Shown are hall of famers Greg Bocchi, PCI’s former executive director, and Sam Dawson, general manager at Nordson Corp. Bocchi, ED for 25 years, and Dawson, present at the charter meeting, were both heavily influential in the success of the association during its early years. All photos courtesy of the Powder Coating Institute.

When the powder coating industry was turned away by every major trade association in the late 1970s, a small group of believers built their own. Forty-five years later, PCI's standards, certifications, and flagship magazine have shaped the way the world finishes.

By Lori Beckman

Forty-six years ago, a determined group of powder coating industry advocates collaborated with a shared conviction of building a community where manufacturers, suppliers and finishers could pool knowledge, set standards and collectively champion powder coating. At a time when powder coating was still earning its place in mainstream manufacturing, the Powder Coating Institute’s (PCI) charter meeting was held in 1980.

In the early years, the association adopted the “Five Es” to promote powder: Environment, Economical, Efficiency, Energy and Excellence. Over the next four and a half decades, PCI relentlessly promoted and educated the industry about all things powder and presented it as an alternative to solvent-based liquid coating, eliminating volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The association is attributed to developing globally recognized quality control standards, drafting and perfecting the widely distributed powder coating user’s handbook, planning and executing powder coating conferences, trade shows and user workshops, creating webinars and other technical resources on powder coating, establishing a certification program and beginning its flagship publication, Powder Coated Tough.

As I began researching the history of PCI, I discovered that although its charter meeting happened 46 years ago, it gained its nonprofit status May 1, 1981. Therefore, we’ll call 2026 the 45th anniversary of the institute that played a critical role in the rise and history of the powder coating industry.

Rejection Leads to Redirection

Although powder coating is widely used today as an industrial coating, it wasn’t an acceptable process when it was first developed.

“In the early stages of powder, it wasn’t considered a performance technology,” explained Steve Houston, president of Vitracoat and former PCI executive director from 2008-2010, who has been involved with the association since almost it’s beginning. “Powder was considered an alternative without solvents and not as good as liquid.”

However, Houston explains that powder’s bad rap early on attributed to poor application techniques. “I think one of the challenges was that to apply a coating, you must apply it properly with good pretreatment and right cure or it doesn’t perform well,” Houston added. “And because it was so new, you had an uneducated group of people applying it wrong; and then you had this technology that was peeling off and corroding fast. I think PCI was very influential in saving powder’s reputation, and it had a hard road to climb to overcome that.”

Because of powder’s reputation, when resin and powder manufacturers for powder coatings approached various trade associations back in the late 1970s about adding powder manufacturers and raw materials suppliers to their membership, the answer was a resounding “No.”

“Existing associations were not enthusiastic about powder coatings at that time,” said Chuck Danick, owner of consulting company Danick Specialties & Support, and polymer scientist who still actively formulates polymers as requested by his clients. Danick was present at PCI’s charter meeting and was heavily involved in the association’s success from a powder coating development standpoint. “We were even told that powder coating might never become a widely accepted industrial finish.”

Therefore, to better serve this developing technology, Gordon Cole, a professional working in the coatings industry who felt strongly about powder and its potential, initiated PCI’s charter meeting by inviting 15 raw materials suppliers and powder manufacturers to discuss the founding. The meeting took place at the Sheraton Hopkins Hotel in Cleveland, Ohio, on Sept. 9, 1980. The new association’s budget was $54,000.

According to Danick, corporations that were competitors with each other such as AMOCO, Cargill, Dow Chemical USA, Shell Oil Co., Ferro Corp. and SCM-Glidden Corp., invested initially in the institute’s future by supporting it with required membership dues.

As executive secretary of the association, Cole ensured that the group formed committees within the first year to efficiently tackle PCI’s mission in full force.

Proceeding Cole’s leadership, Greg Bocchi was hired in 1984 as the first executive director and held that position for the next 25 years of PCI’s life, paving the way for the association’s growth and longevity. “Through the inception, he put together the first staff and was involved with a lot of initiatives moving forward,” explained Bob Cregg, business director – powder coating resins at Covestro and current past president of the PCI board of directors.

