News

So, after months of preparation, gruelling schedules, days of hard work for the team attending our booth, it’s over.

SEMA 2024, held annually in Las Vegas, it’s not just another trade show—it’s where the future of automotive technology and chemistry is unveiled.

SEMA is not just about products—it’s about people. It’s a chance to rub shoulders with CEO’s from a diverse range of industries including paint companies, car customisers and engineers right through to importers and distributors from the world over.

Concept, through its Surf-ACE brand, launched a new range of marine specific products, with the focus on gelcoat, fibreglass and paint surface restoration and aftercare.

Using years of built-up knowledge and experience in automotive paint rectification and industrial refinishing industries; and after rigorous testing with various marine industry leaders, the new Surf-ACE Marine range is formulated to tackle distinctive complications the sector encounters.

Compounds
Two marine focussed compounds, Surf-ACE M12 and Surf-ACE M-40, have been specially formulated to quickly rectify imperfections in gelcoats, fibreglass and paint and to deliver gloss mirror-like finishes.

Coating
Surf-ACE UV Sealant is a unique blend of PTFE and acrylic resins containing UV screens which creates protective barrier and leaves a deep-gloss shine. Tested by experts, Surf-ACE UV Sealant successfully passed QUV testing for the equivalent of 20 years environmental exposure. Its unique water-based formula contains no aromatic solvents or volatile silicones.

Protection
Surf-ACE Liquid Shield is an easily applied, multi-surface coating offering upto 3 months of hydrophobic protection, repelling water and dirt build-up.
Surf-ACE UV Wax is a high-gloss Carnauba speed wax which can even be applied on wet surfaces.

Maintenance
The Surf-ACE range of maintenance products includes Boat Wash – a pH neutral low foam wash-down concentrate; Boat Cleaner, a caustic-free aluminium safe, high performance cleaner and degreaser; Boat Cleaner Xtreme, an economical, heavy-duty hull and hard surface cleaner; Fast Finesse, a problem solving liquid spray cleaner and polish and, finally, Glass Cleaner whose title speaks for itself.

ZIRCONITE Coatings
Showcased alongside the Surf-ACE brand at the Concept SEMA booth, the ZIRCONITE range of protective coatings proved a hit with visitors.
Now firmly established as a top echelon performer, ZIRCONITE coatings complement Surf-ACE compounds, creating a unique business opportunity by offering a warranty system for accredited detailers.
ZIRCONITE coatings cover (pardon the pun!) automotive paint surfaces, glass, plastics, wheels and interior fabrics providing protection – outside and in!

The SEMA 2024 show proved an unqualified success – presenting a new range of targeted products alongside firmly established ones. The interest shown (especially in the Surf-ACE Marne range) was exceptional with many new contacts made and potential long-term relationships created.

Concept Chemicals & Coatings took all 4 brands to the Irish Auto Trade Expo (the largest automotive aftermarket exhibition in Ireland) in Dublin for two days in October 2024.

Demonstrating the Surf-ACE range of compounds used by body shops and professional detailers was a major success, with attendees crowding around the demo stand to see the action. (We think it was the amazing the results the products generated – but our demonstrator suggested it was his outstanding wit and repartee!)

The well-known and respected Xpert-60 brand was also featured on the stand, displaying a fantastic range of products in handy to use pack sizes for both the professional and enthusiast.

The Zirconite Coatings range of protection products - which enhance appearance and protect without altering the OEM finish was also promoted at the show.

Combined with Concept and Surf-ACE products, Zirconite offers a fully integrated solution to enhancing vehicle interior and exterior presentation.

The show visitors were a very friendly and welcoming crowd and made our appearance a really positive and fun event!

After a hiatus in exhibiting at Automechanika, Concept was back with a bang this year.

Focussing on two of their brands, Surf-ACE and Zirconite, Concept launched various new products and cemented their position as the “go to” manufacturer of compounds, polishes and protective coatings.

Automechanika Frankfurt presented Concept the opportunity to meet existing worldwide located importer distributors as well as showcasing the Surf-ACE and Zirconite range to seriously interested potential new importers/distributors - such is the business opportunity!

A sneak preview of the new Surf-ACE Marine range, specially developed for the marine refinishing and detailing sector, was received with great interest. The marine range includes compounds created to address the specific challenges associated with marine finishes including gel coats and marine paints.

To complement the compounds Concept has also formulated Surf-ACE detailing products that specifically suit the marine market, including Boat Wash, Boat Cleaner, UV Wax and UV Sealant.

Check back for updates or contact Concept Chemicals & Coatings for more information.

