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I'm A Sailor, Not A Painter!

21 July, 2020


photo c. Navy Times

Everyone has to pay their dues, and the military is no exception; many Navy recruits start off their enlistment doing prep work – scraping old paint and rust from the side of a ship. It’s a long-time rite of passage that one veteran remembers from way back in the day. “It was my first job after reporting on board my first ship. Long Beach shipyard, February 1960,” he commented.

Now, however, laser technology might save the sailor from what’s commonly known as scut work – routine, menial labor. The Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, in partnership with a company called Adapt Laser, has found that laser technology can remove the paint cheaper, faster, and better than putting sailors over the side.

While this may annoy the curmudgeon who feels everyone has to suffer through it, the Los Angeles Times once reported that the average ship can keep 16 sailors busy full time just with chipping and painting when they can be put to better uses, and that in fact this activity was rated on par with cleaning toilets and working in the kitchen.

Adapt Laser has already developed a process to strip away paint and coatings from the Air Force’s aircraft parts – but this recent development is the first time the Navy has considered the procedure.

Laser solutions not only absorb into and remove these coatings, but they do so without impacting the base material, the company explains. Should there be any lead-based paint, it is safely captured when removed so there is no secondary cleaning process needed.

Along with that, the laser paint-removal technology provides a completely clean surface, which eliminates the need for solvents to remove leftover oils, grease or contaminants. The ability to work better and faster means the boats can be put back into service more quickly, and that the Navy will have to find an alternative way to humiliate its new recruits.

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If cost and liability were not an issue, what's your one must-have at the company picnic?

Paintball Feld
39%
Axe Throwing
30%
10-Foot Nacho Trough
12%
Potato Salad
19%

Dang it's hot! Does your work vehicle have an orange water cooler?

Yes
22%
No
43%
It's not orange
35%

Did you work for a painting contractor prior to owning your company?

Yes
61%
No
39%

Why haven't you hired a business coach?

Not worth the money
30%
Too difficult to find a good one
19%
I don't need one
30%
I did hire one!
22%

Has OSHA ever inspected your jobsite?

Yes
53%
No
48%

Who Buys the Paint Brushes?

We do...the company
69%
Our painters buy their own
31%

What's the most paint you've ever spilled?

Brush-full
12%
Gallon
54%
5 Gallons
23%
An Ungodly Amount
11%

Did you take a week-long (or longer) vacation this summer?

Yes
45%
No
44%
Not yet, but I'm gonna
11%

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Flapjack Painting
19%
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7%
Half Slab Painting
10%
Whole Hog Painting
64%

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I'm a painter
12%
I'm a contractor
5%
I'm a painting contractor
52%
I own a painting business
31%

On the job site, my painters mostly listen to...

Classic Rock
29%
Country
10%
Hip Hop
4%
Who knows. They got headphones
56%

Which social media platform is most effective for marketing your business?

Facebook
34%
Instagram
11%
LinkedIn
6%
I don't use one
49%

What do you drive for work?

Pickup Truck
51%
Van
28%
SUV
13%
Other
9%

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Choices

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If you've bought a used sprayer, was it a good decision?

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