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A tribute to the companies and people who have made Barche a Motore great over these 35 years allowing it to be born, grow, and become great up to this historic anniversary. In these articles the great excellences of boating tell their stories and reveal their projects, making an important contribution to the knowledge of this world, which allows us all to go to sea, in all forms and contexts.
Jotun is the Norwegian company that produces boat protection products in its workshops.
Jotun ‘s story begins in a small Norwegian town called Sandefjord, south of Oslo, where the founder, of the Gleditsch family still at the helm of the company today, watched the whaling ships leave for the South Pole. What he saw on their return was devastating: ships completely destroyed by marine corrosion, unable to withstand the extreme conditions they had to endure during their long sailings. Hence the brilliant idea was born: to start producing a paint that would be able to protect the ships, allowing those who worked on board to be comfortable during their months of work, and to return home safely.
What immediately jumps out at you when looking at a Jotun product packaging is the company’s symbol: a penguin clutching the world! “But don’t penguins stay in Antarctica? What do they have to do with a Norwegian company?” asked Vaira Vesnaver, Marketing Communications Manager for Jotun Europe Sales. “During his travels to the pole, the company founder observed penguins and was impressed by their behavior within the community, so he chose it as the logo for Jotun.” An ethos that is still reflected in the company culture today, where the 10,500 employees worldwide affectionately call each other “penguins” even in work emails. Jotun is a rarity in the modern industrial landscape: a family-owned multinational company now in its third generation. Ownership still lives in Sandefjord and maintains a direct relationship with the company, promulgating among employees the four core values: care, respect, boldness and loyalty.
Jotun operates globally in four main sectors: protection for the marine and nautical sector, coatings for infrastructure and facilities, paints for residential construction, and powder coatings for industrial applications. In Italy, the company focuses exclusively on the first two sectors, specializing in “performance coatings ,” high-performance coatings where each paint has a specific chemical function. The most significant investment in Jotun ‘s recent history has been the creation of what is now one of the largest private research laboratories in the world. At the headquarters in Norway, the R&D department develops all of the company’s innovative technologies, following a fundamental principle: every claim must be supported by solid scientific evidence. Research is not limited to Norwegian laboratories; in fact, Jotun has developed a global network of testing sites to verify product performance in extreme conditions: in Svalbard to test resistance to polar cold, in the Caribbean to test performance in tropical seas, and in Houston and Dubai for resistance to intense desert heat. Extreme marine conditions are artificially recreated in the laboratories, including tanks to simulate tides and systems to test passive fire protection, where temperatures quickly exceed 400-540 degrees Celsius.
Private boating was the last sector introduced by Jotun, which was able to transfer the vast experience of the commercial boating world to pleasure boating. The approach has remained-even in the private marine world-to provide complete “A to Z” solutions. The company offers integrated ranges that include: antifoulings with a shelf life of 12 months to 3 years, epoxy primers for all types of boats, multi-purpose fillers such as Megafiller Multi, certified and guaranteed anti-osmosis systems, finishes and enamels to complete the protection. Jotun has developed a commercial strategy based on an extensive network of specialized dealers. These dealers represent the first contact with market demands, and are trained directly by the company’s technicians and laboratories. This strategy allows them to respond to customer needs based on specific local conditions: fresh or salt water, temperature, sun exposure, type of navigation. An experienced dealer immediately knows which product to recommend based on the geographical area and specific conditions of use (racing, cruising, hours of sailing, seas being sailed…). Jotun has developed an educational approach that goes beyond simply selling products. The company holds regular training days for customers, distributors and applicators. Emphasis is placed on proper surface preparation, which is crucial to the success of any application. Sandblasting, for example, creates microscopic profiles of different shapes and sizes, and each type of paint adheres differently based on its chemical formulation. For Jotun, the approach to sustainability and is also rigorously scientific. the company has obtained certifications from third-party institutions that attest to exactly how much each customer saves in emissions by applying its products. In the commercial marine sector, customers know precisely how much they have avoided putting into the environment. In addition to emissions, Jotun works on emerging environmental issues such as preventing the invasion of alien species through shipping-a phenomenon that sees, for example, ships leaving China and arriving in the Mediterranean bringing invasive species such as the blue crab. Jotun ‘s story shows how it is possible to combine family tradition and technological innovation on a global scale. From observing a penguin to creating one of the world’s most advanced research laboratories, the Norwegian company has been able to turn a local insight into global leadership.
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