efficient paint production processes and an open mind for new frontiers. But unfortunately, it is more an exception than a rule.
One of the reasons might be that the industry is over 140 years old and for such established companies, it is a hard job to manage change – I fully understand that.
But the other reason is the complexity of what the paint and coatings industry is facing with their products. Customer requirements, cost, environmental regulations, supply chains etc. are complex enough. But chemistry is even as complex and the interactions of different components are explored mainly by trial and error. When it comes to paint production, people rely on aged equipment that is sometimes adding variation to the products. And recipes are full of additives, which are due to historical incidents also in the paint production process. And their necessity is not questioned (“never change a winning team”).
What are the strategies to cope with this complexity?
Since I brought the idea of the Smart Paint Factory to the community, I have seen a lot of promising approaches by academia and industry. The idea of digitalization and data driven processes is attractive. Nevertheless, building digital twins or models of materials and processes is still a big challenge. Due to a lack of data, many ML (Machine Learning) algorithms can’t be developed to an acceptable level of prediction. And sharing data for the purpose of increasing the amount of data to a better level is a big challenge. At the Smart Paint Factory Alliance, we are trying to bring stakeholders together, but it is a long journey.
After I got to know my friends from Hemmelrath Technologies, I pursued another promising approach:
Reduce complexity.
Their approach to split recipes into modules and use an efficient method of dispersion and mixing is definitely an important building block for more efficient paint production. It is easier to control. The dispersing process together with the Jetstream Mixer is a brilliant idea and together with knowledge of how to implement this in paint and coatings, dispersions, printing inks and similar products is a milestone.
At their head quarter in Erlenbach, Germany, Hemmelrath Technologies built a new building with a sustainable design. Inside, the production facilities look as clean as they looked on their first day of operation.
I feel honored to support Hemmelrath Technologies, because there is a clear and undeniable advantage for the customer.
https://metromation.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/qtq80-CyVAVF.jpeg14402160metromationhttps://metromation.co/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Logo-Metromation-300x87-1.pngmetromation2023-12-13 18:29:162024-01-13 08:30:52Why is change so difficult?
Well, I was a little reluctant at the beginning and was careful with presenting products in a new format. But I wanted people to have fun exploring what Metromation can do and took advantage of some of the benefits of gamification. The starting point is a showroom for our partner Hemmelrath Technologies with a presentation and some basic technical information about different versions of the Modular Factory.
But there is also an exhibition hall, where people can explore more. My first presentations with the Metaverse format went well. This was carried out with a shared screen only, where I navigated myself. As a next step, we will invite people to explore the exhibition hall together with us.
For everyone who has experienced computer games, navigation is familiar: Use the arrow keys or a,s,d.w for moving. Alternatively, you can use the mouse.
Explore the showroom of Hemmelrath Technologies on our website, just click here!
https://metromation.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Metaverse-Metromation.png10272462metromationhttps://metromation.co/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Logo-Metromation-300x87-1.pngmetromation2023-11-15 14:55:042023-11-15 14:57:46The Metaverse – New possibilities with Metromation
American Coatings Show 2024
/inI have attended many trade shows in my professional career – everyone who works in sales has done so. Preparing for the trade fair and setting up the stand. Arriving and meeting colleagues the evening before. Arriving early on the first day and being full of curiosity about what the trade fair might bring. But this one was exceptional somehow.
At this ACS, the first day was a big boost. The first visitor showed up at 9 a.m. on the dot and the whole day was full of open-minded and interested people. We revisited the topic of smart paint production (Smart Paint Factory) and it was great to see how many people now support it. All of our products and services feed into this idea and it was encouraging to get such great feedback.
When Metromation was founded in 2023, I wasn’t as confident as I am today that we were on the right track. We continue to drive change in this industry and look forward to serving it.
Another highlight was the stage. Believe it or not, I still get nervous when I perform – even when I have my pocket trumpet on the stand and a playback band playing in the background. And why is that? It’s still the fear that people might not like what I’m saying. I mean “say”, because music is communication.
The same applies to presentations. My aim is to make a presentation a bit entertaining or at least authentic.
And being authentic means having the courage to show yourself as you are. A normal person who tries to get involved and always encourages themselves to overcome the fear that there are people who don’t like what I say.
Why is change so difficult?
/inSince 2001, I have been working in the paint and coatings industry. I have seen paint production sites in a lot of countries and still wonder why this industry is so reluctant with innovation.
It would be unfair to generalize this; there are companies with a high level of technologies, efficient paint production processes and an open mind for new frontiers. But unfortunately, it is more an exception than a rule.
One of the reasons might be that the industry is over 140 years old and for such established companies, it is a hard job to manage change – I fully understand that.
But the other reason is the complexity of what the paint and coatings industry is facing with their products. Customer requirements, cost, environmental regulations, supply chains etc. are complex enough. But chemistry is even as complex and the interactions of different components are explored mainly by trial and error. When it comes to paint production, people rely on aged equipment that is sometimes adding variation to the products. And recipes are full of additives, which are due to historical incidents also in the paint production process. And their necessity is not questioned (“never change a winning team”).
What are the strategies to cope with this complexity?
Since I brought the idea of the Smart Paint Factory to the community, I have seen a lot of promising approaches by academia and industry. The idea of digitalization and data driven processes is attractive. Nevertheless, building digital twins or models of materials and processes is still a big challenge. Due to a lack of data, many ML (Machine Learning) algorithms can’t be developed to an acceptable level of prediction. And sharing data for the purpose of increasing the amount of data to a better level is a big challenge. At the Smart Paint Factory Alliance, we are trying to bring stakeholders together, but it is a long journey.
After I got to know my friends from Hemmelrath Technologies, I pursued another promising approach:
Reduce complexity.
Their approach to split recipes into modules and use an efficient method of dispersion and mixing is definitely an important building block for more efficient paint production. It is easier to control. The dispersing process together with the Jetstream Mixer is a brilliant idea and together with knowledge of how to implement this in paint and coatings, dispersions, printing inks and similar products is a milestone.
At their head quarter in Erlenbach, Germany, Hemmelrath Technologies built a new building with a sustainable design. Inside, the production facilities look as clean as they looked on their first day of operation.
I feel honored to support Hemmelrath Technologies, because there is a clear and undeniable advantage for the customer.
The Metaverse – New possibilities with Metromation
/inby Ralph J. Woerheide
Well, I was a little reluctant at the beginning and was careful with presenting products in a new format. But I wanted people to have fun exploring what Metromation can do and took advantage of some of the benefits of gamification. The starting point is a showroom for our partner Hemmelrath Technologies with a presentation and some basic technical information about different versions of the Modular Factory.
But there is also an exhibition hall, where people can explore more. My first presentations with the Metaverse format went well. This was carried out with a shared screen only, where I navigated myself. As a next step, we will invite people to explore the exhibition hall together with us.
For everyone who has experienced computer games, navigation is familiar: Use the arrow keys or a,s,d.w for moving. Alternatively, you can use the mouse.
Explore the showroom of Hemmelrath Technologies on our website, just click here!