The Sherwin-Williams Company on Aug. 30 hosted The Honorable Thomas Modly, under secretary of the U.S. Navy, at the company’s Warrensville, Ohio, lab to demonstrate its innovative protective coatings solutions for combatting corrosion in harsh marine environments.

Members of the Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine Coatings division and the company’s research and development leadership teams met with Naval officials to discuss the role protective coatings play in helping to ensure the readiness of the Navy’s fleet around the globe. Modly’s team participated in the visit as part of their involvement in Cleveland Navy Week, which ran Aug. 27 to Sept. 3.
Under Secretary Modly, accompanied by his wife, Robyn, and U.S. Navy officers and staff, toured the Warrensville R&D facility and met with Sherwin-Williams employees to discuss current projects, product innovation, research and development initiatives, and the role the U.S. Navy serves in protecting the United States and its allies.

“We are gratified by The Honorable Under Secretary Modly’s visit to our R&D lab in what underscores the strength of the long-standing relationship between the U.S. Navy and Sherwin-Williams,” said Ron Shuck, SVP of R&D at Sherwin-Williams. “Our R&D team continuously strives to deliver optimally performing coating solutions to protect assets in the marine industry. Our long history of serving the U.S. Navy speaks to the focus and dedication of our team to ensure durability, aesthetics, and sustainability in every solution we deliver.”

From stem to stern, the Sherwin-Williams marine group offers a complete line of high-performance coatings that protect marine assets from corrosion and wear. These solutions include everything from fast-drying, general maintenance coatings for a quick return to service to high-solids coatings designed for long-term asset protection. The company has worked closely with the Navy to develop various coatings solutions, including Fast Clad ER. This ultra-high-solids, rapid cure, single-coat epoxy replaced the Navy’s traditional three-step coating practice to enable faster maintenance and a 24-hour return to service for ballast and fuel storage tanks and other vessel assets.

Sherwin-Williams is a significant marine coatings supplier to the U.S. Navy and delivers solutions to protect its assets from the corrosive ravages of the high seas. Sherwin-Williams is the primary paint supplier for the new USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) aircraft carrier and for restorations being performed on the USS George Washington (CVN-73) aircraft carrier. The Navy is currently using the company’s SeaVoyage Copper Free antifoulant coating on the USS Nimitz (CVN-68) to deter fouling of its underwater hull. In addition, Sherwin-Williams has a five-year just-in-time coatings contract with four public naval shipyards in Norfolk, Portsmouth, Puget Sound, and Pearl Harbor. The JIT contract enables Sherwin-Williams to manage the shipyards’ coatings inventory and deliver supplies as they are needed to not only ensure a steady delivery of coatings from local inventory but also reduce onsite storage challenges for the shipyards.

“From developing and delivering high-performance coatings systems to managing an integrated coatings supply chain that ensures on-time, local availability, we are committed to helping the U.S. Navy protect the ships that help defend our nation,” said Joe Laehu, VP of marketing with Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine Coatings. “We have enjoyed a long-term relationship that has stood the test of time from protecting World War II’s naval vessels and Corsair fighter fleet to today’s ultramodern supercarriers.”