Nokia names PPG its No. 1 coatings supplier

July 15, 2005 - Nokia Corporation has ranked PPG as its top coatings supplier for the third consecutive year. PPG ranked No.1 of 16 suppliers of key materials for Nokia’s mobile phone products.

Nokia rates its suppliers in 17 categories involving technical, supply, quality, responsiveness, corporate responsibility and cost. This year, PPG’s scored a 20-percent increase in the technical “innovation” category. Nokia’s appraisal also involves in-depth feedback from global first-tier suppliers (who apply PPG coatings to Nokia products) as well as from internal Nokia departments around the world.

“We’re extremely pleased with this special recognition from Nokia. It’s a testimony to our products, our services, and the hard work of our employees,” said Rich Alexander, senior vice president coatings, adding that PPG’s industrial coatings business provides a full range of paints for the mobile-phone maker. “The 20-percent increase in innovation reflects the investment we’ve made in our global styling effort. Styling is an essential requirement in supporting the fast-growing consumer electronics business.”

PPG coatings sales to Nokia are expected to increase by more than 30 percent this year. “That reflects Nokia’s confidence in PPG as its No.1 global coatings partner,” Alexander said.

PPG supplies coatings for Nokia mobile phones in Europe, the Americas and Asia. New mobile phones which will be released in 2005, coated in PPG’s Spectracron technology, include 1100, 3230, 6020, 6230, 6270 and 7280 models.

Nokia, headquartered in Espoo, Finland, is the world’s No.1 manufacturer of mobile phones. It has a 31-percent share of the global market, equating to 207 million mobile phone sales in 2004.