Marine coatings industry‑wide EPD: does one exist?

The short answer

There is no recognized, public industry‑wide EPD specifically for marine coatings as of December 2025. Sector averages exist in other categories like ready‑mixed concrete and precast, which helps explain the term’s popularity, but nothing comparable is published for marine or anti‑fouling coatings in the U.S. or Europe.

Why the gap likely exists

Marine coatings span very different chemistries and functions, from ballast‑tank epoxies to silicone foul‑release topcoats. The functional unit varies by substrate, film build, and service life at sea, which makes a single, representative average hard to defend. Data collection across shipyards, offshore assets, and maintenance cycles is messy. Getting dozens of manufacturers to share consistent plant data is even messier.

What PCRs cover marine coatings today

You can still publish credible marine or protective coating EPDs. In North America, many protective coatings use an Architectural Coatings PCR under ISO 14025 for Type III declarations. In Europe, EN 15804 c‑PCRs such as “Coatings with organic binders” are common and accepted by EPD program operators. Jotun’s coatings are a visible example using that c‑PCR with EPD Norway, including polyurethane topcoats like Hardtop XP, where the product page links directly to the EPD (Jotun product page, 2025) (link).

Who is already publishing product‑specific EPDs

Competitors are not waiting for a sector average.

• Carboline lists EPDs for workhorse protective and marine‑service systems such as Carbomastic 615 and Carbomastic 615 AL, with EPD downloads on the product pages (Carbomastic 615 EPD link on product page), (Carbomastic 615 AL EPD link on product page).
• Jotun publishes product‑specific EPDs via EPD Norway for coatings used on marine and protective structures, for example Hardtop XP, which points to its EPD from the product page (Jotun product page).

These examples show that marine and protective lines are already covered by product‑specific EPDs across multiple regions. Their data is verifed, comparable within the same PCR family, and ready for project submittals.

Why an industry‑wide EPD would be conservative

Sector EPDs average real plants, lines, and energy mixes. That typically bakes in conservative assumptions to keep outliers from biasing the result. Good for disclosure, not great for differentiation. If your resin system runs cleaner energy or tighter yields, an average will hide that advantage. It is like grading on a curve when you studied twice as hard.

The ROI case for marine coatings

When a project team must include EPDs in whole‑asset carbon accounting, absent product‑specific data they default to generic or worst‑case datasets. That can create a penalty on paper. A verified, product‑specific EPD replaces that penalty with your measured impacts and often lifts you into more bids where EPDs are a gate. Teams tell us the extra shortlist visibility is where specs are actually won, not on last‑minute price cuts.

Practical path if you make marine coatings

Pick a fitting PCR early. For the U.S., the Architectural Coatings PCR is commonly accepted for protective systems applied on buildings and infrastructure. For Europe, EN 15804 with the coatings c‑PCR is a proven route. Set a reference year, map raw materials and utilities by plant and batch family, and define declared units that match how specifiers buy and apply. Choose a program operator aligned with your target markets. EPDs are normally valid for five years, which gives a sensible refresh cadence while formulas evolve (EPD International, 2025) (link).

If there is no sector average, does it hurt you?

Not here. Since there is no industry‑wide EPD for marine coatings to anchor baselines, any generic value used in models will tend to be conservative. A product‑specific EPD can outperform those placeholders and becomes the number others compare against. That is how smaller brands punch above their weight in specs.

Where this leaves marine‑coating manufacturers

Waiting for a sector average in marine is like waiting for perfect weather at sea. It may not arrive soon. Publishing a product‑specific EPD on your highest‑volume or most spec‑sensitive system gets you into more compliant bids, replaces conservative assumptions with your real impacts, and signals operational discipline to owners. Do the boring data work once, then let it compound across your line. One final nudge. Start with a single hero system, prove the workflow, then scale. Even small process wins add up when multiplied across lots and lots of gallons.