BASF’s Coatings division has launched a crowdsourcing digital tool to streamline and enhance color formula search for customers of its two paint brands, NORBIN and Shancai. Named BASF Refinish Hub, the mobile application enables users across Asia Pacific to easily search, save and upload color formulars, and share them with other users in the region.

By providing a platform for users to rate and share formulas, BASF Refinish Hub aims to identify the best formulas in the region and create a powerful community of color experts. This shared knowledge will help users from different markets save time, reduce wastage and improve efficiency. An incentive feature will be introduced later this year, designed to reward users who contribute highly rated formulas, encouraging users to share their experience and knowledge with others.

“We put our customers at the forefront of our design process to create a digital tool that is tailored to their needs. BASF Refinish Hub is a great example of how innovation and collaboration can drive progress in our industry,” said Susann Kluge, Vice President Business Management, Automotive Refinish Coatings Solutions Asia Pacific, BASF. “We are excited to see how this tool will revolutionize the color-matching process for our customers and drive business growth in the fast-growing, value-conscious market segment.”

The digital tool is free for use with simple registration and is compatible with all mobile operating systems, including Apple and Android. Each formula’s popularity and ratings are displayed, and BASF verifies reliable ones accordingly. Descriptions, such as usage by region and by age of vehicle, are available to support the painters in predicting how the color will look without unnecessary mixing.