AkzoNobel invests in coatings application technology from Qlayers

Pioneering technology from Qlayers, which is opening up new possibilities in the application of industrial coatings, has prompted AkzoNobel to acquire a stake in this innovative startup.

Qlayers’ coating technology offers a fully automated solution that is safer, more consistent and faster than the manual coating processes used now in the industry. By eliminating overspray, it’s a sustainable solution that saves costs.

"This collaboration with Qlayers is not only a strategic investment for AkzoNobel and our co-investor ECFG, it’s a win-win-win for us all,” said Menno van der Zalm, Global Director Innovation at AkzoNobel. "It fits our vision to make the paints and coatings value chain more sustainable and efficient with innovative products and solutions for our customers. ECFG is adding another promising enterprise to their portfolio. And Qlayers is now ready to scale up and accelerate their growth. Working together, we’re going to make progress and be successful.”

Qlayers is part of AkzoNobel’s Paint the Future collaborative innovation ecosystem and has been working with the company ever since earning a coveted partnership agreement in its 2019 global startup challenge. Qlayers’ technology has already been used by customers to successfully apply anti-corrosive coating systems on storage tanks, where the benefit of automated application has enhanced worker safety and delivered increased sustainability and process efficiency results.

"I’m pleased that we can invest in Qlayers with AkzoNobel,” says Hans Bloemen, Managing Director at ECFG. "We’re bundling our strengths to help Qlayers reach the next level in their sales and business development. It’s not only about money, but also about knowledge and experience. This is how we realize added value, together.”

"We’re thrilled that AkzoNobel and ECFG have decided to make this investment in our company,” said Josefien Groot, Co-founder and CEO of Qlayers. "Our solution is a unique technology in the market. This investment brings us closer to our dream of a future in which paints and coatings are applied in a more efficient and sustainable way.”

AkzoNobel’s investment has been jointly made with ECFG’s Eindhoven Venture Capital Fund II (EVCF II), an investment fund primarily focused on innovative small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with distinctive product/market combinations.

For more information about the collaboration between AkzoNobel and Qlayers, see the Collaboration fuels our robotic revolution case study in AkzoNobel’s recently published Report 2020.