AS THE region moves towards ever more green practices in building design, construction and maintenance, environmental compliance and certification of products is gaining increasing importance.

And as paints and coatings – including decorative, protective and marine systems – are one of the most used construction materials, the paints industry faces signficant challenges as well as opportunities in terms of environmental legislation.

“Currently, the industry’s only option is to utilise the environmental certification programmes from other countries. But, it’s not economically, environmentally or socially viable to rely on product certification bodies indicated by these programmes,” says Mike Murphy, the decorative technical support (DTS) manager of Sigma Paints, a leading Dammam-based paint manufacturer.

The methods of paint production, raw materials and formulations used in each country are different, as are the demands made of paints by the varying climates and consumers in each country. “This is why defining a green coating can indeed be like pulling a confused rabbit out of a magic hat,” he says.

There are many environmental agencies and classifications used in the Middle East including the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Estidama, Qatar Sustainability Assessment System (QSAS), Green Seal and the French NF Environment.

The most commonly known certification programme is Leed (Leadership in Energy and Environment Design), developed and administered by the US Green Building Council, of which Sigma’s parent company PPG is a member.

Leed references Green Seal for some paints and coatings and Green Seal references the American SCAQMD (South Coast Air Quality Management District) for further restrictions on VOCs (volatile organic compounds), which are present in most conventional paint types.

All environmental standards restrict VOC emissions as they affect both the external atmosphere and the indoor air quality. In addition, all environmental standards outlaw certain chemicals which have been found to be harmful to human health. Hence, the need for reformulation of conventional paints and coatings – in particular to replace solvented alkyds, epoxies and polyurethane as well as to reduce or replace titanium dioxide, a pigment that provides essential qualities to paints. Titanium dioxide, although not harmful in itself, generates numerous hazards to the environment during its production, Murphy adds.

Producing sustainable paints requires sustainable raw materials and sources, and given that Saudi Arabia may not have all of these materials readily available, the task can be very challenging, he points out.

Therefore, an innovative reformulation of coatings and paints is required.

Sigma has taken a proactive approach to these challenges by formulating Ecoplus, a zero-VOC product that has been awarded the Ecolabel. The European Ecolabel is a voluntary scheme established in 1992 to encourage businesses to market products and services that are kinder to the environment. Products and services awarded the Ecolabel carry the flower logo, allowing consumers to identify them easily. While the logo may be simple, the environmental criteria behind it are tough, and only the best products, which are kindest to the environment, are entitled to carry the EU Ecolabel, says Murphy. Performance, VOC content, chemical components, materials and resources are all individually certified, offering the most comprehensive environmental safeguards.

Ecoplus features zero harmful emissions (zero VOC), no risk from harmful chemicals, exceptional performance and durability, leading to decreased maintenance, and sustainable raw materials (with a significant reduction in titanium dioxide), and exceeds all current product certification standards, says Murphy.

“The benefit of Ecoplus is that it goes beyond the current and commonly-adopted product certification requirements for VOC and also addresses the other sustainability issues of durability, chemical components and raw materials, reduction in titanium dioxide. This means that the very basics of paint formulation have had to be changed,” he claims.

“We, at Sigma Paints, believe we are at the forefront when it comes to preserving the environment for future generations,” he says. “We believe that our own sustainability as a company is dependent upon providing our customers with not only a range of products that conforms to legislation but also on bringing innovative products to the market that exceed the legislative requirements and actively reduce our carbon footprint.”

Murphy stresses the need to use high-quality paint that are applied correctly – as even the highest performing coating will fail if not applied by trained applicators. With paints and coatings coming in towards the end of projects, they are very often seen as areas to cut costs when a project is running over budget. Using poor quality paints adds to the environmental burden while increasing overall costs in the long term, he says.

“Lower quality paints will result in high materials consumption, poor durability and short life cycle and more frequent maintenance. This translates into higher energy consumption through larger volumes of paint and raw materials required, and more packaging metals and plastics and higher transportation costs – and hence long-term costs in both monetary and environment terms,” he concludes.