MEXICO: Leading marine coatings manufacturer, Hempel, announces that since 1998 it has reached the extraordinary milestone of having sold 100 million litres of its unique micro-fibre based antifouling paint. The equivalent of coating 45,000 vessels.
In 1994, Hempel gained the patent of the micro-fibre antifouling technology in its NAUTIC TIN-FREE 8190C product. Today, this exclusive technology is incorporated in all Hempel’s fouling prevention products. The technology involves introducing an internal skeleton of fibres into the paint to enhance its mechanical strength – in the same way that steel rods can be inserted into concrete to reinforce a physical structure.
The company is the only coatings manufacturer to use micro-fibres in its paints and Group Product Manager Andreas Glud explains the value of this technology:
“Our micro-fibres coatings give the advantage of a stronger product that does not crack or peel. Antifouling products deliver outstanding protection but due to their chemical make-up, their mechanical strength is often weak. That is, the higher grade of antifouling products, the higher risk of cracking. To combat this, we developed our silicate-based micro-fibre technology, which helps reduce dry dock costs.”
The success of this advanced technology – not seen in any other antifouling product range – has been firmly embraced by the market and is now also being used in other Hempel products such as epoxy cargo tank paints and other anticorrosive coatings.
Group Marine Marketing Director, Christian Ottosen says:
“Through leading edge R&D activities, we strive to deliver products with outstanding properties. In this case, we were aware that all antifoulings suffer from strength issues and so we invested in the technology to enhance our paints. We are pleased to announce that we have now sold 100 million litres of micro-fibre based coatings. This clearly demonstrates that we are able to meet the demands of the market and help stakeholders in the marine industry overcome their challenges.”
