Bellingham, Washington – June 22, 2015 – Bellingham Marine, world renowned marina builder and pontoon manufacturer, announced today that the International Intellectual Property Office has issued “patent pending” status for its new FRP thru-rod and nut system. Bellingham Marine has filed for design protection on the system’s unique bolt thread, nut shapes and overall look and patent protection for the concept and performance characteristics of the innovative rod system.
The new FRP thru-rod offers a longer life-span than stainless steel rods at a far more economical price. The composite rod consists of a completely corrosion resistant ECR-glass fiber and a modified epoxy resin matrix. The specially formulated composite material offers high strength, complete corrosion resistance, durability, and unparalleled creep and fatigue resistance.
The new FRP thru-rod system was developed by Bellingham Marine in partnership with Pultron Composites, a global industrial technology company that specializes in the development and manufacture of high performance composite fiber-reinforced pultrusions.
“The Bellingham Pultron FRP thru-rod is the result of Pultron’s 30 plus years of experience in the composite industry and Bellingham’s nearly 60 years’ of experience designing and manufacturing floating dock systems,” said Pete Renshaw, Business Development Manager for Pultron Composites. The two companies have been working together over the past seven years to develop a rod system that would surpass both galvanized and stainless steel rods in strength, maintenance, longevity, and overall performance.
“Our first test site was in the Middle East; we wanted to test the product’s performance in a high salinity, high temperature environment – three years into the testing program and we are thrilled with the results,” said Everett Babbitt, President and CEO of Bellingham Marine. “We have another test site in New Zealand in an exposed location where we have been monitoring the rod’s fatigue resistance.”
“This breakthrough in materials technology is one the of industry’s greatest innovations is the past twenty-five years. The key to the product’s success is rooted in Pultron’s extensive quality control processes, selection of raw materials, and proprietary thread design,” said Babbitt.
