Sipco, a leading paint manufacturer in the Middle East, offers a comprehensive range of products that are designed for a variety of interiors – whether homes, hotels or hospitals.

These include wall-coverings, emulsions, waterborne finishes, multi-coloured coatings and anti-bacterial paints.
Sipco is keen to offer various products in all fields and maintains its hard-won reputation through offering a range of products that is considered the largest in the region.
“Many of Sipco’s products are highly specialised and unique. This, coupled with a total commitment to customer service, guarantees complete satisfaction for all our esteemed customers,” says Ramzy Hafez, decorative division brand manager.
In addition, the company has recently launched several innovative measures that have made the selection of surface finishes less tedious.
“Our innovations have enabled customers to select the colour and the product that match their needs through 75 showrooms spread across the kingdom,” says Hafez.
Among its diverse line of products is a unique and distinctive range of highly decorative wall-covering based on glass fibre – Fiber Wall – which offers several benefits including an extended service life.
“Fiber Wall has a lot of distinctive properties as it is non-flammable and highly impact- and abrasion-resistant,” says Hafez. “This covering also allows to easily camouflage surface imperfections without the need for extensive preparations, whilst weak or unstable surfaces can be strengthened and reinforced, thereby extending service life and minimising future maintenance.”
Sipco’s Fiber Wall can be coated with a wide range of decorative emulsion and alkyd finishes.

Emulsions
Sipco’s emulsion range includes the Super flat, Maxi Matt interior and silk emulsions.

• Super flat emulsion: An economical, water thinnable, copolymer emulsion-based wall finish, the Super flat emulsion provides an ideal system for use on new plaster, says Hafez.
  Although suitable for the decoration of interior walls and ceilings, it can be applied to new plaster, cement and concrete earlier than standard matt emulsions, as it forms a water vapour-permeable film. It can be applied also on gypsum boards, brick, building boards and wood.
• Maxi matt interior emulsion: This Saso (Saudi Arabian Standards Organisation) approved, economical, high opacity, water-thinnable and washable, matt, copolymer based wall finish is described as being ideal for use on new plaster, allowing the drying process to continue after coating.
  Maxi Matt emulsions are suitable for the decoration of interior walls and ceilings and can be applied to new plaster, cement concrete, and gypsum board earlier than standard matt emulsions as they allows the substrate to continue drying.
• Silk emulsion: Is a durable, easy- to-apply water medium sheen acrylic copolymer finish that is washable and stain resistant and resists yellowing. It can be used for interior and exterior surfaces such as cement, plaster, concrete, stucco, gypsum board and building boards – particularly, in areas subject to condensation and wear and tear including kitchens, bathrooms, corridors, hallways and public areas.

Acrylic waterborne finishes
Sipco also offers a range of acrylic waterborne finishes including Acrylic Gloss, Acrylic Semi Gloss and Acrylic Matt, which are low-odour, environmentally-friendly, waterborne alternatives to conventional solvent-based gloss paints. Based on non-yellowing acrylic resins, they can be easily applied and dry quickly to form a water vapour permeable film that exhibits good adhesion, durability, washabilty and weather resistance.
They are suitable for the protection and decoration of most interior or exterior surfaces such as wood, metal, concrete, gypsum board, plaster and other building boards.
The products’ quick-drying and low-odour properties make them ideal for the decoration of public buildings such as schools, mosques, hospitals and offices, where a fast turnaround with minimal disruption is preferred, says Hafez.
In addition, the finish resists attack from alkaline salts and allows the surface to continue to dry.

New-generation paints
This apart, Sipco has a range of new-generation paints – marketed under the Fractalis brand – that can be used to produce the most modern finishes required by the market.
This range of multi-coloured coatings, which uses technologically-advanced, acrylic water-borne resins, was developed in Europe and has been given a worldwide patent.
“Fractalis addresses the needs of the design community and has been used by professionals and contractors worldwide to obtain a fine and exclusive interior decoration of public buildings, institutions, commercial and residential environments,” says the spokesman. “It is a line of fully water-based finishes for interior walls, ceilings and architectural components.”
The unique features of the product range translate into a number of economical benefits to the users including:

• Is tintable at point of sale;
• Has a low number of stocking units;
• Has no colour rotation inventory problems;
• Offers virtually unlimited colours;
• Is available in custom colours in quantities of as little as five litres.

There are seven products under the Fractalis range – namely Venicelook, Goatskin, Fireworks, Textura, Polaris, Halley and Liquidsky, which can provide a myriad of finishes, he says.

Anti-bacterial paints
Sipco also caters to the requirements of the hygiene sector with its range of anti-bacterial paints including Steracryl and Sterite
Steracryl is a highly durable  non-yellowing acrylic latex, with a mid sheen, containing a blend of  special biocides and fungicides to maintain a sterile surfaces. It is resistant to ultraviolet light, bacterial and microbial attack, and has good washability.
This product is  particularly suitable for use in hospitals, food processing plants  and laboratories.
Sterite is a tough, hard-wearing, heavy-duty fungicidal epoxy finish, which  provides a sterile surface for areas where hygiene is essential. Based on epoxy resin, and containing a special blend biocides and fungicides, it is able to resist the growth of mould  and bacteria. It provides an easy-to-clean, impact-resistant surface, which may be cleaned down with hot water/steam, scouring powder and detergent, giving long-lasting, maintenance-free decorative and hygienic protection.
It is described as being ideally suited for use in hospitals, particulaly in areas where sterile surfaces are vital such as operating theatres, laboratories, slaughterhouses and food preparation areas. All company’s products are manufactured in accordance to ISO 9001:2000 and also to Saso standards.
Since its establishment as a joint venture company in 1982 – between Saudi investors and Akzo Nobel – Sipco has been specialising in the development, manufacture and marketing of decorative, protective and industrial coatings, and construction chemicals, to the highest international technological standards for performance, safety and protection of the environment, says Hafez.
Today, Sipco is one of the largest producers of paint, coatings and chemicals in the Gulf, and through its association with Akzo Nobel, the company has benefited greatly from technology and product development, and also from the skills and expertise of Akzo’s management, he says.