From a small shed in 1981, Berger Paints Bahrain WLL (BPB) has made impressive strides, producing brands in protective and architectural coatings and boasting of a turnover in excess of $5 million.

According to general manager Ashok Iyer, production has more than doubled in 10 years and the company expects significant growth despite having to operate in a market that is accommodating what he calls cheap and spurious paints.

"With the hike in oil prices, the settlement of the dispute with Qatar and the prevailing political and economic scenario in Bahrain, the company expects significant growth," says Iyer.

The company could expand the way it did thanks to its financial and marketing strategies, he points out. One secret of rising production was, as Iyer puts it, "the continuous ploughing back of internally generated funds". The strategy worked very well. "Today Berger Bahrain has an impeccable track record with its bankers", enthuses the official.

But Berger Bahrain has other things to be happy about. The company is proud of its marketing operations and reach. And, importantly, it has sound basic facilities. "Berger Paints now boasts a modern manufacturing facility, a well-equipped laboratory for research and development and quality control and extensive warehousing. Continuous investment in upgrading R&D facilities has helped Berger in retaining its superior edge in the market," says Iyer.

Indeed, Berger Bahrain has the distinction of being the first paint-manufacturing unit in Bahrain to be awarded the ISO 9002 certification. That milestone was reached in June 2000. It has also been strong on the consultancy side, thereby rising beyond its role as a supplier of paints and protective coatings to industry. The consultancy is offered from concept to completion, the company having accumulated a wealth of experience from working with design and construction teams. British Gas and Nace-qualified inspectors carry out periodic inspections to assist clients and contractors on appropriate surface preparations and paint applications. "Customer confidence and trust have been painstakingly built through the supply of consistently superior quality products and a high level of customer service," notes Iyer.

Berger has a very long history in its field of speciality. It was in 1760 that a young German chemist named Lewis Berger established the company in England. After more than two centuries, Berger Paints officials like to say it has emerged as a defining force in the global paint business. Today more than 50 operations worldwide bear the Berger name, from China to South-east Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and South America. Berger has an extensive distribution network in the GCC region. Indeed, when the Bahrain plant was established in 1981 as a joint venture between Berger International Ltd and local shareholding, it was Berger's first paint manufacturing unit in the Middle East. Encouraged by its success, Berger established a second unit in Sharjah in 1989.

The post-Gulf War boom and increasing demand resulted in a transfer of the manufacturing facilities from Sharjah, and Berger set up a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant in Dubai in 1996.

In the area of protective coatings, the company markets chlorinated rubber-based primers, intermediates and finishes; polyurethane top coats with long-term recoat ability and gloss retention with the ability to resist a large number of chemicals and water; a wide range of epoxy primers, both organic and inorganic; a high temperature-resistant primer and top coats and an environmentally friendly high-build epoxy coating that incorporates glass flakes and inert pigments for abrasion resistance.

In architectural coatings, it has water-repellent paints; luxury paints with a silky sheen; a flat finish emulsion recommended for both interiors and exteriors; stone finish coatings; 'synthetic render and synthetic finish' coatings and acrylic premium and elastic premium paints.

Berger introduced a new colour counter at a dealer outlet with the beckoning name of 'Berger Colour Your Ideas'. It is a computerised colour mixing facility that does not limit the customer's imagination to the standard shade cards. With the help of a custom-designed computer incorporating an advanced software, customers can now manipulate photographs of rooms and exteriors and re-create special shades suited to their decor and mood. Once the shade is selected, colorant is dispensed with absolute accuracy to the base and the paint is mixed and ready in minutes.

But while leading international players like Berger have engendered confidence through years of research and innovation, they have to contend with operators who steer their way through the market with cheap and dubious offerings.

"The Bahrain market is changing and a number of cheap quality products are available in Bahrain, particularly from neighbouring GCC countries," notes Iyer who warns that the substandard paints will in the long run only prove detrimental to consumers' interests. "In this context," he recommends, "the government of Bahrain should formally implement the Bahrain Standard Specifications and thereby keep out spurious products in line with the practices prevailing in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Oman." And while Bahrain is a free market and local manufacturers can compete internationally in terms of quality and service, they are faced with high manufacturing costs and infrequent shipping schedules to emerging markets in the Middle East and North Africa, all of which could constitute "stumbling blocks" to competitiveness in export markets.

Hence, greater official support for local producers would go a long way in promoting the growth of local industry and the creation of employment opportunities, observes Iyer.