Champion choice - Durepox
When Pete de Roo made his first lab sample of Durepox in November
1983 tucked away in a dilapidated laboratory, little did he realise
that his new development would one day become world famous. The
first batch made at the Resene Automotive Ranui factory in April
1984 was just 100 litres.
Since those humble beginnings, Durepox has fulfilled the demanding
needs of painters in the signage, trucking, industrial coatings
and floor covering markets for many years, but nobody would ever
have dreamt of its success among the international racing boat
fraternity.
Durepox has figured strongly on the hull and deck of contestants
in the Whitbread and previous America's Cups. The pinnacle of
the product's fame was undoubtedly this year's America's Cup as
seven of the twelve challengers in the Louis Vuitton Cup and the
America's Cup defender all used Durepox.
Durepox is an epoxy urethane with amazing adhesion to carbon
fibre, fibreglass and wood, which can be applied without sanding
between coats. While developed as a primer, Durepox is used as
a topcoat on racing boats as it has excellent water barrier properties
and exceptional weather stability. Durepox was tested by the Otago
Flume Laboratory and results showed that its satin finish gave
a 15% less drag coefficient than a high gloss surface on rowing
skulls. On a practical level, painters admire its fast dry properties
and sandability after three hours with no shrink back.
Thanks to the Spanish entry DesafÌo Español and
Emirates Team New Zealand who forwent the normal sponsorship arrangements
that have precluded the promotion of Durepox on America's Cup
boats in the past, the humble story of Durepox can at last be
shared.
Resene staff painstakingly matched each hue on the Spanish entry
to exacting Pantone standards in Durepox. Each sample was then
sprayed out and flown to Valencia for approval before the careful
task of hull painting could begin. The Spanish shore crew were
rapt with their colourful boat that stood out from the crowd.
Emirates Team New Zealand required a custom made version of Durepox
on their carbon fibre mat hull as they wanted the finish to be
clear and glossy. Resene Automotive and Performance Coatings reformulated
the product while keeping to the strict requirements laid down
by the Measurement Committee. The result was an amazing finish,
adding depth of colour to the 'Black Boat'.
The America's Cup rules are very demanding and Resene Automotive
and Performance Coatings had to analyse paint samples from all
the boats using Durepox to ensure that the product formulation
was consistent with the original shipment and that no additives
were used to gain any speed advantage. In one round of testing
alone, 26 samples from seven boats were sent to the ESR forensics
laboratory for forensic analysis.
Before the first sail was even unfurled, Durepox had well and
truly won the heart of the design teams.
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