Research & DevelopmentIndestructible's Paints business has been built on our on going Research and Development capabilities.
As the performance of all equipment has been expanded over the years so has the demands placed on our products. Today's machines work at higher temperatures, higher altitudes, are built from weight saving materials with special coating requirements. As the demands from our customers have increased so our development team have risen to the challenge with a comprehensive range of paint and coating products.
Environmental ConcernsEnvironmental concerns are now higher up the agenda of all organisations - thus requiring solutions which were once never envisaged.
Whatever the challenge our R & D team have a wealth of experience to fall back on. Solutions can be evaluated on site thanks to our leading test equipment which can test exposure to: -
Research & Development
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Our in-house facilities can dramatically reduce development lead times.
MD Brian Norton comments “Our business lives or dies from R&D. It is the key to our success and is the only way in which we can continue to develop protective coatings to meet the most stringent of requirements of this harshest environments, in particular they protect aerospace components that operate at extraordinarily high temperatures.”
“A large part of our business is export and this is a not untypical example of how we work with our customers."
Indestructible Paint supply Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd in India with coatings for its ALH (Advanced Light Helicopter).
The coatings include, amongst others, three low VOC matt 2-pack polyurethane camouflage colours and a low VOC 2-pack epoxy primer surfacer for use on helicopters for the Indian Army.
Because of a change in camouflage colour requirements, including the addition of a fourth colour, a number of the army’s helicopters were scheduled for re-finishing.
Applied in the high temperatures and humidity of Bangalore, the original coatings used on the helicopters were formulated accordingly.
A challenge with the re-finishing arose when the Indian army specified that the aircraft had to be painted in hangars ‘on base’ in a remote mountainous area near Srinagar in the Himalayas.
Low temperatures, around 0º C, and very low humidity were obviously serious obstacles to obtaining an acceptable film and the necessary degree of cure for the coatings.
Matcon Hicoats Pvt Ltd,
Indestructible Paint’s agent
and stockist in India, were
contracted to carry out
the re-finish work and approached
the company for
assistance with the problem.
Accordingly, Indestructible
Paint produced the new colours
and also modified the
formulations by changing
the existing solvent balance
and adopting faster catalyst
types. This enabled an acceptable
paint film appearance
to be achieved along
with the required cure density
despite the extreme environmental
conditions.
The new materials were successfully applied in situ by Matcon Hicoat operatives, earning the praises of both the high ranking Indian base commander and Hindustan Aeronautics.
Indestructible Paint Ltd has built a reputation based on offering bespoke solutions to our customers. “By understanding the needs of our customers and their business we can offer innovative ideas to make their jobs simpler.”
This is underlined by 75% of all coatings sold by the company are formulated especially for, or adapted, to meet the requirements of individual customers. They are ‘engineered’ to meet their specific requirements.
Engineering companies, especially aerospace companies, always need new products. These materials sometimes replace older technology to meet environmental requirements or to provide greater performance, or both.
In addition, a customer may sometimes need the basic characteristics of one of our existing coatings, but further work may be required to enhance performance in one or more sections of its specification. While work is ongoing in the company’s laboratories, for special or long-term product development, we also offer a contract service to our customers.
If you require a specialist coating developing or would like information about our test facilities then please call our technical team on: 0121 702 2485
Tax Rebate on R&DAs one of the world’s leading manufacturers of high performance protective coatings, whose products are exported worldwide, Indestructible Paint are delighted to have received a tax rebate of "many thousands of pounds" after successfully applying for research and development tax credits dating back to 2001.
Birmingham-based Indestructible Paint Limited, who manufacture high performance protective coatings for many of the aero engine and aerospace component makers in the world, received the tax boost after intervention from the Birmingham office of HW, Chartered Accountants. The firm undertook a diligent review of the company’s previously claimed R & D tax credits and saved the company a "six figure sum" that was repaid with interest.
Indestructible Paint managing director Brian Norton, said he was delighted with the outcome.
Some 20% of Indestructible Paint’s workforce is dedicated to research and development.
"Our business lives or dies from R & D. It is in our blood and it is the only way in which we can continue to develop protective coatings that meet the most stringent of requirements. Our paints operate in the worlds harshest of environments, in particular protecting aerospace parts that operate at extraordinarily high temperatures,” said Mr Norton.
The company’s customer list reads like an A-Z of aerospace manufacturers. They include Rolls Royce, Pratt & Whitney, British Aerospace, Volvo, Goodrich, and Sikorsky. Its industrial and marine division provides solutions for low friction coatings, anti corrosion and high slip decorative finishes.
Henry Briggs, senior partner at the Birmingham office of HW, said the work they had done was detailed and implemented by those with real knowledge of the process. "Many other companies may well be losing out," said Mr Briggs.
"It is still possible to turn back the clock – and there is the further advantage that the taxman pays interest on the tax reclaimed. More businesses should take a look at how they apply for R & D tax credits. It is quite possible that they could reclaim many thousands of pounds," he said.
Please bring your coating problems to us for a solution.
