PITTSBURGH – For more than 130 years, Moran Towing Corp.’s fleet of tugboats had been recognized for the signature white “M” painted on their stacks. This October, company President Ted Tregurtha and a donation of PITT-TECH^® Plus marine paint from PPG Industries distributor Armorica Sales collaborated to adorn the well-known industry emblem in pink on 100 tugboats to promote breast cancer awareness.

The idea for the pink “M”s took root when a Moran employee asked Tregurtha for approval to paint one on a single tugboat to honor a family member. When the company president floated the idea to other Moran ports, he said the response was so overwhelming that he authorized it for the company’s entire fleet of tugboats, which are used to push barges and guide ships in waters from New Hampshire to Texas.

Armorica Sales, a longtime distributor of PPG protective and marine coatings based in Staten Island, NY, donated the coating after owners Mike Anderson and John Tretout received an order for Pitt-Tech Plus paint in Tickled Pink from Larry Bencivenga, Moran’s Port Engineer. Once Anderson and Tretout discovered the awareness-promotion idea behind the purchase, they volunteered to cover the cost of the material.

“They are good customers, and we thought it was a good idea to support them,” Anderson explained. “It’s a great cause, and we were happy to do anything we could to help.”