Page 44: of Marine News Magazine (March 2017)

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COATINGS

Credit: ENECON

Marine

Coatings

Evolve for the Betterfor the Better

Customers drive ef? ciency and performance, as coatings providers deliver with innovation and technology.

By Jim Romeo

Driving Improvements

Customer demands are often related to cost and ef? - ciency. Costs – and the list is a long one – include not just product cost, but cost of application, surface prepara- tion, product lifespan, cost of inspection, cost of degraded substrate, cost of fuel consumption gained or lost from a coatings system, and the cost of compliance with environ- mental regulations. New technology and innovation helps to address the demands of cost and ef? ciency desired.

Innovation today includes unconventional use of tech- nology to support marine coatings assessment. Ballast tanks and other con? ned spaces that would otherwise be cumbersome to inspect and require staging and labor, are being performed with drones. Akzo Nobel, for example, in partnership with oil and gas tanker operator Barrier Group and DroneOps joined forces to develop a drone capable of

Credit: Sherwin Williams remotely inspecting enclosed spaces such as ballast water nnovation and new technology continue to shape the tanks. While the jury is still out on its adoption and ef- marine coatings market. A narrowing ? eld of global coat- fectiveness, the effort more than demonstrates that innova- ings manufacturers offer new products while improving tion is ? nding its way into the marine industry where cost,

I existing ones to meet customer demand. Ultimately, cus- quality and time are of the essence. tomer demand, along with environmental compliance pres- Such innovation reigns at the vanguard of new technolog- sures are all driving the marine coatings industry as ship ical advancements in the marine coatings themselves. Cure owners, operators and shipyards alike seek better products. times, improvements in corrosion and abrasion resistance

Image above: High performance underwater hull coatings are always in demand, driven by continuous pressure to reduce operational fuel costs while staying environmentally compliant.

March 2017

MN 44