Nippon Paint Marine Appoints Gladys Goh as President

Nippon Paint Marine, the world’s first manufacturer of biocide-free marine coatings, has announced the appointment of Gladys Goh as its President, effective immediately.

As President of Nippon Paint Marine Coatings, Gladys Goh is the first female and foreign national to lead a principal operating company in Japan. With a history of over 140 years, the marine division is the founding business for the Nippon Paint Holdings Group, a global leader and pioneer in marine paint and coatings. Gladys joined Nippon Paint Malaysia in 2006, driving the brand to become Malaysia’s top coatings provider and subsequently led expansion into new markets. She concurrently serves as Senior Vice-President, Strategic Innovation & Marketing at NIPSEA Group.

The hull coatings market is experiencing strong, sustained growth as a result of increased regulations, the drive to meet decarbonisation targets and the impending costs of future fuels in line with shipping’s energy transition. These factors are generating a surge in the uptake of proven clean technologies that reduce fuel consumption and emissions and increase operational efficiencies, of which advanced hull coatings are the most widely used and available technology within the market.

Nippon Paint Marine Coatings works with customers across 30 countries in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, North America, and South America. Its products have been applied to more than 40,000 vessels, from tankers and container ships to cruise liners and yachts.

Commenting on her appointment, Gladys Goh said: “I’m honoured to have been appointed as President of the Nippon Paint Marine Group, and I am also proud to be able to reflect and represent the diversity of talent within the business. We operate in an increasingly dynamic and fast-changing market, as the shipping industry faces multiple challenges. From improving its sustainability and meeting decarbonisation targets, to ensuring profitability during testing economic and geopolitical times. However, these challenges also bring many opportunities to innovate, to evolve and to create technologies and solutions that can drive genuine impact and positive change. My vision for growth is to deliver a multiplying effect that will drive this, enhancing our people’s capabilities, optimizing operational efficiency and delivering greater value to our customers.”

Over the course of 2024, Nippon Paint Marine plans to launch several new products to market, including expanding its leading antifouling solution, FASTAR, to incorporate Hydrogel ‘water-trapping’ technology for both ocean-going and coastal-range vessels. It is also focusing on developing low VOC in both antifouling and anticorrosion coatings to meet regulatory compliances and regional VOC requirements, especially in key markets such as China and South Korea. Lowering VOC emissions helps protect the health of individuals working at shipyards and contributes to the overall sustainability of the marine industry.

Nippon Paint Marine will also strengthen its cargo hold and cargo tank solutions, including offering methanol- resistant coatings in line with the industry’s increased use of methanol as a viable new fuel to meet decarbonisation targets. In 2024, the company will further expand its supply points, to include North America and South Africa, following the acquisition of new locations in Australia, Egypt, and Gibraltar last year.

Inspired by customers’ needs, Nippon Paint Marine launched the world’s first self-polishing (SPC) tin-free antifouling paint in the 1990s, followed by the launch of the world’s first low-friction SPC in 2006. Its most recent innovation today is the award-winning AQUATERRAS product, the world’s first proven biocide-free self- polishing underwater foul-resistant coating. AQUATERRAS works by using the science and materials used in medical anti-thrombogenic polymer technology and is a unique micro-domain SPC developed from raw materials used in the pharmaceutical fields. This technology provides an ultra-smooth, highly efficient coating to keep ships clean whilst minimising environmental impact.