COMMITTEES
Decorative Coatings
Decorative Coatings Council
Chaired by Vincent O’Sullivan, PPG Architectural Coatings
The Decorative Coatings Council (DCC) met twice in 2017. In
May, Jan van der Meulen from CEPE gave an overview of the
TiO 2 situation, and Steve Snaith presented the next steps for
the PaintCare voluntary programme. TiO 2 was also a key theme
for the November meeting, which discussed lobbying strategy
ahead of critical EU meetings. Significant concerns continue over
preserving waterbased products, with likely loss of MIT. It was
agreed that PaintSafe would be launched at the Painting and
Decorating Show. The DCC also confirmed that BCF would be
taking ownership of the B&Q VOC globe as a standard for the
industry, which will be delegated to the Decorative Coatings
Technical Committee (DCTC) to take on. Members also agreed
to continue support for defibrillator paint donations for red
phone boxes, which are now at an impressive 350.
Decorative Coatings Technical Committee
Chaired by Gareth Hayfield, Farrow & Ball
The DCTC held three meetings during the course of 2017. The
group’s main focus was on the pr ogress and potential impact
of CLP-related (harmonised classification) proposals for key
substances – TiO 2 , MEKO and the biocides MIT and ZnPt.
If the proposals go through to law without changes then
virtually all BCF members’ products will be affected in one
way or another. Paints based on > 1% TiO 2 (over 90% of deco
paints) would require labelling with the exploding man symbol
and ‘suspected of causing cancer’ phrase, paints based on
MIT would likely be restricted to a maximum level of 15ppm
(which is insufficient to provide adequate protection), and the
reclassification of MEKO and ZnPt would likely lead to a ban
on the use of these materials in products sold to the consumer.
Much of the BCF’s lobbying work during the course of 2017
was therefore concentrated on defending these substances and
challenging the proposals, at national and EU levels.
The other main activity was the continued campaign against
manufacturers making Zero VOC / 100%-VOC free claims
for their paints. A media article published in the summer was
well-received and raised awareness – a more-general article
is planned for distribution to the mainstream media. Several
companies were persuaded to remove their claims from
websites and literature, however several companies still remain
in the market and additional efforts are being made through
Trading Standards and the Advertising Standards Agency to
eliminate these false claims and regain a level playing field.
Other topics that were discussed by the
DCTC were BPR labelling requirements,
the CEPE PEF project, the new BCF
PaintSafe campaign and standards
activities (especially the revision of BS
6150 Code of Practice for the painting
of buildings, which got underway with
a panel chaired by the BCF). The group
also hosted an afternoon meeting
with three biocide suppliers, updating
members on the challenges that are
being faced and suggesting ideas for a
new approach to lobbying on the BPR.
BCF ANNUAL HANDBOOK 2018/19
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