PCI charter officers and members at the charter meeting at the Sheraton Hopkins Hotel in Cleveland, Ohio, on Sept. 9, 1980. Seated left to right: PCI legal counsel, Tim O’Brien; Vice President Chuck Johnson, Ferro Corp.; President Tom Scattolini, Armstrong Products; Treasurer Charles Taylor, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.; Glen Swanson, H.B. Fuller Co.; Executive Secretary Gordon Cole, GCA Associates. Standing left to right: Michael Powers, Dow Chemical; Ron Farrel, SCM-Glidden Corp.; Ron Batchelor, Urachem U.S.; Sam Dawson, Nordson Corp.; John Toomey, Farboil Co.; Hani Azzam, Interrad Corp.; Don Tyler, Volstatic Inc.; Bob Warner, Industrial Powder Coatings Inc. (PCI member representatives not pictured: Richard Rows, Cargill Inc.; Alfred Harradine, Ciba-Geigy Corp.; and Bob Korrecky, The Polymer Corp.)

PCI’s Role in Polymer Development

Powder coating technology was invented in the mid-1940s, way before PCI’s inception. But powder coating didn’t become popular and accepted until after the association was formed and industry collaboration, spearheaded by the association’s efforts, began to educate and communicate powder coating’s benefits.

“The message was that powder coating was not something to be afraid of; it was something to be embraced. It was there to tackle key issues like getting away from solvents and eliminating VOCs,” Cregg said. “I think working together as all the companies did in those days helped to calm people and let them know they were not going to be a guinea pig and that we were all here as a whole industry.”

The organization pushed the technology forward in many ways through the years. One example, which was a pivotal moment in powder coating history, was the collaboration of raw material suppliers (many of which were PCI members) in the mid-1980s that developed a broad spectrum of polymers and curatives by implementing advanced formulation tools.

Before the introduction of a variety of exterior-durable polyester resins, the powder industry was dominated by epoxy resins that did not have exterior ultraviolet resistance, gloss retention properties sought for the metal decorative marketplace.

Additives and pigments especially suited for powder coatings were created and were well ahead of the initial demand by powder manufacturers.

“This development was dramatically aided by computer simulation polyester resin programs offered by key organic acid suppliers such as AMOCO and key glycol suppliers, such as Eastman Chemicals,” Danick explained. “As I like to say, we were able to run ‘the last experiment first’ by using these resin synthesis programs. Polymer formulation tools like this helped polyester polymer development move very quickly.”

During this time, Danick continued, a full palette of exterior-durable hydroxyl polyesters ranging from 35 OH value to 300 OH value was commercialized. These polyesters provided powder performance properties for gasoline resistance required by the outboard motor manufacturers, some lawn and garden applications and some applications that required even better chemical resistance and hardness required by the automotive industry. These developments helped push the powder industry forward.

Creating Quality Standards

PCI’s promotion of industry advancements also meant creating test methods for powder coating within the association’s first decade of existence. The technical committee led the charge in the adoption of these standards as ASTM (American Society of Testing and Materials) standards, which became known world-wide as ASTM D3451. Danick is proud of having helped write and publicize this standard.

“Jeff Hagerlin, technical director of O’Brien Corp. at the time, was a PCI and ASTM committee member who helped push the test methods through the submittal and publication process at ASTM,” Danick explained.

The association also established visual smoothness standards around 1994 that became global standards as well. “We needed a way to describe coating smoothness without seeing it,” Houston said. “So, as part of PCI, five or six powder manufacturers got together and developed a very smooth panel, we call it ‘water smooth.’ And then we developed a rough panel that we call ‘orange peel,’ followed by eight other steps. We laid all these panels out on a table and selected them on a smoothness scale of one to ten.”

Fuller O’Brien already designed the formulas, he added, so the association started selling hundreds of panels monthly to powder manufacturers to help them create the desired finished product. The visual smoothness standards can be ordered on the association’s website today as a binder containing all 10 panels.

