By John Book, Custom Color Solutions, JDSU
JDSU and PPG Industries have a long history of collaboration and have worked together again on a new generation of products. PPG has introduced Prizmatique® II paints as part of its Vibrance Collection® refinish paint offering. Utilizing JDSU’s SpectraFlair® 1500-20 pigment, the product provides a rainbow look over a silver metallic base, making it a good option for luxury automobiles and high-end motorcycles.
The JDSU pigment flakes utilized in the new family are thinner, allowing standard application processes to be utilized, which saves money for manufacturers and jobbers. The material is suitable for both exterior and interior applications.
The Vibrance Collection line of finishes from PPG offers the latest in hot colors, unique micas, innovative pigments and special effects to create an unlimited choice of custom finishes for those who want their prized vehicle to stand out from the crowd.
The Vibrance Collection line recently re-launched Harlequin® paint colors in their Envirobase® waterborne lineup, which features six color-shifting pigment options such as cyan to purple and gold to silver. Harlequin tints can create great special effects because the colors change completely when viewed from different angles, thanks to JDSU technology.
The Ditzler® Big Flake® product line is another PPG offering under the Vibrance Collection brand, and it utilizes ChromaFlair Glitter with very large metallic flakes. The flakes add intense color and sparkle to custom car, truck or motorcycle finishes and are frequently found on award-winning show vehicles.
Big Flake, Ditzler, Harlequin, Prizmatique and Vibrance Collection are registered trademarks of PPG Industries Ohio, Inc.
By John Book, Custom Color Solutions, JDSU
The Fiesta Bowl is one of the most popular bowl games in college football. The 42nd Annual Fiesta Bowl took place at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Arizona last January. The No. 4 Oregon Ducks (11-1) and No. 5 Kansas State Wildcats (11-1) squared off, with the Oregon Ducks winning the day 35-17. Of note were the new eye-catching helmets sported by the Ducks for the game. This is a great example of how special effects pigments such as JDSU’s ChromaFlair® can be used with traditional organic and inorganic pigments to create styled colors to meet a wide variety of design needs.
What is the science behind special effects pigments? Similar to natural structures such as soap bubbles, sea shells, butterfly wings and bird feathers, the color of ChromaFlair pigment utilizes optical thin-film technology to separate white light into its component colors through selective interference.
For the Ducks helmets, the result of using a special effects pigment beautifully mimics the dramatic colors of their namesake bird in the wild. Go Ducks! Congratulations from the team at JDSU!
In November, JDSU attended the 12th International Abrafati Exhibition of Coating Industry Suppliers in Sao Paulo, Brazil. This year’s theme was Innovation and Sustainability, with over 220 exhibitors in attendance and 20,000 visitors.
Forscher, the representative for JDSU in Brazil, featured a large booth to support its major principals. JDSU introduced the new SpectraFlair Plus 25 as a lower cost alternative to the earlier 1500 series. In addition to improving hiding power, the pigment’s flake uniformity increases the diffractive color of the pigment. The strong diffractive properties of SpectraFlair Plus 25 deliver bright and dramatic effects both indoors and outdoors under various lighting conditions. This makes it a good choice for nail enamel applications, which are a hot trend in Brazil, so the lower cost version of the pigment was well received.
Latin America has over 500 coatings manufacturers that produce 1.5 million liters of coatings per year with a revenue of over $4 billion, and Brazil represents the largest single market within the region.
JDSU special effect pigments are sold to a number of these manufacturers and are used in a variety of industry segments including automotive, consumer electronics, architecture, packaging, and sporting goods and apparel.
There are a number of opportunities for JDSU in Brazil and Latin America, and with the help of the Forscher team business will continue to expand.
By John Book
Each year, industry leaders in the effect pigment industry gather at a summit meeting for three days in the U.S. or Europe to discuss trends in technologies, products, and market growth. This year’s meeting occurred October 24-26 in Berlin.
Statistics presented at the meeting indicate the size of the market: in 2010 the effect pigment market was estimated at a total of 65 million tons, comprised of 68 percent metallic pigments and 27 percent pearlescent pigments.
The remaining 5 percent of the market comprises color shifting or thermochromic pigments, which is where JDSU sits as a leading supplier with its ChromaFlair and SpectraFlair lines.
Market growth is expected to be greater in countries with developing economies, whereas in the US and Europe sales are expected to remain essentially flat. The economic downturn caused many suppliers to cut back production, and when inventories were depleted long lead times and price increase occurred, putting a great deal of pressure on the industry as a whole. Attendees agree that better forecasting models are required to smooth out supply and demand imbalances on a global basis.
Global supply issues were a strong focus of the Summit, in part because of the impact of the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan. That unexpected natural disaster has subsequently created broad recognition among brand managers and pigment buyers that comprehensive disaster recovery plans must be in place to ensure sourcing despite any type of disaster.
There is also growing awareness and understanding about the need for social and environmental responsibility among pigment buyers and brand owners. No one wants to export pollution as a quick solution for lower cost pigments or to skirt compliance with domestic regulations.
Innovation was another area of focus during the meeting. Paint and coating manufacturers rely heavily on the leading pigment companies like JDSU to provide innovative products and effects. One statistic presented at the Summit made clear the need for innovation: Less than half of the top 10 pigments in use today were launched within the last 10 years, pointing out a strong need for greater and faster development to bring new colors, finishes, and effects to markets around the world.
John Book manages Custom Color Solutions products for the AOT business segment at JDSU.
JDSU makes special pigments that go into paint colors and enhance a wide variety products like sporting goods, consumer gadgets and even cars.
Automakers use paint color with special effects to make cars appear more sleek or luxurious to consumers. Up to 50 percent of car buyers are willing to pay more for a special car color and many will walk off a car lot if they can't get their color of choice. It makes sense, since buying a car is typically a long term investment and you have to look at your purchase every day.
I was willing to wait nearly two months to special order my brand new 2012 Chevy Cruze in Ice Blue with all the trimmings. It arrived this week and I am a very happy customer - no buyer's remorse here!
Here's a brief video with our color expert John Book who will talk a bit more about our pigments.
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JDSU impacts people's lives in many ways with a wide variety of technologies.
The company has created a new corporate video that tells the story. Even your grandmother will get it. Enjoy!
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The color and design of products play heavily into people’s buying decisions, especially in developed nations where we have so many options to choose from.
That trend seems to be growing in recent years with the personalization of electronic devices like iPods or laptops that are offered in a palette of color choices. You also see more designer brands hitting mainstream stores like Target, Walmart and JC Penney.
Design colleges are also incorporating color and material design trending analysis into their curriculums to help student designers gain a competitive edge when they hit the job market.
Color and design choices become even more important with bigger investments like car purchases.
According to Cadillac, up to 50 percent of new car buyers are willing to pay more to get special options like a preferred color. Many people will actually walk away from a car lot if they can’t get the color of their choice.
But it’s not just about color, it is also about the richness and depth of the car color that can help reinforce a particular brand and create an emotional bond with the consumer.
Special pigments made up of multi-layer flakes can be used in car paint to provide a subtle shift in how the paint color appears when viewed at different angles. Other pigments provide a special sparkle effect to a car color, helping to reinforce a luxurious feeling. 
Check out the Cadillac “Arrows” commercial to see one of the newer Cadillacs that includes a special Bright Silver pigment from JDSU that gives it an extra edge.
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Along with providing special pigments to brand owners in areas like the auto, sporting goods, and consumer electronics industries, JDSU also provides services that help companies choose popular colors for their products.