THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 2023
Late last month, global coatings supplier PPG (Pittsburgh) and the National Hockey League announced a three-year extension of their North American partnership.
Through the exclusive paint partnership, PPG will continue to serve as the Official Paint of the NHL in the United States and Canada.
“We are delighted to extend our partnership with PPG, a deeply committed NHL partner that engages our fans across numerous levels of our great game, including at the upcoming Discover NHL Winter Classic,” said Kyle McMann, NHL Senior Vice President, North American Business Development, at the time.
Financial details and terms regarding the recent extension have not been disclosed.
PPG, NHL History
For the last several years, PPG has been involved with the NHL and its own hometown hockey team, the Pittsburgh Penguins. In 2016, the company acquired the naming rights of the Penguins’ arena for a 20-year term.
The facility, known as the “PPG Paints Arena” since October 2016, officially opened in 2010 and has been known to host more than 150 events each year as well as serving as the home ice for the Stanley Cup champions. Around the same time the naming rights were acquired, PPG also reported that it had become the Pittsburgh Penguins’ “official paint supplier.”
The following year, PPG took things a step further and teamed up with the entire NHL. The result: a multi-year corporate marketing agreement, where PPG paint brands became the “Official Paint of the NHL” in the U.S. and Canada.
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Late last month, global coatings supplier PPG (Pittsburgh) and the National Hockey League announced a three-year extension of their North American partnership. |
In October, PPG launched an industrial coating for use on NHL goal posts. At the time, PPG said that its Envirocon Extreme Protection could be used to protect the equipment from scuffs and chips in the cold environment of ice hockey.
Additional benefits mentioned included the coatings’ application transfer efficiency, consistent film, a wide application window, improved chip mitigation, color-matching capabilities and impact resistance in temperatures as low as minus 30 degrees Fahrenheit.
By December 2018, PPG announced that through its NHL partnership, it was planning to test a thermochromic coating on game pucks. According to PPG, the coating on the pucks changes from purple to clear when its temperature is above freezing, giving a visual cute to the officials that the puck should be replaced.
The thermochromic coating—which is dispersed into an ink system and screen-printed onto the pucks—meets the NHL’s requirements for withstanding game-environment impacts and low temperatures without impacting adhesion.
The first pucks with the coating were used at the 2019 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic on New Year’s Day at Notre Dame Stadium after additional evaluations were conducted throughout the 2018-19 season.
Several months later, in October, PPG announced a three-year extension of its partnership with the NHL. In addition to the deal (the financial terms of which were not disclosed), PPG shared that all official game pucks in the 2019-20 NHL season would include a color-changing thermochromic coating.
The 2022-23 NHL season marks the fourth of the coating's use, where it has been reported to have made a positive impact on the game of hockey. According to the NHL, the league utilizes over 60,000 coated game pucks every season and has continued to coat its goal posts in Envirocon Extreme Protection.
What Now
For a second time, the NHL has extended its exclusive paint partnership with PPG, keeping the coatings supplier’s name as the Official Paint of the National Hockey League in the U.S. and Canada.
“We're proud to combine the power of the NHL with PPG and its well-known consumer paint brands, including PPG Paints, Dulux paint, Sico paint, Glidden paint and Olympic stains,” said Bryan Iams, PPG Chief Communications and Government Affairs Officer.
“Through the partnership extension, PPG will continue to identify new ways to integrate its paints, coatings and specialty materials into the game of hockey, including at premier events such as the 2023 Discover NHL Winter Classic.”
This year’s NHL Winter Classic took place on Jan. 2, where the Pittsburgh Penguins took on the Boston Bruins at Fenway Park in Boston—marking PPG’s natural synergy with the Penguins' participation. During the game, the PPG partnership was visible in various ways, such as onsite activation, branded dashboards and in-stadium signage.
Additional highlights of the partnership extension is that PPG will also receive nationwide broadcast exposure through Digitally Enhanced Dasherboards (DED) during the Stanley Cup Playoffs throughout the agreement's term. This will allow PPG to reach a broader audience through this dynamic signage initiative.
The opportunity is noted to be a strategic fit with the Stanley Cup Playoffs occurring at the start of paint season.
PPG produces paints, stains and specialty products available at more than 250 Dulux stores in Canada, 600 PPG Paints stores in the U.S., 6,000 independent dealer locations and 8,000 major home improvement center locations in the U.S. and Canada, including The Home Depot, RONA, Menards and Walmart.
Tagged categories: Business management; Business matters; Business operations; Coating Materials - Commercial; Coatings Technology; Good Technical Practice; Partnerships; PPG; Program/Project Management; Stadiums/Sports Facilities
