SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA — California Polytechnic State University's Polymers and Coatings Program invited industry partners to campus in appreciation of a quarter century of industry support, especially the many contributions to the new Kenneth N. Edwards Western Coatings Technology Center (WCTC). Attendees toured the new facilities and learned about student research.

Private donations of $2.5 million from Dunn-Edwards Corp., Behr Process Corp., BYK, Ellis Paint, LASCT, Rohm and Haas, Sherwin Williams and other industry supporters funded the WCTC. The center includes the following facilities:  Dunn-Edwards Coatings Formulation Facilities, the Behr Process Polymer Synthesis Laboratory, the Instrumental Analysis Laboratory and the Kenneth N. Edwards Conference Room.  

The state-of-the-art laboratories in the WCTC will enhance the program's ability to educate future polymers and coatings professionals as well as provide unique opportunities for industry-sponsored research. Cal Poly offers the only polymers and coatings program in the West. With twice as much space as the previous facility and more advanced instrumentation, the WCTC will allow the master's program to expand to 10-12 graduates per year.