Cromax, one of the refinish brands of Axalta Coating Systems and distributed in Ireland by Crown Paints, has become a Silver Partner of the Punch Powertrain Solar Team, run by engineering students from the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium.

Cromax will not only supply and apply the paint for the specially designed solar car, but will also provide technical expertise and guide the students through the paint preparation steps. The brand’s logo will also appear on the car, on the team’s clothing and on the team support vehicles. The team will compete in this year’s Bridgestone World Solar Challenge in Australia from 8 to 15 October 2017.

“Cromax was a fantastic partner for the 2015 World Challenge so we are incredibly pleased to be working with the Cromax brand again, this time as a Silver Partner. Our shared values, which include a love for innovation, a dedication to teamwork and an integral philosophy for sustainability, mean we are confident that this year, along with our other partners, we will improve on our previous years’ finishing positions,” says, Robert Kuchera, Business Relations & Events for Punch Powertrain Solar Team.

Dries Van den Bergh, Cromax Brand Manager Europe, Middle East and Africa, adds, “We’re delighted to be sponsoring this dynamic team of ambitious students once again and our partnership affirms Axalta’s commitment to supporting Science, Technology, Engineering and Math initiatives. By elevating our support to Silver Partner status, the team is now relying on us from the very start of the process. Thanks to our extensive experience in many different forms of motorsport across the globe, and our strong ethos for innovation, we can provide the team with valuable guidance early on.”

The weight of the paint is critical for the team and needs to be balanced with the fact that the finish needs to be eye-catching. However, carbon fibre can be quite porous, which can end up adding paint weight to the car. Van den Bergh says, “Our experience in motorsport means we can help the team find solutions for these types of issues.”

This year’s entry will be sprayed at the Cromax EMEA Training Centre, in Mechelen, Belgium, and will be officially unveiled in the summer.