A new updated formulation of an already successful Zirconite product was also introduced at the show – Zirconite ZC-BOOSTA V2! The improved ZC BOOSTA V2 ceramic coating is even easier to apply and enhances protection even further than the original.

So, Automechanika 2024… we met old friends, we made new friends, we revelled in the delight our products created in the minds of visitors who had not seen our product range before.

We returned home from a hectic and positive show, exhausted, but happy!

Following on from an enquiry form the USA, the Surf-ACE range is currently being tested by a potential importer/distributor for the Southern Texas and Mexico territories.

Major manufacturers with plants in Mexico include Chevrolet, General Motors, Ford, Mazda, Nissan, Kia, Toyota, BMW, Volkswagen, Audi and BMW.

The second largest automobile manufacturing nation in the Western Hemisphere, Mexico produces over 3.5 million vehicles annually; eighty-eight percent of which are exported, with 76 percent destined for the United States.

Our potential distributor tested in conditions that are normal for Southern Texas/Mexico – and on a vehicle of significant value! This trust in the product was partly due to the information gleaned from product demonstrations at SEMA and also their keenness to achieve the quality of finish promised.

Already used in a diverse range of climates from Iceland to Saudi Arabia, Concept (the manufacturers of the British Surf-ACE brand) were more than confident the products would perform.

Feedback after intensive real-life testing on vehicles (not just spare panels) is good, infact it is excellent. Words and phrases like “phenomenal” and” better than anything we have used before” were regularly quoted.

Surf-ACE Compounds used 30mins after baking paint with phenomenal results - and saving time to boot (or any other body panel you intend to polish!)

Málningarvörur Iceland has a body shop customer that spray paints and then compounds their work just 30 mins after baking - with great results

The body shop in Reykjavík asked the Icelandic distributor of Surf-ACE compounds and polishes if they could give them an on-site demo of the latest Surf-ACE compounds to find out if they could achieve the results they were seeking.

Brand ambassador Shaun Finney took the time out of a busy European trip to complete the demo for them.

The body shop painted a repair using their usual paint system and proceeded to bake it in their booth using their normal timings.

30 minutes after the vehicle exited the booth, Shaun proceeded to compound the painted area using Surf-ACE P-12 Xtra followed by P-40 Xtra. (both used with appropriate Surf-ACE pads)

The results were, according to the body shop staff, were outstanding.

How was it done? P-12 Xtra and P-40 Xtra, used with the correct mops and techniques, don’t generate enormous amounts of heat, yet the special DRA™ micro-precision oxides provide enough “cut” to complete the job. Naturally, operator experience also helps – so with a few hints and tips and a couple of practice runs, the guys at the Reykjavík body shop now are conversant with the newly acquired methods.

Everyone is pleased, the managers can now book-in more work, the body-shop guys get through more work with less time hanging about waiting… and the Icelandic Distributor gets to prove a point about how good Surf-ACE Compounds and Polishes are.

Everyone wins!

To view the full range of Surf-ACE products click this link to take you to the online brochure

SEMA Show… it’s impressive. 1.2million square feet of indoor exhibition space, hundreds of fabulous cars, thousands of people.

It’s easy for an exhibitor to get lost in the meleé. But we didn’t – our product offering stood out, and we were rewarded with lots of interest from both trade and end user visitors.

As a British company (with all the connotations of quality that description imbues) Concept and its brands generated enormous interest at the USA show.

Concept brands Surf-ACE® and Zirconite® each had separate booths in different halls at the 2023 show, both were big hits with attendees. Surf-ACE showcased their DRA™ Compounds - total paint rectification solutions for use in automotive, marine, aviation and industry sectors.

Zirconite featured their whole range of automotive exterior and interior protection coatings from quartz and ceramic right through to graphene infused.

With SEMA having a world-wide audience, both brands also used the opportunity to promote importer/distributors profit opportunities in areas of the globe they were not already represented.

Although a long way to travel for just a few days, the Concept troops soldiered on in Las Vegas and presented the brands in the best possible light - which resulted in lots of serious enquiries from interested parties.

The brands will be exhibiting in the USA again in February where new and exciting products will be showcased at Mobile Tech Expo, Florida… it’s a hard life!

Pictured(left to right): Darren McGucken - RT Autoparts Cookstown, Chris Guinane - Autobits Autostore – Armagh, Shaun Finney - Concept Chemicals Trainer and Technical Demonstrator, Aidan Bannon - Motorstore – Glengormley, Matt Maguire - Parts 2000 - Newtonards

Technical Training and Product Knowledge Tailored for your Team!,
Our Northern Ireland importer/distributor, Parts 2000, contacted us recently with a request for some of their trade customers to visit the Concept Training School and be introduced to (and actively try and test) a range of Concept products, gaining real product knowledge and technical knowhow they can pass on to their customers.

