Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. announced that Jun Liao is joining the company as regional president, Asia-Pacific, effective July 15. Liao will report directly to CEO Robert Bryant and will manage all of Axalta’s business operations in the Asia-Pacific region and drive the company’s growth strategy in the region.
“Asia Pacific represents one of the largest and most dynamic growth markets for Axalta, with significant opportunities across all our lines of business,” said Bryant. “Jun brings a deep understanding of the region and local markets, as well as established relationships with many customers in the region. He’s an exceptional leader known for being highly collaborative and leading high-performing teams toward commercial and operational success. I am very excited to welcome Jun to our team.”
Liao is an accomplished chemical industry and industrial materials executive with more than 30 years’ experience driving multinational business in the Asia-Pacific region. He joins Axalta from Bekaert, a steel wire transformation and coatings company, where he served in senior roles since 2014. He was most recently executive vice president and divisional CEO of Bekaert’s Specialty Businesses globally and president of Bekaert China. In his roles, Liao served the transportation, construction, energy and semiconductor markets globally and across Asia Pacific. Before his time at Bekaert, Liao held leadership positions at Solvay and Dow Corning after starting his career with GE Plastics.
“Axalta is in a tremendous position to accelerate growth in China and the Asia-Pacific region with its innovative products, people and technology,” said Liao. “It’s an exciting time to join the company as the markets for refinish, industrial and mobility coatings present enormous opportunities. I’m looking forward to helping Axalta expand its business and presence across the region and partnering with global business unit leadership to deliver exceptional products and services to new and established customers.”
Liao received a B.S. in metals physics and an M.S. in materials science from Central South University (China) before going on to earn a Ph.D. and an M.B.A. from the University of Michigan.