Composing Technical References

Continuing to fulfill its mission to promote and educate on the topic of powder coating, the association’s technical committee, from PCI’s beginning, is responsible for publishing dozens of technical references, including 28 technical briefs, test procedures, the troubleshooting guide and the widely implemented “Powder Coating: The Complete Finisher’s Handbook,” which is now in its 5^th edition.

“The Handbook is literally the Bible of the industry,” Houston stated. “There are a few out there that are similar, but none that give the facts on what powder coating is, how it should be applied, how it’s supposed to be used, and how users should protect themselves when applying it. It was one of the first and most widely circulated tools that helped get the word out about powder coating.”

These references have provided instruction to powder coating material and equipment suppliers and businesses applying powder coating for decades. All of which are globally recognized and supported.

As technology advanced, training manuals were presented on CD, and then eventually webinars were produced, creating an entire library of powder coating knowledge from industry experts to those wanting to learn about the trade. The Instant Classroom currently on PCI’s website is an archive of webinars that are free and available to anyone interested in the numerous topics pertaining to powder coating, including anything from “Specifying Architectural Powder Coatings for AAMA” to “Maximizing Profits in a Job Shop.”

First Trade Show and Workshops

Through the first decade of the association’s history, PCI members conducted powder coating seminars at various surface finishing trade events throughout the country. However, none of these shows were solely dedicated to powder coating. But as the technology’s awareness caught on through the 1980s, thanks to PCI’s efforts, the association’s leaders believed there was a need for a trade show devoted to powder technology.

So, the Drawbridge Inn in Ft. Mitchell, Kentucky (close to Cincinnati, Ohio,) was the location of the first trade show sponsored by PCI and held Nov. 1-3, 1988, named Powder Coating 1988.

The success of that show and the growth of the industry prompted Powder Coating 1990 at a larger venue—the Cincinnati Convention Center. The event hosted 68 exhibitors in 25,000 square feet of space with more than 2,000 attendees. The show became a regular event that was hosted in numerous cities across the country.

The annual Powder Coating Week has since replaced the trade show and consists of several events in one, including a tabletop exhibit, a technical conference and other special focuses for custom coaters and end users learning how to integrate and/or apply powder coating in a shop.

To continue to educate the finishing industry, in 1993, PCI conducted its first two-day hands-on powder coating workshops. These intensive educational sessions combined classroom presentations and first-hand instruction in the powder coating lab.

“Having them at manufacturers’ facilities really elevated the ability to serve the attendee and to get the best quality product out there,” Houston explained.

The Powder Coating Institute’s display at the Coating show in 2008. In 1999, the association initiated the event, which was a conference and a trade show representing all finishing types while bringing together many industry associations and organizations to cooperate on a comprehensive event for the industrial coatings market.

Challenging Market Sparks Certifications

The 1980s reflected heavy growth for the North American powder coating market. Sales were skyrocketing in powder coating technology, especially due to federal and state governments supporting VOC legislation, according to Bob Cregg.  

Business leaders became comfortable with an accelerating market. But when the market plateaued in the late 1990s, the association also slowed. “That was when we started to talk to our members about what we needed to do next,” he said. “We didn’t need to keep doing the same things we had already accomplished. We decided there was a need for certifications.”

Job shops were reporting that there were some applicators giving powder coating a bad name because they were failing to apply powder correctly. The proper steps weren’t being taken to guarantee powder adhesion. “They blamed powder coating, giving powder a bad name,” Cregg added. “So, job shops/custom coaters were looking for a way to differentiate themselves.”

Steve Houston, PCI’s executive director at the time, wrote the first certification in 2008, which was approved by the board of directors in 2009. From his perspective, certifications were an opportunity for the association to promote themselves by simultaneously helping custom coaters and OEMs that were striving to establish a proper quality powder coating system.

“I thought that if we’re an association that really wants to promote this technology as a high performing technology, wouldn’t it behoove us to go out and find the high performance applicators and promote them? They could also promote themselves because we certified them,” he explained.

The PCI 3000 and 4000 certification programs have been in place since then, which has certified 75 companies since its inception. The program is an audited system designed for both custom coaters and original equipment manufacturers that aspire to quality powder coating process recognition.   

