History

1918–1948 Formative years

1918 May Company founded in Kanzaki, Amagasaki with 500,000 yen in capital
1920 August JAPANITE introduced and registered as the Company's first patent (patent no. 39623, August 1921, for method of manufacturing varnish)
1926 August CELVA, the first lacquer produced in Japan, successfully introduced
1927 November SABINAITE, a specially formulated oil-based rust-prevention coating, introduced (patent no. 76819, May 1928)
1933 May Tokyo Office opened
June New Tokyo Plant (now Tokyo Office) opened in Ota-ku, Tokyo

1949–1986 Postwar growth

1949 May Shares listed on the Osaka, Tokyo, and Kobe stock exchanges
1950 April New head office building built in Higashi-ku (now Chuo-ku), Osaka
1955 September Multicolor ZOLACOAT coating introduced
1960 November Hiratsuka Plant (now Hiratsuka Office) opened in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture
November Began production of CANCOAT can coating
1961 November Nagoya Plant (now Nagoya Office) opened in Nishikamo (now Miyoshi), Aichi Prefecture
1965 April Technical Research Center (now R&D Center) opened in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture
July Invested in Kansai United Paints Pte. Ltd. (now Kansai Paint (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.) in Singapore
1967 January Corporate creed established to mark 50th anniversary of Company founding
1968 October Acquired shares in Sanpo Paint K.K. (now KAT Co., Ltd.)
November Funds invested to establish Thai Kansai Paint Co., Ltd. (Thailand)
1971 April Kanpe Decorative Coatings (now Kanpe Hapio) established with the merger of the Osaka, Nagoya, and Tokyo Kanpe Decorative Coating businesses
June Kanuma Plant (now Kanuma Office) opened in Kanuma, Tochigi Prefecture
1983 February RETAN PG80 automotive refinish coating introduced
1985 April Acquired shares in Kanpe Trading Co., Ltd.
October Initial sales of FANTAC adhesive coating marking film
November Funds invested to establish Taiwan Kansai Paint Co., Ltd.
1986 September Sonne EDUV electrodeposited photoresists for printed circuit boards introduced
September Invested in Goodlass Nerolac Paints Pvt Ltd (India) (now Kansai Nerolac Paints Limited)

1987–2010 Global expansion

1987 February Kansai Paint (America), Inc. (USA) established
September New corporate brand ALESCO introduced
1988 January ESCO penetrating epoxy anticorrosion coating introduced
September Funds invested to establish Kanpe Kyohan Osaka K.K.
September Joint venture KDK Automotive Coatings Co., Ltd. established in South Korea (now KNK Coatings Co., Ltd.)
1989 April Funds invested to establish Kanpe Kyohan Tokyo K.K.
1990 April Kansai Paint Europe Limited (with head office in London and branch in Hamburg) established
1992 January Joint venture Tianjin Kansai Paint Co., Ltd. established in Tianjin, China (now Cosco Kansai Paint & Chemicals (Tianjin) Co., Ltd.)
November Ono Plant (now Ono Office) opened in Ono, Hyogo Prefecture
December Kitakyushu Office opened in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture
1994 April Joint venture Kansai Paint (Shenyang) Co., Ltd. established in Shenyang, China
September Kanpe Auto Refinishing Center (ARC) opened at Technical Research Center
1995 January Funds invested to establish Kansaipaint Resin (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
February Joint venture Tianjin Beacon Kansai Paint & Chemicals Co., Ltd., established in Tianjin, China (now Tianjin Winfield Kansai Paint & Chemicals Co., Ltd.)
March Joint venture Hunan Kansai Automotive Coatings Co., Ltd., established in Changsha, China (now Hunan Xiangjiang Kansai Paint Co., Ltd.)
April Joint venture Chongqing Kansai Paint Co., Ltd. established in Chongqing, China
December Shanghai Kansai Paint & Chemicals Co., Ltd. established (now Cosco Kansai Paint & Chemicals (Shanghai) Co., Ltd.)
1996 October Acquired shares in Sime Kansai Paints Sdn. Bhd. (Malaysia)
September KP Pearl microbial carrier beads developed for use in advanced wastewater treatment
1997 June First corporate pamphlet on global environmental initiatives published
1998 April Kanpe Auto Refinishing Center (ARC) West Japan opened at Amagasaki Office
1999 September Sonne LDI adopted for use in plasma displays
October Developed technology for recycling PET bottles into raw materials for paint
October Funds invested to establish PT Kansaipaint Indonesia (Indonesia)
October Goodlass Nerolac Paints Pvt Ltd (India) made subsidiary (now Kansai Nerolac Paints Ltd.)
2000 January Developed Japan's first waterborne basecoat for automotive refinishing
February Developed biosynthesis technology using interface bioreactor
2001 October Nichiyu Kansai Marine Coatings Co., Ltd. established as joint venture (now Kansai Paint Marine Co., Ltd.)
2002 April Kansai Paint Philippines, Inc. established
July Kanpe Kyohan Tokyo K.K. renamed Kansai Paint Sales Co., Ltd.
2004 November PPG Kansai Automotive Finishes (PKAF) established as joint venture with PPG in North America and Europe
2006 February Funds invested to establish Cosco Kansai Paint & Chemicals (Zhuhai) Co., Ltd.
April Malaysia's Sime Coatings Sdn Bhd joins the Group and is renamed Kansai Coatings Malaysia (now Kansai Paint Asia Pacific Sdn. Bhd.)
2007 October Acquired shares in Akzo-Nobel Endustri ve Otomobil (Turkey) (now Kansai Altan Boya Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş.)
2008 February Head Office relocated to Chuo-ku, Osaka
2010 January Established Kanpe Ako Co., Ltd. in Ako, Hyogo Prefecture
April Made Kansai Paint (Shenyang) Co., Ltd. a consolidated subsidiary
September Funds invested to establish Kansai Paint (China) Investment Co., Ltd.

