[July 31, 2015]

Standox Lends Engineering and Coatings Support to Formula Student Motorsport Competition in Austria

Standox^®, one of the three premium global refinish brands of Axalta Coating Systems, a leading global supplier of liquid and powder coatings, has helped a team of students from the University of Applied Sciences in Vienna, Austria, to paint a racing car they designed for the 2015 Formula Student competition. This is the second consecutive year that Standox has supported the OS.CAR team of students. OS.CAR stands for Old School Car. Axalta's participation is part of the company's on-going commitment to promote the role of engineering in automotive design and coatings manufacturing and application.

This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150731005816/en/

Staff from Axalta in Austria and engineering students from the University of Applied Sciences in Vienna, Austria with Standox coated "Mako" design 2015 Formula Student car (Photo: Axalta)

The OS.CAR team car was unveiled at an official presentation on July 16, 2015 at the University and is set to compete against 42 other student teams from around the world from August 10 - 13, 2015 at the Formula One^TM Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria.

Formula Student is a well-established international educational motorsport competition held annually for engineering students and usually forms part of a degree-level project. Within the space of a year, students must design, cost, build, present and enter a single-seat racing car for a series of static and dynamic competitions.

Andreas Auer, Marketing and Business Development Manager for Axalta's Refinish Systems in Austria, explains how the project first came about: "In 2014, we got in touch with the team of engineering students at Vienna University as they were looking for some paint to undercoat and finish their racing car for the Formula Student competition. With Axalta's strong experience in motorsport, including Formula One^TM and NASCAR, we embraced the idea and went to visit the stuents. Their presentation was so persuasive, and they were so clearly passionate about the project, we decided to partner with them on more than just the coatings."

The students first brought the car, the CR-113, to the Axalta training center near Vienna. Standox technicians advised and supervised the students as they helped to prep the vehicle for painting, with the technicians completing the job using one of Standox's highly professional paint systems. The CR-113 successfully passed all technical checks and began competing in August 2014 on the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria, and made it through to the final round of the competition.

This year, the students were back at the Axalta training center with the new CR-115 car, called Mako, named after the type of shark. Again, Standox technicians supervised the students with the initial masking and sanding, and then took over the difficult task of painting and airbrushing the front nose of the car with a menacing-looking shark's face, mouth and teeth.

Karin Franz, Human Resources Manager for Axalta in Austria and Switzerland, says, "At Axalta, we are passionate about helping young people develop the skills they will need in their professional life. The Formula Student competition gives these students the opportunity to apply real-world engineering experience that will allow them to transition from the university to the workplace. We are delighted to be able to support the OS.CAR team. We wish them every success for this year's challenge with the new CR-115 car, which looks fantastic."

For further information on the OS.CAR racing team, please visit www.campus-racing.at. Details about Formula Student in Austria can be found at www.fsaustria.at, or follow the events on Twitter (News - Alert) on @fsaustria.

For more information on Standox and Axalta, visit Axalta Worldwide at www.axaltacoatingsystems.com.

About Axalta Coating Systems

Axalta is a leading global company focused solely on coatings and providing customers with innovative, colourful, beautiful and sustainable solutions. From light OEM vehicles, commercial vehicles and refinish applications to electric motors, buildings and pipelines, our coatings are designed to prevent corrosion, increase productivity and enable the materials we coat to last longer. With more than 145 years of experience in the coatings industry, the over 12,000 people of Axalta continue to find ways to serve our more than 120,000 customers in 130 countries better every day with the finest coatings, application systems and technology. For more information visit axaltacoatingsystems.com and follow us @axalta on Twitter and on LinkedIn.

About Standox

Standox, one of the global refinish coating brands from Axalta Coating Systems, supports its customers with premium product quality and in-depth consultancy to help obtain the best results. As a leading European automotive refinish brand based in Wuppertal, Germany, it delivers innovative product systems, and superior color-match accuracy and paint technology. Approvals from major car manufacturers reflect the brand's position as a leading partner to the automotive industry. Standox helps professional refinishers achieve right-first-time results.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150731005816/en/

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]