Sample 4- Market Sectors

3.1 Aerospace Coatings 
Background

Aerospace coatings represent a specialist, high value segment of the coatings industry that supplies surface coatings to the full range of aircraft types for durability, protection from corrosion and decoration. The performance of this segment is largely dependent on the health of the aviation industry in aircraft manufacture and maintenance. 

Aerospace coatings provide protection to aircraft parts constructed from a range of materials such as aluminium alloys, titanium and composites. Externally, paint protects the fuselage shell, the tail and wings from corrosion, including attack by highly corrosive liquids such as hydraulic oil and kerosene. In addition, fluctuations in temperature range from +50°C and -50° within minutes, while air pressure and wind speeds likewise soar. 

With fuel prices hovering above $60 per barrel, another increasingly important consideration for manufacturers is to develop coatings that can reduce aircraft weight and fuel consumption. Also with regard to cost, suppliers are developing quick-drying coatings to increase the cycle efficiency and subsequently reduce the production time and maintenance down time, thereby generating substantial savings in lost revenue days.