Hawaii's Moon Shot

This NYT editorial is worth sharing with all of my blog readers. No, it's not coatings related- I find the following example of a "micro-eco effort" to be very encouraging and should be used as an example of how a micro effort can effect the macro.

Hawaii's Moon Shot

From the December 2, 2008 New York Times Editorial, page A32

Published: December 2, 2008

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/02/opinion/02tue2.html?ref=todayspaper

"Jeffrey Mikulina, a longtime environmental activist in Hawaii, jokes that his home state, which is almost completely dependent on imported oil, is one supertanker away from being Amish. It also is one superheated ocean away from being underwater.

There, in a nutshell, is the motivation behind a new campaign to wean Hawaii from fossil fuels in 10 years. The project is Hawaii’s own moon mission, led by the Blue Planet Foundation and not by the state’s political establishment, which tends to prefer the slow and tortured way to change (a long battle over a new commuter rail system was bogged down by a ferocious debate over whether it should have steel or rubber wheels).

Blue Planet, a private foundation, is the creation of Henk Rogers, a software entrepreneur who made a fortune in Tetris. Reassessing his life after a heart attack two years ago, he decided to pursue a goal that for decades has been as elusive as it is drop-dead obvious.

Hawaii is as energy-hungry as any state, but it has no oil, natural gas, hydroelectric dams or nuclear plants. It needs imported crude to keep the lights on, but it also has an abundance of clean-energy sources: sunshine, wind, powerful tides and waves and cold ocean depths.

A green consciousness is beginning to take root in Hawaii. In January, the state approved a plan to cut its reliance on foreign oil by 70 percent by 2030. Mr. Rogers doesn’t want to wait that long, so his foundation is trying to turbocharge the effort. Mr. Mikulina, the foundation’s executive director, says this will mean more than just throwing up lots more solar panels and windmills and making lavish investments on exotic technologies.

Wind-farm relics from the 1980s are now languishing on Hawaiian hillsides or as forgotten proposals in desk drawers. The foundation plans to seek structural changes, like pushing the state government and Hawaii’s main utility, the Hawaiian Electric Company, to revamp an obsolete electrical system to increase efficiency and to allow customers with solar panels to easily sell power back to the grid. An agreement to do just that was signed last month but has not been enacted into law.

Advances like these, plus a concerted push for conservation, may be just the steps needed to complete the state’s transformation from blue to green. Hawaiians have a long tradition of self-sufficiency, community action and a deep attachment to the land that sustains them — leadership in a clean-energy movement could powerfully reaffirm those values and perhaps spread them to the rest of the nation.

Richmond Oval / EM9300 Update

Richmond Oval

Oval Site Construction

Phase 2 Site Construction

Phase 2 includes formwork and concrete pouring, with the Oval superstructure rising up from the ground and the 'bones' of the Oval taking their shape. This Phase of development has been moving at a steady pace, with changes and advancements in Oval building progress visible almost everyday.

As stated in previous WaterWorks Blog Posts, the interior wood-lam beams are specially coated with Target Coatings EM8800 Universal Waterborne Sealer and EM9300 Polycarbonate Waterborne Urethane to provide a durable, ultra-low VOC, HAP's-Free protective and attractive finish for a warm interior wood glow.

History Ignored = The Price We Pay

With crude oil approaching $110.00usd a barrel we all better hunker down and get very serious about reducing our personal and professional oil consumption. As a young boy in the 1970's I watched my family, who were heavily entrenched in the old-world solvent paste wax industry, get their markets decimated by the 1973 Oil Embargo and the staggering inflation that soon followed. I learned two important lessons: 1) Never trust politicians who pander to the oil industry; 2) Find alternatives for your petroleum/oil-based main stays: In short- Learn to use waterborne technologies that feature HAP's-Free water soluble solvents and resins that are further removed from the crude oil food chain. A well engineered waterborne coating should feature P-Series glycols (propylene series), which are derived from propylene oxide. When neutralized with water the propylene oxide becomes highly stable very safe to use...

Water-Based Finishing: It's Easier Than You Think!

Are you considering the jump from solvent-based wood finishes to a water-based system? Are you inundated with comments from your peers about the good, bad, and ugly aspects of your decision to switch? Do you think to yourself, “Now is the time to change to water, but how?” Making the switch from old world solvent-based wood finishes to modern, well engineered waterborne systems still has its challenges, but these challenges are not nearly as harrowing as it was 8 to 10 years ago. With the right line of products and with a few minor tweaks in your finishing process you can make the switch to a water-based system sooner then you think.

