Modernisation, a well-oiled and expanding sales network and top-quality products at Saudi Industrial Paint Company (Sipco) contributed to a 25 per cent increase in turnover in 2003 compared with the previous year.

Sipco, one of the largest manufacturers of high-quality paints, sealants, adhesives and construction chemicals, expects to witness further growth in 2004, says Ramzy Hafez, brands manager
“We are optimistic about business prospects this year.  We have become even more customer-oriented and are analysing ways in which to enhance our service and appeal to customers,” he says. “We have new strategies in place to increase our market penetration - both vertically through expanding our dealer network and horizontally by increasing our focus on the customer.”
One of the strategies is to raise brand awareness and Hafez said the company would relaunch some of its upgraded products during the course of 2004 on the heels of the recent relaunch of Tilex, a tile adhesive, which is also one of its top-selling products.
From its Dammam head office, Sipco controls operations through branch offices and distribution warehouses in Riyadh, Jeddah, Abha, Kuwait and Dubai. The company’s Egyptian operations include a manufacturing plant in Sadat City and offices in Cairo. Elsewhere it has agents in Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan. The network, well supported by the Dammam head office, ensures that the various markets have immediate local access and technical advice.
In Saudi Arabia itself Sipco is looking at expanding its distributor strength from the current level of 70 and has signed up new distributors in Qatar, Kuwait and Egypt, marketing manager Alaa Al Khishen said.
Al Khishen also stated that Sipco was looking at expanding business in Syria and exploring a new market in Libya where it recently secured two orders.
Recent steps taken include the launch of a new website which is highly interactive.
Sipco’s extensive factory has a new automated production plant supported by high-tech quality control and research and development laboratories to cater to growth in the industry.
Late last year, Sipco received accreditation to the ISO9001:2000 standards, upgrading its quality management systems from the previous ISO 9001:1994. The company has posted the new quality management procedures on its internal website to enable employees to familiarise themselves with the system and their role in achieving and continually improving it.
Sipco has in place a very experienced team of managers, technicians and chemists and an extensive factory and warehousing facility, incorporating a new automated production plant , which is supported by high-tech quality control and research and development laboratories to effectively cater to the growth in the industry, Al Khishen says.
Sipco has a production capacity of 20 million litres per eight-hour shift, annually.
A continuing programme of expansion and modernisation has ensured that the production, material handling and storage facilities at Sipco benefit from up-to-date equipment and systems.
New bulk storage facilities are linked to fully automated filling equipment with optimised product flow. A state-of-the-art computer system is linked to production storage using a PLC (process logic control) system that incorporates the ordering and stock control of finished goods. The satellite warehouses in Riyadh, Jeddah, Abha, Kuwait and Dubai in the UAE will also be linked to the same system, Al Khishen says.
Sipco has also paid attention to improving aspects of health and safety within the factory to a large extent. Zoned electrical areas, extraction systems, and fire safety measures all contribute to an environment conforming to ISO standards.
A new, world-class, tinting system allows the production of over 100,000 colour options in most products and a spectrophotometer system allows automated matching to customer’s samples of ceramics, fabrics or even carpets. With a product range of almost 400 items customers can rest assured that Sipco can offer a product that suits their needs, says Al Khishen.
Sipco, formed in 1982 as a joint venture between Saudi investors and Akzo Nobel of Holland, has developed its products to the highest international technological standards for performance, safety and protection of the environment.
Akzo Nobel is one of the largest producers of paint, coatings and chemicals in the world, and through its association with the firm, the company has benefited greatly from technology and product development and also from the skills and expertise of Akzo’s management, says Al Khishen
During its formative years Sipco also built close relationships with US-based ICI-Devoe Coatings, culminating in licensing agreements to manufacture specialised products for the protective coatings market, and in particular for Aramco.
The company has the following divisions:
Decorative paints
“Already ahead of its rivals in product presentation, Sipco has 70 showrooms covering the major cities and remote areas of the Kingdom,” says a company spokesman. “All of these are equipped with a corporate identity and point of sale designed by Sipco, allowing customers to select from a wide choice of products including eight designer finishes unique to the Middle East, a premium range of long-life exterior and interior coating, under the brand name of Ultrashield, and an advanced computerised tinting system Colortec, offering over 100,000 colours.”
Sipco also introduced a new concept in paint selection late last year, enabling end-users to obtain a colour of their choice more easily. The concept, introduced at a recently-opened showroom in Jeddah, allows the end-user to choose a product and colour in a unique and lavish setting, through a selection of more than 360 colours and products in three different types of display units.
In addition, Sipco offers a wide range of high-performance floor coatings under the brand name of Color-Dek, which range from single-pack polyurethane and two-pack epoxies to solvent-free self-levelling epoxies and screeds providing the highest performance level for chemical and mechanical abrasion resistance, along with necessary primers and repairing mortars.
Protective coatings
“Sipco has retained its hard-won reputation as a major supplier of protective coating to the petrochemical and downstream industries, Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC), Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) and Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic),” the spokesman says.  Sipco also has approvals, and provides technical and application advice, as well as products, to a number of customers, prominent among whom are Saudi Aramco and ABV Rock - two of the largest users of protective coatings in the region. The division continues to develop into new areas, tackling new problems and technologies to provide protection in one of the harshest environments on the planet.
Industrial finishes
This division had been established to focus on providing industrial wood and metal finishes, and adhesive products to major manufacturing outlets. Industrial wood finishes include stains, polyurethanes, acrylics, nitrocellulose, polyesters, special effects and the latest addition ‘UV’ curing finishes. Metal finishes include coil coatings, standard and quick-drying finishes and stoving enamels.
Construction chemicals
The latest addition to the company’s activities is a range of construction chemicals and building products, branded under the name of Finex. Manufactured in accordance with Sipco’s ISO 9001 quality assurance schemes, the Finex range includes Brimo sealants and Snap adhesives, plus a whole new range of items including concrete and mortar admixtures, surface treatments, repair compounds, tile adhesives, grouts, general adhesives, bonding agents, cementitious coatings and waterproofing agents.
The company also has an inks and can coatings division to cater to the needs of the Middle East’s printing and packaging industry.  
Sales and technical support
Sipco has specialist sales teams in each operating division actively selling throughout Saudi Arabia and its neighbouring countries.
In addition a training school is available to teach its customers’ staff painting skills ranging from brush and roller work, through airless spraying and spatulas and sponges. The Dammam head office is also home to Sipco’s quality control and development laboratories.
“Using state-of-the-art equipment, these facilities ensure that all our products are produced to the highest consistent standards and that development of new products, with ever-higher specifications, is given the high priority they deserve. It is this dedication to quality, through laboratory management and staff, which has gained Sipco, the Saudi Arabian Standards Organisation (Saso) approval certificate,” says Al Khishen.