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....

New Whistler Public Library Goes Low VOC Green

July 15, 2007
Whistler, BC Canada:

The new Whistler Public Library project is well on it way to completion and is heading towards a Silver or possibly a Gold LEED Certification rating for clean-air emissions and optimizing energy resources. Designed by HCM Architects of Victoria and Vancouver, BC., this state-of-the-art 14,500 sq ft. public space features innovative energy and atmosphere controls, water efficiency and innovative materials and resources such as the ultra-low VOC water based coatings manufactured by Target Coatings.


The Water-Based coatings that are specified into the project are the Target EM9300 Polycarbonate Urethane Exterior Wood Finish for use on the laminated beams, as well as the Target Oxford Ultima Series Water Based Lacquer Series for all of the interior running trim, window and door packs. When fully cured these materials release ZERO formaldehyde, ethylene glycols or other HAPS (Hazardous Air Pollutants).

Low VOC Coatings Help to Eliminate Smog

The Union of Concerned Scientists has released a new study which illustrates the extreme challenges that the east coast of the United States will face within the next 50 years if greenhouse gas emissions are not challenged and reduced. Considering how the massive population centers located between Atlantic City, New York City and Boston are already stressed due to excessive smog (low level ozone), poor storm water drainage and a depleted agriculture and fisheries industry, the near-future does not look promising if sea levels continue to rise and air quality plummets.

http://www.ucsusa.org/news/press_release/global-warming-to-hit-0044.html

By switching to a low VOC water-based coating that features P-Series glycol ethers and other HAPs free solvents you will help to reduce the output of low level ozone, commonly known as smog. Smog is one of the many heat trapping by-products of the industrial revolution that has made our modern lives so rich and fulfilling. Now that the environmental tables have turned we owe it to ourselves and future generations to reverse the negative environmental impact that we have imposed on ourselves and our only home- Planet Earth.