Tag Archives: David Hood

From Space Frontiers to Water Tower Paint

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By David Hood, Induron CEO

Sputnik

I remember well the afternoon of Oct. 4, 1957 – it was a big time in my life (and maybe yours too). I was somewhere between Gainsville, GA, and Birmingham, riding in the car with my dad. He had been in Gainsville for the weekend working as a volunteer “corner flagman” at an SCCA amateur sports car race. I was just a 14-year-old kid, amazed at the cars and men (and a few women) who drove them.

On that particular late afternoon, we were listening to the evening news when a strange “beep, beep, beep” sound came over the radio. It was a sound that changed almost everything in my future.

It was Sputnik!

The radio announcer explained that the Russians had launched a rocket that carried a device into orbit around the earth, where it would stay for a very long time with no further “push” and send radio signals until the battery went dead.

I was – and have been ever since – fascinated by all things mechanical. I was also (then and ever since) a red-blooded patriotic American, and I was not going to stand by and do nothing while those Russians were beating us technologically! That night I decided I was going to engineering school. I think many other Americans made the same decision, because, as you know, we developed a far superior and much more sophisticated space program than did anyone else on the world. Continue reading From Space Frontiers to Water Tower Paint →

From Pencil and Paper to Computers

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By David Hood, Induron CEO

I have said before that Induron has old buildings. We do. And in thinking about the history of this company, I’m reminded of something else we have that’s old – our “batch books,” or log of production batches. Believe it or not, we still have the very first batch book. The original batch (batch No. 1) of paint we made was for 10 gallons of TT-P-86 Red and was recorded in pencil by my dad, Induron founder William E. Hood. We still keep batch books today, however, now they’re in electronic form.

That original batch of paint went through the same process we use on our paint today – it was recorded in the batch book and went through quality assurance. Every batch of paint we’ve made over the past 65 years has gone through the same process.

Each batch of paint we make is tested in our Quality Control Lab to verify that its properties meet the standards set for that product by its formulator and/or our customer. The results of the tests are recorded on a record card, on the original batch record and into the computer for statistical analysis. The documents and artifacts (draw-downs, color match data, sag charts, etc.) are attached to the batch ticket and filed away. That way, if we have need to question the field performance or properties of a product, we can go back to the original record to help resolve questions.

In addition to the above, we keep a pint of the paint as a “retain” sample. These “retains” are kept for a period of time sufficient to address any and all needs (about three years), so we can help resolve potential questions. Continue reading From Pencil and Paper to Computers →

Induron: Keeping You From Looking like a Dummy

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By David Hood, Induron CEO

By David Hood, Induron CEO

Nobody likes to look like an dummy. Especially you.

Now, Induron can’t keep you from looking like an dummy if you install a ceiling fan and forget to cut off the electricity at the breaker box.  Or if you try your wife’s yoga class.  Or if you dress up like the back end of a horse for Halloween.

But we CAN help prevent it if you work with us on a project. Let me explain.

When we say that we’re with you before, during and after a project, we don’t just mean that we’re standing there, hovering over you, watching you work (because that would be strange). We mean that our sales reps want to ensure that the owner of the project is pleased. Continue reading Induron: Keeping You From Looking like a Dummy →