Leading global coatings manufacturer Hempel announced the North American launch of Hempatop Direct 460. Developed to provide superior protection against corrosion, the one-coat Direct-to-Metal (DTM) application resists railcar colour and gloss-fading challenges, while delivering customers decreased maintenance costs and increased productivity rates.
Approximately 1.6 million railcar assets travel across North America every year. High railcar traffic bundled with rising corrosion rates costs the rail industry billions of dollars per year. This makes coating protection products such as Hempatop Direct 460 more valuable than ever.
"At Hempel, we are known for protecting our customers' most valuable assets with our coatings and we are proud to provide them with a new solution that provides significant corrosion resistance and protects their railcars against weathering," said Tracey Wilson, North America Sr. Product and Portfolio Manager and Global Rail Product Manager, Hempel. "We have developed Hempatop Direct 460 specifically for our customers in the rail industry, where we saw the need for this high-performing Direct-to-Metal coating."
Hempatop Direct 460 supersedes Hempel's workhorse DTM epoxy, Hempadur Mastic 45883, and is ideal for interior use on box cars and exterior use on all rail car types.
The new one-coat solution is easy to apply and the resilient high-gloss finish lasts longer. Hempatop Direct 460 provides excellent UV-resistance, enhanced gloss and colour retention and chalks to the original colour, unlike other traditional epoxies.
Dry to the touch in just three hours, Hempatop Direct 460 is available now to help the rail industry attack corrosion and boost economic productivity.
For more than 30 years Hempel's interior linings and exterior coatings have been applied to a wide variety of railcars including tank cars, hopper cars, gondolas, grain cars and box cars. To learn more about Hempatop 460 Direct, view the product information sheet here.