WorldSkills Competition 2022: New standards in vehicle painting

Thirteen of the world's best painters competed in different disciplines over four days at the special edition of the 2022 WorldSkills Competition at College360 in Silkeborg, Denmark. The special edition was the official replacement event for the 46th edition of WorldSkills, which had to be cancelled in May due to a pandemic. "We were delighted that the greatest young talents in vehicle painting found their way to Silkeborg. With their passion and determination, they are an example to us all," said Simon Neergaard-Holm, CEO, WorldSkills Denmark. "All finalists, and especially the winners, will be celebrated at WorldSkills Denmark for their performance and enthusiasm - as they represent an outstanding generation of young talent in the industry." The winners in vehicle painting were Victor Berthelier from France and Jongyun Kim from Korea - joint first place gold medalists, and Craig Kennedy from the United Kingdom with the bronze medal. For the first time, three painters were honored with the "Medallion for Excellence" award for outstanding results in individual tasks: Johannes Brandl from Germany, Dorien Lozeau from Canada and Isabella Turrise from Australia. The Sustainable Practice Award focused on eco-efficiency. The winners were Dorien Lozeau from Canada (first place), Craig Kennedy from the United Kingdom (second place) and Hazza Almansouri from the United Arab Emirates (third place).

The coating talents and country experts were provided with a series of customized webinars showcasing the refinish coatings, processes and color matching solutions from Glasurit, BASF's premium refinish brand. Finalists were trained in a hybrid format by in-country Glasurit experts, with access to all product and process data in the Glasurit platform, which is one of the most comprehensive refinish knowledge bases in the industry and includes e-books and video training. "As the official global industry partner of WorldSkills, Glasurit is proud to be part of this special edition of WorldSkills in Denmark as well, giving full support to young talents to turn their professional ambitions into reality," said Roar Solberg, vice president BASF Automotive Refinish Coatings Solutions, Europe, Middle East and Africa. "With our training programs, we are helping to ensure that the next generation of refinishers achieve outstanding results in a sustainable way. There is an emphasis in the industry on reducing emissions, protecting the environment, lowering resource consumption and producing less waste."