Flexible productivity: colour as added value

A journey through colours different meanings

Color, shape, light

Color Trend Consultant Classics: classical hues for lasting objects

Color Design Workshop

Wood Design 2017: Ilva Vernici special effects line for special surfaces to be discoovered

Sirca goes on with the meetings with architects and designers through the Architects Territorial Platform

Where are water-based coatings gone?

A good question, which is difficult to answer in a comprehensive way.

On one hand, we could say that the industrial world and the new global economic conception is going in the direction of reducing costs (and pollution is a cost, indeed), improving the workers’ living conditions (even if in current water-based coatings there is a certain amount of solvent, it is undeniable that they are less toxic) and consumers’ living condition (the "indoor" emissions are virtually nil), improving material performance (almost 100% of water-based paints are used for frames painting and, consequently, they have excellent resistance "even" outside where the stresses are definitely superior to internal ones), in our “explorations” looking for virtuous companies we often stumble in organizations resigned in using traditional solvent-based paints.

The most common answer that is given by those working in this field is always the same: “I would like to use them, but they dry with more difficulty, and it is necessary to pay more attention in the preparation of the substrate, and furthermore they are more expensive”.

Is it true that water-based coating’s technology – which has been produced since the late sixties of the last century… - has not solved those problems? I don’t think so. After all there are companies that produce wood paintings – practically – only water-based, and with a recognized high quality. Unfortunately, not the Italian ones: some of them which started “in the right way”, but then they backtracked, except a couple of exemplary companies, which truly believe in a future of low environmental impact paints, starting from their sellers (at least those who we know) first ones to promote these products to users.

DRYING: Everyone assume that water-based coatings dry very slowly, slower than the solvent-based ones, without knowing that the water, with the help of some co-solvents in small quantities, forms "azeotropic" solutions that evaporate at water’s temperature (100° C), faster than toluolo (111° C), so that “hydro” paints dry out faster: seeing is believing.

SUBSTRATE PREPARATION: We talk a lot about quality, but we haven’t yet taken for granted that quality starts from smoothing, pre-treatment, in conclusion from substrate preparation?

COSTS: It is trivially a matter of market functioning, considering that if there was a greater demand, raw materials would reduce their cost and, consequently, also paints. Anyway, not to pollute is already a way to reduce costs (health care, waste, diluents, and so on).

Finally, without giving due consideration to other “defects” reported by detractors as, for example, the need to have a heated warehouse. Progress needs a healthy “natural selection”; having adequate production systems – not only plants, but also business organisation and work-condition’s respect – are essential conditions for companies’ survival.

Colours safety and innovations for kids’ bedroom

You do not need to make masterpiece, you must be a masterpiece

Pure Alchemy!

Decoration workshop

The decoration workshops were born in 2012 to meet the need to achieve finished product with in­creasingly high level in order to guarantee our customers an always higher quality. Decoration process in Sice Pre­vit Company goes from classical finish of the furnishings up to innovative wall finishes which follow contemporary trends, as well as the customers’ stylistic needs. The team consists of seven decorators, each one with his specific and highly professional skills. This close-knit team is the real resource of this department. The passion that cha­racterizes our decorators and their different backgrounds allow having a greater creative capacity thus giving an ad­ded value to the entire productive process… 

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A long sustainability’s path

There are big Italian companies, known all

over the world that, without prejudices, did

something in –depth  and compared with the

territory that goes on over time despite the crisis

periods, the production changes, the normal difficulties

that are part of the “undertake”.

Since seventy years Snaidero, located in Majano, in the

province of Udine, manufactures kitchens by applying

its own tradition and experience in the technological

research and innovation. The company has moved from

the original idea to produce kitchens by using serial

concepts -are an inspiration the “American kitchens”- to

the current “smart kitchen” - the English

word “smart” includes different shades of the concept:

elegance and attractiveness, creative and reactive

intelligence - able to give intelligent solutions, really

flexible, very competitive in term of costs, at the same

time, with a high quality level; these latter features

typical of Made in Italy excellence, that can be seen in the

success of foreign market (essentially American but also

English, Turkish and of the Far East), which accounts for

50% of the annual turnover, complementary to the other

50 of national market. But the philosophy which is the

guiding principle for the company’s productive choices is

still the man, both as buyer and worker. The attention for

these areas took Snaidero 10 years ago to install a plant

able to coat with waterborne products and to choose for

a large part of production, low environmental impact

coatings (high solid UV, for example) and UV waterborne

finish. 

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Long lasting and high quality level powder coatings for a leader company in the “contract” furniture industry

«Each product must have a reason to exist.

This in the truth that emerges from the

selection of exemplary products which

represent best the success that Segis has realized».

This expression, quoted in Segis website, an Italian

company located in Poggibonsi in the province of Siena, a company leader in design and manufacturing

of innovative and high quality level seating for contract industry, describes exactly the company’s philosophy: to manufacture what can be useful to the market, paying attention to the

strictest International quality standard, looking for

the best materials, finishes and focusing the whole

productive process on a manufacturing in accordance

with the environmental sustainability principles.

Everything reflects Franco Dominici’s thoughts, creator

and founder of the company in 1983 and today in the

company together with his son Francesco.

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Tradition, high technology, quality and design in kitchen

THE IMPORTANCE OF FINISHES

Quality furniture requires an appropriate coating,

which meets at the same time, protection and aesthetic

needs, especially now when architects and designers

are increasingly directed towards the use of material

“as it is”.

«We need always more to use “natural effect” coatings

–tells us Nicola Stangherlin architect.

In particular for Minà collection, which includes

modern kitchens (island or wall), which remember the

industrial style ones (with for example many details

made of cast-iron); we needed finishes reproducing

the iron effect (corten, oxidation in its

different shades, zinc).

The coatings’ role is essential: they do not only

reproduce materials, but the effects too, in addition to

have aesthetic and protective functions».

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A material surface for the facade of the University of Hertfordshire’s Science Building

The Science Building, on the one hand, fully expresses its function through a maximum reduction of
the elements, while on the other, the choice of an ‘emotional’ coating, linked to materials that resonate with revisited local traditions, addressing the facade’s theme with suggestive implications. The building’s ‘skin’ - with the exclusion of the north wall - is composed of a double facade whose external part is composed of rectangular modules of drilled metal panels, which, in addition to acting as solar shades, create a ‘waved’ effect thanks to the disposition “open/close“ of the rectangular panels. The internal wrapper is a glass parallelepiped with exposed steel stringcourses.

The southwest corner marks the entrance, obtained by a hollowing out both the parallelepiped in bottom half as well as the top half, in which a symbolic tree will be placed.
The characteristic coating of the drilled metal panels is obtained with a special powder coating- Patina collection by Adapta Color, based in Pensicola, Spain, color Turquoise Cooper - accentuates the facades dynamic ‘wave’ effect which varies with the incidence of the light and the perspective of the observer. The bicolor effect obtained is very ‘material’ as it creatively reproduces oxidized copper.
The low environmental impact powder coating creates a suggestive effect, which would otherwise be difficult to achieve, except and at an extremely high cost, using copper, the inspired material.

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