Seeing the Forests, Not Just the Trees
Posted on Monday, March 9, 2026
Seeing the Forests, Not Just the Trees
My 25-year career path began in sales for powder coatings followed by technical support for the products I sold. Then I added ecoat sales and technical service to my resume. I’ve spent the last 11 years in market segment leadership roles and/or business development roles. I share my history only to illustrate that I have seen the industry evolve in many ways. This includes the shift from liquid to powder, modifications to existing lines to increase throughput as well as the introduction of new equipment technology and new powder coating chemistries.
I have also experienced tremendous value as a Powder Coating Institute (PCI) member both personally and on a company level. From a coatings perspective, if you only see your own coating line, then you only see your trees in the forest. However, engaging in PCI gives you access to subject matter experts that have seen hundreds of forests.
I am speaking now to the plant/process engineer, coating line supervisor, plant manager or business owner: When you see the opportunity for growth in your company, where do you turn for advice or input on best practices to manage that growth? PCI membership offers the opportunity to consult with multiple experts that may or may not see the same solution to your individual opportunity. It makes sense to gain understanding from multiple perspectives.
There is no worse feeling than integrating a new coating and finding that it doesn’t work the way you hoped it would. But it’s quite the opposite reaction when you are overjoyed with the experience of adding new coating capabilities and it works.
When multiple bids are required by a customer for a new project, PCI provides access to companies you can vet to meet your needs. And when your team is working on a new project, you can include pretreatment suppliers, powder coating suppliers and test equipment suppliers in the selection and design process. PCI members fall under all these categories.
Michael Withers
Business Development Manager, Architectural and Thermoplastic
Axalta Coating Systems