Coatings World - November 2012

vice, metal office furniture and storage, and sign coatings, according to Zoulek.

DuPont Performance Coatings
launches eCatalog for its line
of refinish products

DuPont Performance Coatings recently launched an online catalog for its popular line of DuPont Refinish products to help collision repair professionals make informed decisions when purchasing paint products. The DuPont Refinish Product eCatalog is located at www.products.dupontrefinish.com.

Using the eCatalog, collision repair professionals can browse more than 100 core DuPont Refinish products by type, technology and VOC limit, and compare up to 10 products side-by-side. Each product features comprehensive application information and includes a link to the MSDS and the technical data sheet. A “Where to Buy” feature helps users locate their closest authorized distributor of DuPont Refinish products.

The eCatalog is mobile and desktop friendly to ensure a positive user experience regardless of the device used to access the application.

Sherwin-Williams donates
paint supply certificates to
Keep America Beautiful’s
graffiti prevention program

Keep America Beautiful, Inc. (KAB) has announced the winners of the 2012 Graffiti Hurts Grant Program. This year, KAB provided four $2,500 cash grants as well as two $2,500 paint supply certificates from The Sherwin-Williams Company. Q-Star also provided a FlashCAM, valued at $6,100, to one deserving recipient. The FlashCAM is a deterrent system effective in preventing illegal trespassing during hours it most often occurs.

“The recipients of this year’s Graffiti
Hurts Grant Program remind us how
powerful volunteer action can be in solv-
ing a community’s challenges,” said
Matthew McKenna, president and CEO
of Keep America Beautiful. “We’re grate-
ful to The Sherwin-Williams Company
for its ongoing support of the Graffiti
Hurts program, a nationwide resource
for addressing graffiti problems.”
Responding to the blight of graffiti
vandalism, the Graffiti Hurts program
was developed in 1996 through a part-
nership between Keep America Beautiful,
the nation’s largest nonprofit education
and volunteer action organization, and
The Sherwin-Williams Company, maker
of Krylon paint. The Graffiti Hurts
Grant Program was initiated in 2007. Ac-
cording to the U.S. Department of Jus-
tice, graffiti contributes to lost revenue
associated with reduced ridership on
transit systems, reduced retail sales and
declines in the value of surrounding resi-
dential and commercial property.

Sixty finalists named in PQI’s “Prettiest Painted Places” competition Sixty communities – 10 each from six geographic regions – have been named finalists in a national competition to find the “Prettiest Painted Places in America.”

ACA holds Marine Coatings and Additives Conferences in Baltimore

The American Coatings Association held its annual International Marine and Offshore Coatings Conference September 11-12 at the Sheraton Inner Harbor in Baltimore, Maryland. The conference featured a variety of presentations from marine coatings manufacturers like Jotun to suppliers such as Dow Chemical, as well as regulatory issue updates.

The Marine Conference commenced with a keynote address, ” What’s New in Antifouling,” presented by Mark Ingle of NAVSEA. Ingle discussed updates in anti-fouling at NAVSEA and gave information on qualifying copper-free bio-cidal coatings, in-process task for advanced foul-release coatings, plans to coat propellers and determine if fuel savings can be measured and additional changes to anti-fouling specifications.

“NAVSEA is seeking ideas from the ACA for coatings and processes that will reduce total ownership costs from all sources.” Ingle said. “Anti-fouling coatings need to enhance fuel economy. Underwater hull fouling results in 40% increase in drag and 10%-20% increase in fuel.” He went on to discuss some environmental drivers of change and interest in second-generation products that will help NAVSEA meet its needs.

The ACA also held its Additives 2012 Conference September 12-13 at the same venue in Baltimore. This conference provided coatings industry professionals with innovative additive technology and concepts that are commonly utilized to improve coatings performance.