Very special pigs 'in the pink'

They would have to go down as perhaps the most unusual items ever to be painted at PPG’s Victorian Training Centre – five enormous pink pigs, mounted on trailers and weighing in at around 700kg each.

These friendly hogs, which are used for promotional duties with the charity organisation Very Special Kids, were looking a little the worse for wear after years of service and needed refurbishment.

With a brief window of opportunity available between scheduled training courses, the large spray booth and spacious workshop at PPG’s Melbourne Training Centre at Braeside were offered as a venue for the work.

Each fibreglass pig was thoroughly sanded back and prepped before PPG’s Multi Surface Epoxy Primer was applied to seal off the old paintwork.

That was followed by several coats of DG ‘Pink’ from PPG’s GRS paint system, to ensure a high-gloss, durable and fade-resistant finish.

Finally, the pigs were given individual features to create five loveable personalities – Penelope, Percy, Princess, Patrick and George.

They are now set to become the centrepiece of the biggest annual fundraising event for Very Special Kids – the Piggy Bank Appeal.

During September 2010, the pigs will travel throughout Melbourne and Victoria, visiting hundreds of towns and suburbs to collect donations, sell merchandise and distribute information about Very Special Kids.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the charity, which assists parents in caring for children with life-threatening illnesses.

For more information visit www.vsk.org.au.