A Trademark to Promote Powder

The 1990s also triggered a marketing and advertising program for PCI which led to the creation of the Powder Coated Tough Mark in 1995. The trademark was developed in response to consumer research conducted by the association. The research indicated that durability is the most important attribute of a powder coated product. By labeling powder coated products with the Powder Coated Tough Mark, consumers would know that the product is a good value.

Implementing the Mark was the first time the association attempted to get the consumer involved in the selection process.

The Mark, used by thousands of organizations applying powder coatings or promoting the use of it on their products, is free only after submitting an application on PCI’s website that agrees to the usage requirements.

The Powder Coated Tough Mark is the result of a PCI marketing campaign that began in 1995 to create an industry “seal of approval.” The Industry Communication Committee then reviewed 20 designs and selected six, which were presented to focus groups of consumers who were heads of households. The consensus of consumers and finishers led to the implementation of the Mark and is still available and widely used today.

The Beginning of an Unrivaled Project

As technology ramped up in the mid to late 1990s, PCI did so right along with it, launching its website in 1997. The website was and continues to be an invaluable resource to members and the industry, offering educational content on powder, information on PCI events, membership lists and contact information, and more.

However, the largest promotional tool PCI has produced to date is Powder Coated Tough magazine. Celebrating its 20^th anniversary this year, the bimonthly print publication is still the only publication of its kind that covers solely powder coating.

“The magazine was a great pivotal point in our ability to get the word out to the market in our words, in our members’ words, with no commercials,” Houston stated. “It was a great step change in our ability to fulfill our mission to promote and educate the market.”

Cregg concurred. “The magazine brought focus to the technology in a publication as opposed to some of the other magazines where powder might be mentioned once every year or every other year. It really brought a holistic approach to powder coating in a very professional way.”

Cregg added that he’s still proud that the association continues to be successful with the publication and maintains it to this day when many other associations had to shut down their publications through the years.

Although it’s the same publication, PCT, like PCI, has evolved with the times. The brand is now available as a Digital Edition and publishes an annual Buyers Guide as the November/December issue as well as a Spanish Digital Edition four times per year.

Attendees learn hands-on techniques at a PCI Powder Coating 202 Workshop held at Gema USA in 2018. Powder Coating Workshops, two-day events held almost once a month across the country, offer powder coaters the opportunity to be educated on the latest processes and practices in the industry.

A Group of Like-Minded Professionals

PCI’s many milestones have paved the path to its success today. The association’s like-minded professional members have collaborated to develop programs designed to improve application techniques, elevate industry standards and support workforce development. Contributing to these efforts with people who share the same goals and passion for the industry is a fulfilling and enjoyable experience, according to Houston, Cregg and Danick.

“It was and continues to be an honor to work with the many talented members of the PCI,” Chuck Danick said. “As a raw materials supplier, powder manufacturer and now a consultant, serving on the PCI board was always something I believed would help benefit the powder coatings industry.”

“The best part about an association is being able to do things that you yourself can’t do by yourself,” Cregg stated. “I would say the networking, the value of the networking that I get out of the association is second to none. The ability to pick up the phone when I’ve got a technical problem or an application issue and ask someone for help is invaluable.” Cregg added that he has been impressed with the camaraderie of the association.

Houston expressed similar sentiments. “I enjoy sitting in a room with people who want the same thing I want, which is to grow the industry, educate the people that use our product and be successful,” he said. “I have been so blessed being a part of an association where I have gained friends who share competitive roles at competitive companies. And I’ve been blessed to be a part of the board and participate in that way with great, committed industry associates.”

Member participation, Houston stressed, is key to keeping the association running well and continuing to promote its message. Whether it’s by joining a committee, volunteering to conduct a webinar, gaining certification, or sponsoring or attending an event, there are many ways to get involved. 

For more information about PCI and how to join and get involved, visit www.powdercoating.org. 

Lori Beckman is editor of Powder Coated Tough.

The PCI Hall of Fame Award was first presented in 2002, to recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to The Powder Coating Institute with 10+ years of service to the powder coating industry.