Matt of Parts 2000 arranged the details and asked for hands-on training for a few specific products including Zirconite ZG-365 Carbon-infused Ceramic Coating, Xpert-60 Tyre Crème, Clay-2-Go (as a prep for ZG-365) and Tyre and Plastic to highlight some of the products used. All 4 Concept brands (Concept, Surf-ACE, Zirconite and XPERT-60) were covered over the 2 days, including the USPs and key features of all the core products within the brands – that’s an awful lot of information!

All the guys said that hands-on experience and the knowledge they gained of the products they sell will prove invaluable in helping and advising end-users, both with choice and hints and tips on actual use.

If you want to take advantage of opportunities offered by The Concept Chemicals Training School contact your brand representative for more details or call Concept on +44 (0)161 335 0214

One of our distributors passed on an unusual query to us a few days ago. They basically said “Can you visit these chaps whose business is tractors and agricultural machinery – the cleaning and conditioning stuff they use to prep the machines for delivery isn’t working for them…”

We visited this prestigious Agricultural Machinery Dealer – based in the NW of England to demo Concept products and see how we could solve their problems and give them the best results!

The Dealer sells both new and used machinery – the new machinery gets a full PDI and final detail and the used machinery (especially tractors) gets cleaned and valeted before being put up for sale. These are expensive vehicles and need to look absolutely tip top!

Now, these things aren’t small family cars – they’re big. Really big, super dirty and dusty so a few things were critical to the business:

Performance and ease-of-use. The products they were searching for had to be quick and easy to apply and use. They also had to really work – if we suggested a plastic dressing it had to “dress the plastic!” Polishes had to polish and cleaners had to clean.

Economy. Any product that they were going to use has to deliver top notch results and be economic in use. As we said before, these things are big!

After looking at the vehicles, and the multitude of materials they are made from, we offered a range of products (some dual -purpose) that could do the job and provide the ease-of use and superb finish they were looking for – showroom shiny!

Products ranged from Mastercleaner Plus+ (a multi-function “total” cleaner for all interior and exterior hard surfaces, right through to Panache – the ultimate interior trim speed detailer.

P.B.R. Special appeared to be a favourite – not surprising when you look at the amount of rubber and plastic on a tractor!

At the end of the demonstration the Dealer was totally on board with the products and said the results were outstanding! Another win for Concept!!!!!

Products demonstrated included:
Panache speed detailer, PBR Special, Infinity Nano Polish, Squeaky glass cleaner, Master Cleaner+, Drive tyre dressing, Profile Wash & Wax, Delta Force 2000 high performance TFR

Excess heat, that’s the enemy of compounding and polishing pads.

Excess heat soaks into the foam pads and makes them “soft” – compromising the integrity of the cell structure and shortening their life.

Same goes for lambswool and microwool mops – except this time, excess heat flattens the fibre structure reducing cutting power.

The answer is to not overwork your pads and mops so they get too hot. Simple!

To get more life out of Surf-ACE pads, swap them out after approximately 10 mins of polishing time (or every two panels). This allows pads to cool down extending their useful life.

Obviously if you are just prepping one small panel, you might get it completed in 10 minutes. But it’s great advice when needing to compound or polish a whole vehicle.

It goes without saying that keeping pads clean and removing excess product is best practice to ensure optimum cutting performance.

Now, you might consider this to be a crafty ruse to sell you more pads.
But think about it… pads and mops will last longer, so you won’t need to buy as many!

Surf-ACE

A complete range of aftercare products with the same superb quality as Zirconite Coatings.

From wheel cleaner to leather care, Zirconite aftercare products help maintain the quality of finish you expect.

Now the enthusiast detailer who wants to use the “Choice of the Professionals” can have access to a range of industry leading, quality products, with full confidence in a programme that delivers professional performance for excellence: speed, ease of use, versatility, durability and quality of finish.

Zirconite products have been designed to work under the pressure of time to deliver results 1st time, every time!

Acclaimed around the world and chosen by motor manufacturers, vehicle import centres, major P.D.I. preparation centres, car valeting and detailing companies, franchise car dealers, bodyshops, and major Formula 1 racing teams the Zirconite aftercare range is available to the detailer … ‘who is in the know’!

In the cleaning, polishing and detailing world of Zirconite, speed, performance and total image count for everything.

Check out the whole aftercare range on the dedicated Zirconite website: https://www.zirconitecoatings.com/aftercare/