Sustainable development progress

Progress in sustainable development is shown,
among other things, moving over from solvent-borne paints to water-borne and so-called high solids products with less solvent. In 2011, the share of water-borne products in production was 70.1 (2010: 70.3) percent.

The increased popularity of water-borne paints affects Tikkurila’s entire value chain. Reducing solvent emissions is also required by, for example, the EU’s VOC directive that defines the maximum permissible amount of solvent for different types of decorative paints. The increase in the share of water-borne products also reduces the relative share of VOC emissions in production, which was 0.44 (0.40) grams per product liter in 2011.

Water-borne and high solids products have been used in the Nordic countries for a long time. In Scandinavia, 99 percent of consumer paints sold by Tikkurila are water-borne.

Environmental awareness and the popularity of water-borne products have also increased in Russia. This is supported by the modern factory in Obukhovo, Russia, producing only water-borne products. A training center will open in conjunction with the plant in 2012 to provide training for different customer groups on, for example, the use of water-borne paints. At the end of 2011, more than 50 percent of products sold in Russia were water-borne (source: Chem-Courier).