Record Attendance at the paintistanbul & Turkcoat Congress

The 9th International paintistanbul & Turkcoat Congress and Exhibition, organized by the Association of Paint Industry (Bosad) and Chem Media on December 5-6, set a new attendance record. The congress, held over two days, drew a total of 1,425 visitors, including 71 international attendees. This figure represents the highest visitor count recorded for any congress held to date. The congress, which attracted substantial interest from its opening day, brought together leading paint industry companies, senior executives and field expert academics for two days. Opening remarks were delivered by Erdal Bahçıvan, President of İSO; Adil Pelister, Vice President of TİM and President of İKMİB; Timur Erk, Chairman of TOBB Chemical Industry Council; Kenan Baytaş, Chairman of the Board of Directors of BOSAD; Hakan Ünel, Vice President of BOSAD and Chairman of the Fair and Congress Working Group; Ahmet Burhan Özdemir, Chairman of the Scientific Board of BOSAD; and Cengiz Yaman, Founder and CEO of Artkim Group. In his opening remarks, Erdal Bahçıvan, President of İSO, emphasized that sustainable production has become even more critical due to the climate crisis, and highlighted the importance of the paintistanbul&Turkcoat Congress in bringing together paint manufacturers, raw material suppliers, and representatives from universities, institutes and research centers to discuss sustainability criteria. Bahçıvan commended Bosad and its board of directors for hosting this event. Adil Pelister, Vice President of TİM and President of İKMİB, noted that the congress's main themes—innovation, sustainability, functionality, digitalization and artificial intelligence—are significant enough to influence and shape the future not only of the paint industry, but of the chemical industry in particular and the country's economy as a whole.

"We Are Striving to Advance Our Industry through Collaborative Effort and Dedication"

Kenan Baytaş, Chairman of the Board of Directors of BOSAD, expressed his satisfaction at reconnecting in person at the congress following the pandemic: "Dear guests, our share in the global paint industry market, valued at 192 billion dollars, stands at 2 percent. With a total volume of 1 million tons, our Turkish paint industry possesses the capacity to maintain its position in the world under all circumstances. We are striving to advance our industry through collaborative effort and dedication. With your valued participation today, we are launching our international congress, the first phase of our congress and fair initiative and one of BOSAD's largest undertakings. Our fair will take place at Istanbul Expo Center from 8-10 May. On this occasion, we warmly invite you to join us at our fair." In his remarks, Hakan Ünel, Vice President of BOSAD and Chairman of the Fair and Congress Working Group, stated: "The objectives of our truly international congress can be outlined as establishing Turkey as the center of paint technologies in our region, fostering cooperation between universities, industry and other relevant organizations, advancing paint industry development by creating a platform for discussing and monitoring the latest technology, trends and regulations, and promoting industry awareness and cohesion through alternating annual fairs and congresses. Dear friends, the importance and potential of our industry, which operates at the intersection of Europe, Asia and Africa, will grow substantially with sound strategies in the years ahead. The complementary cycle of international congress and exhibition will undoubtedly serve as one of the most important pillars of this development." Shaping the Industry's Future through Innovation, Sustainability and Functionality Cengiz Yaman, Founder and CEO of Artkim Group, the organizing company of the congress, stated that they are honored to participate in such a scientific congress during Turkey's 100th anniversary. Yaman remarked: "The paintistanbul&Turkcoat Congress aims to shape the industry's future through topics such as innovation, sustainability and functionality. In today's world, where the agenda and technologies advance at a rapid pace, I believe it will be highly beneficial for the industry to convene at comprehensive events on an annual basis."

