and Korea,” said Heflin. “There is also demand where drydock-
ing ship maintenance takes place, which includes China and
Korea, but also in the Middle East, Northern Europe and North
America.”
Ottosen estimates that ninety percent of new building takes
in Asia. “China and Korea have the highest market share, fol-
lowed by Japan,” said Ottosen. “Newbuilding also takes place
in Europe, but for special vessel and cruise vessels. Marine main-
tenance follows the owner’s location.”
“Asia Pacific presents the most demand due to the size-
able number of shipyards that build and repair vessels,” added
Molenda. “The European region boasts a large owner base
which also results in a considerable demand.”
Environmental Regulations/Raw Material
Issues
There is no doubt that environmental regulations are a key
driver for the marine coatings industry. Coatings formulators
need to reduce solvent content to comply with increasingly strict
environmental regulations. While North America and Europe
already have well established legislation, emerging regions are
beginning to adopt their own regulations.
“This is particularly true when it comes to the restriction
in use of certain biocides and the push toward low or no VOC
products,” said Heflin. “Countries like China and Korea are
starting to adopt regulations that are similar to those in Europe
and the U.S. The trend and movement towards regulation is
there. As a global supplier we are aware of the demands these
regulations will place on our products – the need for non-bio-
cidal and low VOC products. We formulate our products with
these regulations in mind. But these changes also represent a
significant opportunity for a company like AkzoNobel. We are
a leader in biocidal products that are compliant with environ-
mental regulations and we are prepared for the future. We are
staying ahead of the curve by developing nonbiocidal products
that are ahead of the legislative curve.”
PPG works closely with its suppliers on a continuous basis to
help manage not only changes in raw material prices, but also
with respect to innovations that can formulate into its propri-
etary coatings. “We are confident that we are well positioned
to manage and adapt to situations of change in many facets of
our business,” said Molenda. “Our goal is always to minimize
the impact to our customers to the best of our abilities, but in
certain instances pricing increases become unavoidable.”
“In Hempel we’re constantly following the environmental
regulations; we adjust our products to meet both present and
future market demands, combining environmental and perfor-
mance aspects,” said Ottosen. “In marine, most environmental
regulations will eventually become global, even though they
were initiated locally.”
Hempel adjusts its products to meet the market demands and
prices in terms of raw material prices and fluctuations. “Furthermore,
efforts are put into optimizing and reducing our assortment, moving
towards a truly global assortment,” said Ottosen. “We source our
raw materials mainly from global suppliers to ensure consistency in
our products and in our product ranges.”
There are numerous trends in technology within the marine
coatings industry. “One of the most noteworthy areas making
great strides in innovation is in fouling protection products,”
said Molenda. “The long-term trends are towards more envi-
ronmentally friendly fouling protection products that provide
superior performance for today’s coatings.
The focus in recent years for marine coatings is on efficiency
– both in terms of fuel efficiency as well as product performance
efficiency in order to reduce maintenance costs.
“For hull coatings, the focus is on developing products
that are highly fuel-efficient during drydocking periods,” said
Ottosen. “Major technologies head towards the use of silicone.
For example, Hempel’s HEMPAGUARD, which combines sili-
cone with low content of biocides.
When it comes to fuel efficiency the focus is on developing
initiatives to deal with low steaming, variations in speed, trad-
ing patterns and idle periods – which all are crucial to meet
the demands of the changing marine industry.For other areas,
vessel efficiency is important in relation to cost efficiency during
drydocking periods. For example, we have developed a series of
products for water ballast tanks that reduce the risk of cracking,
thus reducing the maintenance cost during the vessel’s lifetime.”
“There are also other areas such as cargo holds, where cost
efficiency can also be achieved,” Ottosen added. “We have a se-
ries of products that can perform for up to 10 years, hence sig-
nificantly reducing the likelihood of major repairs.”
According to Heflin, while they key trends are for products
with efficiency benefits, such as hull coatings that lower fuel
consumption and low and no VOC systems, the trend is also
for proven performance benefits, such as cargo coatings with
improved impact resistance or those that are compatible with
a wider range of cargoes. “The owners want flexibility with
a range of cargo,” he explained. An example would be our
Intersleek range, It provides fuel savings of nine percent. Owners
switching from biocidal antifoulings to our Intersleek range can
receive carbon credits. It is a step forward in the industry.”
New Products
International Paint, part of AkzoNobel, recently launched two
new fouling control technologies. Intercept 8000 LPP, is a new
biocidal linear polishing polymer antifouling featuring patented
‘LUBYON’ technology that delivers predictable long-term performance for in-service periods up to 90 months and Intersleek
1100SR, is the industry’s first biocide-free fouling control coating featuring unique patented slime release technology that
combats micro fouling on ships hulls, maintaining performance
throughout the docking cycle.
Based on LUBYON polymer technology, Intercept 8000 LPP,
provides customers with consistent and predictable linear polishing. This will enable ship owners and operators to plan and
budget effectively throughout the dry-dock cycle of the vessel.
The unique LUBYON polymer technology gives the coating a
‘superhydrophilic’ surface. When the coating is immersed, the
seawater has a lubricating effect, resulting in less friction. This