2011–2018 Accelerating globalization

2011 April Acquired shares in Freeworld Coatings (South Africa), making it a subsidiary (now Kansai Plascon Africa Ltd.)
December Joint venture Kansai-Alphanam Paint Co., Ltd. established in Vietnam
2012 April Made Kansai Paint Sales Co., Ltd. a wholly-owned subsidiary
April Acquired shares in PT. Kansai Prakarsa Coatings (Indonesia)
May Cosco Kansai Paint (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. established
2013 April Kanpe Color Center Kashiwa opened in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture
June DNT Kansai Mexicana established as joint venture with Dai Nippon Toryo
2014 April Kanpe Color Center Amagasaki opened
2015 January Kuboko Paint establishes Japan Powder Coating Manufacturing Co., Ltd. with Dai Nippon Toryo
2016 February Ales Mushiyoke Clean insect-repellent coating wins top Nikkei Business Daily prize
August Acquired shares in U.S. Paint Corporation (USA), making it a subsidiary
October Kansai Paint Asia Pacific Sdn. Bhd. acquires shares of Sancora Paint Industries Sdn. Bhd. (Malaysia)
December Acquired shares in Polisan Kansai Boya Sanayi (Turkey) (now Polisan Kansai Boya Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S.)
2017 January Acquired shares in the Sadolin Group, a coatings manufacturer in the East African Community (now Kansai Plascon East Africa Ltd.)
February Project to promote coatings to counter infectious disease chosen as a JICA private-sector technical cooperation project
March Acquired shares in Helios Group (Austria) (now Kansai Helios Coatings GmbH)
2018 May Centenary of Company founding
October Kansai Paint Group integrated corporate brand introduced

2019–Present Building the foundations for our future

2020 October Demonstrated how plaster coating deactivates COVID-19 (SARS- CoV-2)
2022 April Shares transferred from the First Section to the Prime Market in reorganization of the Tokyo Stock Exchange market classifications
December Powder coatings business reorganized; Kuboko Paint establishes new company KANSAI Powder Coatings Co., Ltd.
2023 February European subsidiary Kansai Helios Coatings GmbH acquires CWS Group in the powder coatings and synthetic resins business
December Head Office relocated to Umeda and Shin-Osaka, Osaka-city.
2024 May European subsidiary Kansai Helios Coatings GmbH acquires WEILBURGER, an industrial coatings manufacturer.