Congress Strengthened University-Industry Collaboration

The congress, organized under the motto "Towards a Smarter and Sustainable Future", featured presentations and lectures on innovation, sustainability, functionality, digitalization, artificial intelligence and other topics vital to industry advancement. The paintistanbul&Turkcoat Congress exemplified the synergy between scientific research and industrial practice, contributing meaningfully to paint industry development. Organized in two halls, Turkcoat and paintistanbul, at Green Park Pendik Hotel, the program included five keynote speeches, twelve sessions, four commercial presentations and one panel discussion. The congress program opened with a keynote address by Mustafa Tunçgenç from Eva Consultancy in Training and Research. He spoke on "The History and Present State of the Turkish Paint Industry", offering valuable insights as the keynote speaker. Paint and chemical industry professionals followed the sessions, presentations and lectures with keen interest. Participants and visitors also examined the 49 poster presentations displayed in the poster area.

Distinguished Academics Delivered Invited Lectures

Prominent academics presented lectures at the congress over two days. On the first day, Prof. Dr. Yusuf Menceloğlu, Board Member of Sabancı University Nanotechnology Research and Application Center, delivered an important presentation titled "Can Radiative Cold Coatings Combat Climate Change?". On the second day, Prof. Dr. Nergis Arsu, Faculty Member of Yıldız Technical University, and Prof. Dr. İskender Yılgör, Faculty Member of Koç University, participated as invited speakers.

Focus on Sustainability, Innovation and R&D

The second day of the program, packed with sessions and presentations, included a panel discussion moderated by Hasan Şerefhan, Technical Factory Director of DYO Construction Paints. The panel featured leading industry executives and experts. In the panel discussion titled "Sustainable Innovative Approaches in the Paint Industry", Ersin Kenan Kayalar, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Kayalar Kimya; Mutlu Uysal, General Manager of DYO Paint Factories; Tolga Demirözü, Managing Director of BASF Türk and Country Cluster Head Turkey & Azerbaijan & Georgia; Prof. Dr. Yusuf Menceloğlu, Board Member of Sabancı University Nanotechnology Research and Application Center; and Dr. Engin Çörüşlü, Founding Partner of Eva Consultancy, discussed the paint industry's future from all perspectives. Providing information on the current volume of the global paint market, Şerefhan emphasized that the Turkish paint industry, with its internationally competitive production quality, merits a substantially larger share than the current 2 percent of the global market. Şerefhan stated that it is the responsibility of Turkish paint industry participants to increase this share. Tolga Demirözü, Managing Director of BASF Türk and Country Cluster Head Turkey & Azerbaijan & Georgia, noted that BASF adopted the motto "We Create Chemistry for a Sustainable Future" in 2014, and shared insights into the sustainability projects and investments they have implemented. Dr. Engin Çörüşlü, Founding Partner of Eva Consultancy, provided valuable perspective on the critical role and impact of R&D activities in the paint industry. He stressed that in today's business environment, companies that underestimate the importance of R&D face significant survival challenges. Mutlu Uysal, General Manager of DYO Paint Factories, stated that by incorporating diverse disciplines in R&D centers and encouraging communication and collaboration among them, companies can generate substantially more innovative ideas. Uysal also discussed innovative products the company has developed. Prof. Dr. Yusuf Menceloğlu, Member of the Board of Directors of Sabancı University Nanotechnology Research and Application Center, compared Turkey's R&D activities with those abroad in terms of both quality and quantity, underscoring the necessity for Turkey to strengthen its efforts in this field. Menceloğlu noted that the Turkish chemical industry requires more personnel, particularly at the doctoral level, and greater financial resources. Ersin Kenan Kayalar, Chairman of the Board of Kayalar Kimya, drawing attention to the need for greater export activity by the Turkish paint industry, emphasized the critical importance of promptly meeting global regulations, particularly for sales to developed markets. Kayalar expressed his conviction that the Turkish paint industry possesses the capacity to expand its influence in the global paint market through the development of new products and technologies.

Congress Concludes with Record Attendance

The paintistanbul & Turkcoat Congress, which tracked the paint industry's pulse with exhibitors and visitors from Turkey and abroad over two days, concluded with record attendance. The congress, to be organized biennially, will continue to provide insights into the paint industry's future.