Permagard

Permagard makes protective coatings for aircraft paint and interiors in Miami, Florida, where it says its products are made by hand from American raw materials. Its history page dates the company to 1998 in Mougins, France, and names Luc Lefebvre d'Argencé as founder and CEO. It holds ISO 9001 certification and also sells automotive and yacht versions of the coating. It says its aviation division has protected more than $35 billion worth of aircraft, and it publishes OEM approval pages for Airbus, Boeing, Bombardier, Dassault, Embraer, Gulfstream and Textron Aviation.

The aviation product is a cross-linking coating that leaves a flexible layer of about four microns over paint and clearcoat. Permagard says it needs no paint correction or clay-bar step first, can be applied indoors without a paint booth, needs no cure time before the aircraft flies, and is kept up through annual service treatments under its maintenance program. It publishes pretreatment guidance and sells maintenance products for use between treatments. Detailers learn the application at its Miami headquarters training center, in a process it says can be taught in as little as two hours.

Aircraft operators buy Permagard through certified applicators. Its directory lists certified aircraft detailers by airport across the US and abroad, a separate list of certified aircraft facilities, and Prime Appearance as its nationwide application network; JetGlow Aviation in Wisconsin is also certified. Detailing companies can apply to become applicators through its training and certification page, which is taught at the Miami training center. For an FBO, the practical question is whether an on-field detailer is already certified or whether the aircraft must go to a listed facility. Permagard does not publish coating or application prices.