Data-center construction boosts demand for protective coatings and paint

Citing a New York Times report, a host said data-center construction has become a fast-growing market for paint makers. Technology companies use gray coatings on concrete, steel, and other building components to resist fire, rust, and static electricity. At PPG’s laboratory, the host described a demonstration of SteelGuard 951: after exposure to flames, a coating about 1 millimeter thick expanded into a black crust nearly 10 millimeters high, helping prevent heat from reaching the steel. The host described PPG as a $24 billion company. Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and other firms are expanding computing infrastructure for AI, supporting demand for these coatings. Sherwin-Williams said its protective and marine coatings are used across data centers; in July, its chief executive said sales in that business were up by a mid-teens percentage from a year earlier. The host called paint makers potential beneficiaries of the boom and an unexpected supply-chain bottleneck.