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tent of the Epotuf 37-685 curing agent which is
recommended for water-based systems that need to
perform as well as or better than organic solvent-
based systems, and epoxy resins for systems that
replace isocyanates in coatings for heavy equip-
ment. “For the Brazilian market, we are bringing
a water-based epoxy system containing the Epotuf
37-143 epoxy dispersant and the Epotuf 37-685
curing agent, that latter being Reichhold’s latest
launch for this kind of technology, consisting of
a patent-protected aliphatic amine that provides
water-borne systems not only with low VOC, but
also high corrosion resistance and a similar or
even greater adhesion power than that of organic
solvent-based systems.”
Mineral Fillers – In the age of nano-
technology
The suppliers of mineral fillers have been affected
by the economic crisis as much as most industries
in Brazil. The first half of 2008 was a very unusual
period in that the industry had its best performance
in 10 years. Unfortunately, however, the scenario
began to change in the second half, especially in the
last quarter, as the world economic crisis broke out.
Notwithstanding the unpleasant events, the indus-
try succeeded in sustaining significant growth.
This year the economic crisis has become even more
visible, overly damaging industrial businesses in
general. Manufacturers of mineral fillers have been
directly affected by the crisis, especially due to the
plummeting consumption of these materials, can-
cellations of scheduled deliveries and even reduced
inventory levels, standing in the way of the entire
industry and leading it to stagnation.
In spite of such an unstable market, manufactu-
rers of mineral fillers are placing all their chips on
the second half of 2009. In fact, they already show
signs of a pick-up in sales. The crisis is believed
to be coming to an end, and Brazil to be boun-
cing back much faster than other countries. Even
though the results are not expected to be as positi-
ve as those of 2008, the mineral filler industry will
achieve full recovery, according to its forecasts.
The growth in business experienced until a certain
point in 2008 is expected to be resumed in 2010,
when the general situation in the paint and coa-
tings market should get back to normal. However,