HOFFMAN ESTATES, IL – March 12, 2014 – The Collision Repair Education Foundation and AkzoNobel Automotive & Aerospace Coatings are proud to announce the schools that were selected as the winners of the new Sustainability Challenge Grant. These schools were selected based on their submitted proposals for applying continuous improvement and sustainability principles that improve the processes in the school’s body shop or improve the way the shop interacts and impacts the community. The projects were driven by student teams in the school and mentored by the collision instructor. Each winning school will receive funding to introduce their proposed idea into their school and to report on the success of their project. The winners include:
Applied Technology Center (Rock Hill, SC)
Cerritos College (Norwalk, CA)
Gaithersburg High School (Gaithersburg, MD)
Manhattan Area Tech College (Manhattan, KS)
Northern Maine Community College (Presque Isle, ME)
In addition to the awards, the program also served as a way to educate collision students across the country about sustainability and its principles and how students could improve and make a positive impact on the environment. The sustainability video series, which is available at the Education Foundation’s website, is one of the available tool for instructors to teach their classes about sustainability.
Clark Plucinski, Collision Repair Education Foundation Executive Director said, “We are very proud to partner with AkzoNobel for this first ever school Sustainability Grant. This is a great way to get students involved at a young age to learn about their impact on the environment and to think about ways to make a difference, specifically in the area of collision repair. The proposals show that students are ready and willing to take on the problems of tomorrow today and we look forward to continuing this program in the future to introduce even more students to the idea of sustainability.”
“Sustainability is one of the top three strategic imperatives for AkzoNobel.” said Doug Holmberg, Director of Vehicle Refinishes North America. Holmberg continues, “To ensure this goal is achieved we must work with customers, suppliers and key stakeholders to build awareness and expand knowledge. It has been our privilege and pleasure to collaborate with the Collision Repair Education Foundation in an effort to bring this facet of learning to secondary and post-secondary schools that are in the process of preparing the next generation workforce for the collision repair industry.”
About AkzoNobel Automotive & Aerospace Coatings
AkzoNobel is a leading global paints and coatings company and a major producer of specialty chemicals. We supply industries and consumers worldwide with innovative products and are passionate about developing sustainable answers for our customers. Our portfolio includes well-known brands such as Dulux, Sikkens, International and Eka. Headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, we are consistently ranked as one of the leaders in the area of sustainability. With operations in more than 80 countries, our 50,000 people around the world are committed to delivering leading products and technologies to meet the growing demands of our fast-changing world.
AkzoNobel Automotive & Aerospace Coatings is one of the world’s leading suppliers of paints, coatings, film and services for car repair, commercial vehicles, interior and exterior automotive plastic and, aerospace coatings, and specialty finishes for consumer electronics, sports & leisure and cosmetics. It sells coatings and film for original equipment and refinishing applications to bodyshops, aircraft manufacturers, maintenance repair and overhaul, fleet owners, automotive suppliers, major bus and truck producers, contract manufacturers and coatings applicators. Brands include Sikkens®, Schramm®, Lesonal®, Dynacoat®, Wanda®, Sikkens Autocoat® BT, Soliant®, Technicoat®, Aerowave®, Aerobase® and Aerodur®. Operating in more than 60 countries, Automotive & Aerospace Coatings has specialists around the world who understand local markets and can serve local needs. Its state-of-the-art customer services, color and technology solutions include offering technical and logistical support and the delivery of training programs. Internet: www.akzonobel.com/aac