So, what stumbling blocks lay ahead in making the switch? First, you need to find a supplier with a solid track record in waterborne technology. There are several to choose from and due diligence on your part is the key to success or total frustration. Many of the old school solvent houses are still figuring out how to remove the lids off their water based resin samples without wearing flame retardant clothing. In addition, there are companies who have jumped onto the bandwagon with less then modern formulas purchased through acquisition, which skips the tried and true R&D process that ensures top shelf performance. Also, and most importantly, several coating manufacturers have their products tweaked, dialed, and set to make the process less painful then it may actually seem as a concerned finisher. Finding these companies and their products requires up-front time and effort, which naturally costs you money. Next, you will have to determine whether your spray equipment is up to making the changeover along with you.

During the next set of blog installments I will guide you through the process that will make the switch from solvent to water in as few steps as possible. Now, not all applications are the same. Door and window manufacturers require a different set of standards then does the cabinet or furniture maker or even the boat builder. Will you be finishing one-off custom pieces or are you finishing dozens or hundreds of the same parts and dimensions day after day? These are the reality checks of our industry, and these are the fine points that I hope to guide you in as you make your switch to a low VOC waterborne system that will satisfy your customers' standards. So tag along and have some fun while we help you make the changeover to a friendly waterborne technology- you'll be glad you did!

Alternative Toymakers Make Good

With the ongoing ruckus about the use of lead paint on toys made in China, it is good to learn that a few small, crafty American toymakers are profiting from mega-corporate misdeeds. Although the clock is running down on this season's holiday shopping blitz, bookmark the following web sites for future, alternative toy giving ideas. Ask your local, privately owned toy store to stock wood toys that are finished with non-toxic natural oils or water-based wood finishes. With a little investigation, a modern toymaker can find water-based paints and clear coats that are 100% non-toxic when cured that will demonstrate exceptional durability in the hands of a rambunctious youngster.

Please note that none of the companies listed below are customers of Target Coatings. We are bringing their presence to light, because we firmly believe in the American manufacturing and entrepreneurial experience and the national benefits of buying products made in the USA and Canada.

The attached photo is courtesy of Maplelandmark.com

http://www.vermontwoodentoys.com/

http://www.maplelandmark.com/

http://www.lauritoys.com/

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/23/us/23toys.html

http://www.maplelandmark.com/imports.shtml

Get The La-La-Lead Out...

So, what does China have that the United States does not have? Lead paint, that’s what. Anyone over the age of 40 should remember that lead paint was banned from use in consumer/residential paints back in 1978, due to well-founded health risks caused by the exposure of very low quantities of lead when ingested or inhaled. More recently in 2003, the consumer paint industry was instructed to take the warning of exposure to lead one more step by implementing this warning on all paint cans:

WARNING! If you scrape, sand or remove old paint, you may release lead dust. LEAD IS TOXIC. EXPOSURE TO LEAD DUST CAN CAUSE SERIOUS ILLNESS, SUCH AS BRAIN DAMAGE, ESPECIALLY IN CHILDREN. PREGNANT WOMEN SHOULD ALSO AVOID EXPOSURE. Wear a NIOSH-approved respirator to control lead exposure. Clean up carefully with a HEPA vacuum and a wet mop. Before you start, find out how to protect yourself and your family by contacting the National Lead Information Hotline at 1-800-424-LEAD or log on to http://www.epa.gov/lead

Skip forward to 2007 and read any national newspaper or watch your national news, and we learn that China is painting popular child toys with lead paint. If you think children are not at any less risk to becoming dim-witted from sucking on lead encrusted objects then we were as toddlers, then you better smell the multi-national coffee brewing and make your next Christmas toy shopping list read MADE IN USA.

Today’s consumer and industrial paints manufactured in the US and Canada contains no lead, whether they are water-based or solvent-based. If you can’t find any American made toys in Wal-Mart, then perhaps we as a nation should have a collective re-evaluation of our priorities as to what is more important to our families and country. The Wall Street popularity of out sourcing manufacturing jobs to unregulated countries for the sake of the shareholders best interest versus the best interest of the consumer may have just taken a sharp turn into a brick wall- which seems to be covered with lead paint. It’s either cheap, unsafe products made by a unregulated, communist-turned-industrial society, or fewer, better made products manufactured in the United States, Canada or a EU country that follows the consumer safety rules.

The China White-Lead debacle is a textbook example of how the demand for low prices puts quality at risk. You get what you pay for. Perhaps the time is right for manufacturing jobs to come back to the United States. The dollar is weak, our work ethic is strong, and American innovation is at an all time high.

http://www.mattel.com/safety/us

http://children.webmd.com/news/20070823/more-toy-recalls-due-to-lead-paint

Got Water Based Lacquer?!

I wish that I could say that I have been enjoying the summer sun, fun, and temptations of goofing of on a distant trout stream. Unfortunately, though, this has not been the case. Once again, Mama Summertime found me crawling through the shops and factories of my many customers, learning more about how they use our water based wood finishes and finding ways to improve on our line. The wood coatings industry is an aggressive, competitive business, and if you stand still long enough you become dead meat to your competitors. So stay tuned- I have more new products and innovative processes ready to run with for the high volume users! I hope the competition had a nice, lazy summer....