Coatings
Beyond SurFACES – Meet Bernhard Lettmann
"The people and the work really make it 'cool'"
Bernhard Lettmann is a Global Technology Refinish Clearcoat Lab Leader in EMEA at BASF. With over 30 years of experience in the Coatings division, Bernhard has been instrumental in developing innovative products and going beyond the limits of waterborne basecoats for our customers.
Join him in advancing science beyond what is known, and what it means to spend your entire professional career with one employer, in this edition of Beyond SurFACES. We asked him about his career in the technology group as a “lifer,” how things have changed over time, and how he blows off a little steam at the end of the day.
Beyond SurFACES – Get to know our winning team
At BASF Coatings, we are driven by passion and science to always go beyond the surface. In our new series, Beyond SurFACES, we introduce you to the talented individuals who make it happen. From developing innovative coatings to creating sustainable solutions, our winning team is at the heart of everything we do. Want to be part of the journey? Join us in going beyond!
How has your career developed at BASF?
After graduating from the University of Münster, Germany, I started as a chemist, working on resin development in the Coatings Research department. After seven years, I became a lab leader for waterborne basecoats in the Refinish side of the business. That part of my career lasted more than 20 years until I became the clearcoat technology head and lab leader for Refinish Coatings in 2021, where I manage the technical side of the Refinish clearcoat portfolio, and my team in Münster.
One of the biggest successes we accomplished during my career is Glasurit® 100 Line. With all the doubts that came up during the development time (in total, starting from the first screenings, the process took roughly 10 years), we were successful in creating a product that shook up the entire refinish industry. I am listed as a co-inventor for several patents for waterborne basecoats.
If that makes me a “lifer,” then I guess that’s true. I don’t see that as a bad thing. In general, I think my long experience in product development for Refinish helps a lot as we work through some clearcoat challenges with our great team here in Münster. The technology group is an amazing team, and I’ve never wanted to work anywhere else.
What part of the job is really “cool?”
As our Culture Cards say, “We courageously take decisions and implement pragmatically.” That’s really my passion. I like to bring topics forward, and decide on them in a pragmatic way, and our structure and culture allows us to do that.
Every day is a little different for me. Some days, I’m talking with our lab technicians in Münster about day-to-day activities, setting their priorities and such. Other days, I’m collaborating with our people in Clermont, France, where many of our clearcoat products are produced. Still other days, I’m part of the continuous exchange with the labs in Asia and North America, or cooperating with our applications or marketing teams.
The people and the work really make it “cool.”
I like to bring topics forward, and decide on them in a pragmatic way, and our structure and culture allows us to do that.
You’ve seen a lot of changes in your time. What’s the biggest challenge you face today?
We’re going through organizational changes at a faster and faster pace. The technical team for Refinish Coatings is now reorganizing to align with our strategy. Our clearcoat lab in Münster is supporting and cooperating with colleagues in the Americas and Asia. We’ll have a smaller team, overall, but still a very critical team.
Different countries have more diverse regulatory demands that make it more and more difficult to keep our products harmonized worldwide.
With all that distraction going on, it can be difficult to keep people motivated and on-task. The best advice I have for that is to focus on the things you can control, not the things you can’t. Your time is better spent making sure that you are doing the best possible work you can do with the best possible attitude you can have while doing it. If you do those things right, the rest will take care of itself.
You can’t focus on science all the time. How do you relax when the work day is done?
I read books for entertainment. I love crime novels. I mainly read German authors, but one of the last books I read was “The Running Grave” by Robert Galbraith.
It’s an intriguing and complex story that will really keep you on the edge of your seat! That helps me recharge at the end of a long day or a long week. Even better is when I can read in my backyard garden.
