Sherwin-Williams Names Impact Awardees
A 3-million-gallon water storage tank restoration project, completed under difficult circumstances, was recently named the winner of The Sherwin-Williams Company's Protective and Marine Coatings 2018 Impact Awards. The tank is located in The Dalles, Oregon.
Crewmembers from Vancouver, Washington-based HCI Industrial & Marine Coatings Inc. had to prevent smoke from a nearby fire at Eagle Creek from absorbing into the interior tank coating. In turn, this prevented the smoke from later impacting the taste of the water.
Impact Awards
Projects eligible for nomination included new, restored and/or rehabilitated water-related structures using Sherwin-Williams coatings or linings. Besides tanks and towers, eligible structures include water treatment and storage facilities, transmission structures, sewer collection and wastewater treatment facilities. The winner was announced via an emailed news release.
According to the company, an independent panel of judges adjucated entries based on the difficulty of the project, challenges overcome, solutions provided to the owner, how satisfied the parties were with the outcome and the overall uniqueness of the project.
2018 Award Winner
The 2017 Eagle Creek fire, located roughly 70 miles from the water tank, produced smoke that was often drawn into the tank’s cut-out access entry. This created concerns over air quality and potential lining contamination. To mitigate these issues, HCI monitored the air so that coatings were only applied when particulate matter readings were above established thresholds. The team also conducted wipe tests after each coat cured. If there were smoke deposits, the surface would be cleaned before the next coat was applied.
Restoration of the tank’s interior had HCI crewmembers setting up an air filter system inside to help lessen the impact of the smoke. From there, the surface of the tank was prepared, then Sherwin-Williams Macropoxy 5500LT, a high-solids, polyamidoamine epoxy tank lining, was spray-applied, which included a prime coat, a stripe coat on weld seams, an intermediate coat and a topcoat. The exterior coating system required a direct-to-metal prime coat and an intermediate coat of Sherwin-Williams Pro Industrial Pro-Cryl Universal Acrylic Primer. The crew used one to two coats of Sher-Cryl HPA, a high-performance acrylic semi-gloss coating, for the topcoat.
“We established the Sherwin-Williams Impact Award to honor demanding water and wastewater projects and recognize those professionals committed to enhancing public safety, protecting assets and extending infrastructure life,” said Kevin Morris, Market Segment Director, Water & Wastewater, Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine Coatings.
“The winning project faced unique challenges that none of the parties involved had ever encountered. We all worked together to devise a plan that would ensure adhesion of the water tank’s coating systems and prevent smoke from adversely impacting the community’s water quality.”
Runners-up include: the extensive application of concrete coatings by Santa Fe Springs, California-based Cor-Ray Painting Co., for the expansion of the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant in San Diego; and the restoration of a 1-million-gallon elevated water storage tank in Houma, Louisiana where Sherwin-Williams collaborated with Terrebonne Parish Consolidated Waterworks District No. 1 to bring the tank back to life both visually as well as prolong its service life.
An honorable mention went to repairs completed on a 7.5-million-gallon storage tank and two water treatment plant clarifiers for the Benton/Washington Regional Public Water Authority.
