As temperatures soar, South Korea's paint makers heat up battle over heat-reflective coatings

Daytime temperatures in Seoul have consistently topped 35 degrees Celsius, with heat indexes approaching 40 degrees in some areas amid a record-breaking heat wave. As cooling costs mount, interest in functional building materials that improve a structure's energy efficiency is growing. Heat-reflective coatings — which reflect solar radiation to lower surface temperatures — are drawing attention as a way to cut air-conditioning bills and ease the urban heat island effect, intensifying competition among domestic paint manufacturers.

Industry sources said Tuesday that South Korea's three major paint companies — KCC, SP Samhwa and Noroo Paint & Coatings — are accelerating their expansion into functional product lines. All three have been rolling out heat-reflective coatings suited to a range of applications, from buildings to roads, in a race to capture market share.

Heat-reflective coatings are functional products that reflect infrared radiation, the primary source of heat in sunlight. Applied to rooftops, exterior walls and roads, they reduce surface temperatures, limit heat transfer into buildings and cut energy consumption for cooling. They are also used on asphalt roads, pedestrian paths and bicycle lanes, and are considered effective at mitigating the urban heat island effect.

KCC is targeting the industrial market with its architectural heat-reflective products — "Spotan Topcoat (Energy)" and "Supeuro Heat-Reflective Topcoat" — along with its road-use product "Sporoad Cool," and has been expanding applications from factories and logistics centers to roads. According to KCC, surfaces treated with "Supeuro Heat-Reflective Topcoat" recorded temperatures up to 10 degrees lower than those coated with standard elastic waterproofing materials, while "Sporoad Cool" kept road surfaces about 15 degrees cooler than ordinary asphalt.

SP Samhwa is also pushing market expansion with its heat-reflective paint "Cool & Save" and road-use product "Byroad Cool." The company says Cool & Save lowers surface temperatures by about 5 degrees compared with standard urethane coatings, while Byroad Cool reduces temperatures by 5 to 10 degrees versus untreated surfaces. Sales of heat-reflective coatings have grown at an average annual rate of 15 to 20 percent over the past three years. Last year, the company also secured a patent for a single-coat heat-reflective coating technology that allows application in a variety of colors.

Noroo Paint & Coatings has extended its reach into the general consumer market. The company recently launched an online-exclusive product, "Heat-Reflective Water-Based Waterproofing," which combines waterproofing and heat-reflective functions. The product blocks moisture from seeping through micro-cracks in concrete, preventing condensation and mold, while its heat-reflective technology suppresses temperature rises on rooftop surfaces. It also consolidates what had previously required multiple steps — primer, intermediate coat and topcoat — into a single product, making application easier. The product is designed for use by general consumers as well as professional contractors.

The industry expects heat-reflective coatings to evolve from a niche product into a standard building material as extreme heat becomes a fact of daily life. The global cool-roof coating market is projected to grow from about $4 billion in 2022 to around $7 billion by 2030, according to market research firm Grand View Research.

In South Korea, public institutions and businesses are showing growing interest, as the coatings offer benefits beyond cooling cost savings — including reduced carbon emissions, ESG (environmental, social and governance) goals and urban heat island mitigation. Support programs using rooftop heat-reflective coatings are also expanding, led by local governments, including the Seoul Metropolitan Government's "Cool Roof Installation Support" project.

"Heat-reflective coatings used to be limited to factories and some industrial facilities, but recently their application has been expanding rapidly to apartment complexes, commercial buildings and warehouses," one industry official said. "The longer climate change continues, the more the functional coatings market will keep growing."

Another industry official echoed that view. "As heat waves become not a temporary phenomenon but a permanent environmental reality driven by climate change, attention to heat-reflective coatings is consistently growing," the official said. "The range of applications will continue to broaden, centered on products that offer both functionality and economic value."