100 As the world’s leading supplier of automotive OEM coatings, BASF Coatings not only publishes an annual collection of automotive colors for the future, but also works closely with carmakers’ design teams to develop numerous colors for upcoming models. During this development process, painted test panels are sent out, helping the experts to evaluate the colors and effects and discuss further adjustments and optimizations. To speed up this evaluation, BASF has created AUROOM®, a digital platform that supports OEM design teams in the entire color development process – from the initial idea to the color decision. The color is digitalized using a multi-stage patented process which leads to the currently best global visualization of automotive colors on screen or Virtual Reality glasses, where they can be assessed. For the following developing steps, special customer requests can be directly taken into account and implemented. “Supporting color development digitally with AUROOM makes the entire process faster and easier,” said Michaela Finkenzeller, color designer at BASF Coatings. “We can discuss the colors with the design teams, work on them and make them virtually tangible, with all effects and characteristics. Colors can be compared and viewed in motion on different 3D objects – which is not so easy with physical samples. This allows designers to get a realistic idea of the behavior and effect of the colors on larger objects.” Digital color competence Automotive colors are highly complex. To visualize and display all details relevant to coatings – such as the color itself, the effect and the surface – is already challenging in the real world and requires in-depth expertise. AUROOM transfers this knowledge into virtual space and connects both worlds. This results in a technically correct and, above all, realistic appearance of coatings and a convincing representation of color concepts on three-dimensional surfaces. “With AUROOM, we have not only set a milestone in BASF’s digital coatings expertise, but are also taking on a leading position worldwide. We offer OEMs real added value in color development by accelerating the cross-company approval process through an innovative collaboration platform,” said Jens Wegner, head of Global Digitalization, Automotive OEM Coatings at BASF, explaining the benefits of the system. “The colors developed in the laboratory are applied to panels and sent to customers as physical material samples. At the same time, we are already bringing them to life in AUROOM, so that the design teams can experience the effect of the colors directly on the screen. This way, colors are visualized consistently across all digital and physical interfaces.” As a professional collaboration platform, AUROOM exclusively aims at the OEMs’ design teams. In addition to their own archive of developed colors, they can take a look at current trend collections, thus getting inspired by new color concepts. AUROOM – Automotive colors in the virtual world (incl. video) BASF Coatings www.basf-coatings.com Products and Markets Visualization of automotive colors in the virtual world By Jörg Zumkley, Global Communications, BASF Coatings division With a digital online platform, BASF’s Coatings division supports the carmakers’ designers in color development. Now, the colors of future vehicle models can be realistically visualized in virtual space, with all their characteristics and effects, speeding up the entire design process. Images: © BASF AUROOM® can be used to work with current collections of BASF’s Automotive Color Trends. Different colors can be compared directly on the 3D model.
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