Short Course Overview

Cal Poly’s summer short course on polymers and coatings brings together
academic and industrial experts in the field. The one-week course
covers many aspects of coating technology with emphasis on liquid
coatings, both waterborne and solvent-based. Participants benefit from
discussions of VOC and air quality aspects of coatings by experts in both
industry and government regulatory agencies. Participants are expected
to have had some exposure to the coatings field along with working
knowledge in chemistry and other sciences. The course will convene at
8:00 AM on Monday and end at 12:00 noon on Friday.

Polymers & Coatings Summer Short Course
Registration Fees

Registration Fees Include: 

- Hard & Soft Copies of Handouts
- Daily Refreshments
- Lunch Monday-Thursday

Early Bird Registration is available until July 3, 2026. 

Early Bird Registration: $1,900
Regular Registration $2,000

Parking Permits are required on campus. Click here to purchase your parking permit: Cal Poly Parking Permit

Polymers & Coatings Summer Short Course
Daily Schedule

Monday, August 10:
8:00 – 8:30 Welcome, Introductions & Course Overview (Ray Fernando - Cal Poly)
8:30 – 9:30 Review of basic chemistry & polymers (Shanju Zhang – Cal Poly)
9:30 – 9:45 Break
9:45 – 11:15 Organic polymer chemistry (Leslie Hamachi – Cal Poly)
11:15 – 11:30 Break
11:30 – 12:30 Polymer Characterization (Shanju Zhang – Cal Poly)
12:30 – 1:30 Lunch
1:30 – 5:00 Lab: Polymer Synthesis: Emulsion Polymerization, Thermoplastic Elastomers, 2K PU and
Epoxy coatings (Erik, Leslie Hamachi – Cal Poly)

Tuesday, August 11:
8:00 – 9:30 Coatings Formulation & Industry Overview (Ray)
9:30 – 10:00 Break
10:00 – 11:30 Emulsion Polymers (TBD – Dow Chemical)
11:30 – 12:30 Overview of VOC Analysis (Erik Sapper – Cal Poly)
12:30 – 1:30 Lunch
1:30 – 5:00 Lab: Coating Formulation: Waterborne Latex, Alkyd, UV Cure (Ray, Shanju)

Wednesday, August 12:
8:00 – 9:00 Pigments for Coatings (Rajeev Gorowara - Chemours)
9:00 – 10:00 Colloid Characterization Methods (Leslie)
10:00 – 10:30 Break
10:30 – 11:30 Film Formation (Erik)
11:30 – 12:30 Lunch
12:30 – 4:00 Lab: Thermal Analysis & FTIR (Shanju), Thermal & Particle Size Analysis & Coating
Mechanical Testing (Leslie), Additives & Coating Testing (John Du – Patcham)

Thursday, August 13:
8:00 – 9:00 Rheology (Ray)
9:00 – 10:00 Additives and Their Applications in Coatings (Mahshid Niknahad – BYK Additives)
10:00 – 10:30 Break
10:30 – 12:00 Polyurethane and Epoxy Coatings (Erik)
12:00 – 1:00 Lunch
1:00 – 4:30 Lab: Analysis & Characterization: VOC Analysis (Erik), Color & Appearance (Ray), Rheology (Ray)

Friday, August 14:
8:00 – 9:00 VOC Compliance with resin and pigment choices (Pat Lutz – EPS Color Corp)
9:00 – 10:00 Specialty Fillers (Scott Van Remortel - Covia)
10:00 – 10:30 Break
10:30 – 11:30 Coatings for Sustainability (Ray)
11:30 – 12:00 Course wrap-up and evaluations

Travel Accommodations

San Luis Obispo is in California's Central Coast region, 200 miles north of Los Angeles and 230 miles south of San Francisco. 

Participants who wish to drive from the Los Angeles or San Francisco areas should take Route 101. 

All major airlines offer services to San Luis Obispo Airport (SBP) with connecting flights from Dallas-Fort Worth, Denver, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Francisco and Seattle. 

For lodging information and hotel recommendations, please visit the San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce: Visit SLO. 

Lodging is not included in the program fee.