Every year in June, the National Association for Surface Finishing convenes for its annual SUR/FIN expo and conference – a gathering of businesses, technologists and professionals in the surface coatings industry. And as this year’s event kicked off June 3 in Detroit, it’s amidst a backdrop of changing business conditions.
So how is NASF adapting its focus to the current critical needs of the industry? To find out more, IEN spoke with NASF’s Christian Richter, representing the organization’s Policy Group, as well as Steffen Wolkerstorfer, NASF president.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
IEN: What do you believe to be the biggest trends currently impacting the surface finishing industry?
Steffen Wolkerstorfer (SW): Two of the most pressing trends shaping our industry right now are workforce development and economic uncertainty.
On the labor side, the challenge is twofold — attracting the next generation of talent and upskilling current employees. Many companies are facing knowledge gaps as experienced professionals retire and younger workers are often unaware of the diverse, high-tech opportunities within surface finishing. Training and retention have never been more critical.
Economically, businesses are still navigating the ripple effects of global supply chain disruptions. Many are adjusting their inventory strategies while also managing tariff implications that affect material costs. It’s not just about recovery anymore — it’s about creating resilience. Companies are having to be more agile and strategic than ever before.
IEN: How will SUR/FIN address these with this year’s program? Anything new and exciting we should be aware of?
SW: SUR/FIN 2025 is built to meet the moment. The Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) program is bringing together over 60 expert-led sessions across two days, covering real-world challenges like workforce retention, supply chain flexibility, automation, regulatory changes and advanced surface technologies.
This year’s program has expanded its educational footprint to help attendees take immediate, practical insights back to their operations. In addition to our robust conference sessions, the nearly sold-out exhibitor show floor will highlight cutting-edge technologies and innovations that directly support business resilience and sustainability.
Exciting moments at this year’s SUR/FIN will be a high-energy Industry Night Casino event hosted by our Chicago Midwest Chapter — designed to foster deeper networking and conversation among peers — and, of course, the presentation of our annual Industry Awards, which recognize and celebrate exceptional individuals who have significantly impacted the surface finishing industry.
SUR/FIN isn’t just about showcasing what’s next; it’s about building community and finding solutions to today’s challenges.
IEN: Industry-wide, we see many industrial companies struggle with maintaining adequate skilled labor levels. What has NASF undertaken in order to help address this issue?
SW: Our industry recognizes the need to build a strong, adequately skilled workforce, especially when we factor in bringing the next generation.
The most important and best way for us to do this is by focusing on truly investing in our teams – our most valuable asset. NASF offers companies in our industry numerous avenues to help make this happen, primarily through being an NASF member company and utilizing our new Catalyst eLearning Center.
As members of NASF, companies (and, by association, all of their employees) receive discounted rates on registration, hotels and travel to our three key events through the year – SUR/FIN, Washington Forum and the Leadership Conference; and the ability to save thousands of dollars on training compared to other external trainings with the Catalyst.
To complement the unmatched education and networking offered at our three cornerstone events, the Catalyst online training platform enables companies to train their entire teams on site, whether they’re new to the industry or looking to expand their expertise, therefore minimizing the disruption to operations. Courses are available on-demand and are either discounted or completely free for NASF members.
By removing cost and access barriers with the introduction of this new platform and through discounts offered to NASF members and their employees to attend our annual events, we’re helping our members and our industry build stronger, more skilled workforces and, by extension, a better future for all of us.
IEN: Which primary areas is NASF focused on right now from a policy perspective and why?
Christian Richter: NASF is currently focused on several priorities as the Trump administration’s agenda continues to unfold at the 100-day mark. There has been, as we fully expected, a significant shift in policy direction and priorities that aim to expand and rebuild manufacturing, among other goals. However, there are still major decisions on consequential issues that impact the finishing industry – decisions left over from the Biden administration as well as new initiatives in the Trump administration that touch surface coatings.
First, on the regulatory agenda, even with major budget cuts proposed for regulatory agencies like EPA and an aggressive roll back of business regulations, some major threats to finishing are not going away. While funding and staff reductions are being made in areas like climate policy and environmental justice programs, new EPA chief Lee Zeldin has prioritized federal PFAS regulation across the board as a high priority. This means that earlier Biden EPA priorities for PFAS may be refined and reshaped but will remain in play.
This will apply to PFAS regulations now in force and future actions targeting drinking water utilities across the nation, chemical manufacturers, defense installations, the plating industry and other sectors. PFAS concerns have been a bipartisan issue and EPA Administrator Zeldin was a leading Republican in Congress in promoting accelerated PFAS regulation. At this point, there is still a major proposed rule for new effluent guidelines for the finishing industry scheduled for proposal in the fall of 2026. We continue to have much work to do to continue to show how the industry has been a leader on voluntary PFAS reduction and elimination in order to minimize the impacts of a nationwide regulatory action under this administration.
Second, also on the regulatory agenda, there were several late actions and proposals from the Biden administration that EPA now must address in some fashion. Just one among others is the potentially costly new federal stormwater requirements for the finishing industry along with two dozen or more other industries. This is a major action that EPA is required to finalize by law, but it just doesn’t need to impose new cost burdens on industry.
Third, on metals and human health, there are two rather important federal scientific assessments on nickel and chromium exposure and risk that the Biden administration issued. These assessments from the Centers for Disease Control and from EPA’s science and research office were greatly improved from earlier versions due to engagement from industry. However, they still have major deficiencies and should be rescinded and not published again until a proper scientific review is completed, particularly since both are set to drive new standards on drinking water, remediation and other areas both in the U.S. and worldwide. We will continue to work with allied industry partners to ensure that future regulatory actions that affect industry better reflect the state of the science.
Fourth, on partnerships and the supply chain, a top priority for us has been leading a collaborative effort between platers, suppliers and the automotive OEM community on the voluntary transition from hexavalent to trivalent chromium – as well as the elimination of PFAS – for decorative applications. NASF reached out to our colleagues in the Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) and began this major project two years ago. We saw new developments on the horizon that prompted the industry to act, lead and shape these issues. Just recently we held an excellent virtual event with our OEM colleagues and NASF members that highlighted the evolving policy landscape in North America and Europe, looked at the current generation of trivalent technologies and featured announcements of new timelines and plans for trivalent specification changes from Toyota and General Motors. We expect other OEMs to announce similar timetables in the near future. We’ll be sharing more updates this year on the latest developments.
Finally, on trade and tariff policy, the Trump administration’s aim to rebalance U.S. trade relationships with its partners has reset the board for U.S. manufacturers both large and small. Addressing these new developments for the industry has quickly become a priority for us this year. We’re expanding our discussions with the Department of Commerce, the International Trade Administration and the Department of Defense, with further discussions ahead with lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Among our priorities is to minimize adverse impacts of tariffs on finishing and avoid putting critical supply chains at risk. We’re in discussions with other industry allies on whether new mechanisms may be appropriate to address small manufacturing needs. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce in May just proposed tariff exclusions for small business importers, tariff exclusions for products that can’t be produced in the U.S. or are not readily available or a process for a tariff exclusion if an American company’s jobs are at put at risk by tariffs.
In the meantime, there’s much more to do this year and we’ll continue to visit with and work closely with our leaders and NASF chapters on these and other emerging priorities.
Christian RichterNASF