# 464 Corrosion Coupons, Brand Building, and Having Fun at Trade Shows with Will Ritter

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Podcast: [Scaling UP! H2O](https://stenobird.com/podcast/scaling-up-h2o-7746)
Published: 2026-02-20T09:01:08+00:00
Episode link: https://scalinguph2o.com/2026/02/20/464-corrosion-coupons-brand-and-tradeshows/
Audio file: https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/scalingup/Episode_464_Full_Episode_v2.mp3?dest-id=797464
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/scaling-up-h2o-7746/episodes/464-corrosion-coupons-brand-building-and-having-fun-at-trade-shows-with-will-ritter
Duration seconds: 4339

## Resource

"Don't be afraid to say I don't know. - Will Ritter" Corrosion is expensive, relentless, and easy to underestimate—until a "lasagna battery" turns aluminum foil green and reminds you what electrochemistry can do in the real world. This conversation reframes corrosion coupons as what they actually are: a repeatable field test that can sharpen your decisions—if you treat the process with consistency. Respect the coupon, protect the data Trace breaks down why coupons became non-negotiable in his systems: they turn guesswork into usable corrosion-rate intelligence. Will Ritter of MetaSpec (formerly Pacific Sensor) explains the fundamentals—pre-weighed coupons, exposure time, cleaning, and calculating corrosion rate in MPY (mils per year). The point isn't that the coupon is your pipe; it's that the coupon becomes a reliable, relative gauge over time when variables are controlled. The "five things" that make results repeatable Will outlines practical failure points that quietly ruin comparisons quarter to quarter: alloy selection (and staying consistent), surface area (and what happens when hardware covers the coupon), surface finish (including why scratches and pits matter), weight accuracy (and why kitchen/postage scales don't belong in the workflow), and protective VCI packaging that prevents premature corrosion in storage and transit. Brand building, trade shows, and getting comfortable saying "I don't know" Will shares his path from Pacific Sensor to MetaSpec and what it looks like to merge brands intentionally heading into 2026. The discussion also moves into trade show presence and digital marketing, plus a simple confidence framework: get comfortable saying "I don't know, but I can find out," and build communication reps—he points to Toastmasters as a low-stakes way…

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## Transcript

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