Paint Inspection Ltd

Monthly Newsletter Edition 1 Spring 2012

This Issue
Welcome P.1 Our Services P.1 Ambient Conditions P.2 Microscopic Creatures P.2 ICATS Training P.3

Welcome
Welcome to the first newsletter from Paint Inspection Ltd. We ,as a company, are well into our second year and we have to thank all of our clients for the support we have been given since we started on this exciting venture, without certain people taking a risk by trusting us on surveying their assets to helping support any works programmes, we would not have had the opportunity to show what a professional and forward thinking company that we are and promote ourselves to be. We now have a fantastic client base that expands everyday as people recommend us to colleagues and peers within the industry and for that we are grateful. So why do a newsletter? Well its a funny old thing this industrial coatings business. Often during the design, and build phase protective coatings are an afterthought! In reality it only gets attention when it either goes wrong or there is requirement for maintenance, then further questions arise like compatibility? What is the right system? What service life can I expect? What should I be looking for from my contractors? The questions are endless and the cost in time and money when things go wrong can be disastrous. In the newsletter we plan to cover topics that are relevant within the industry for the period we are working in, for instance in this edition Ian will be covering the importance of ambient condition control during application and what effect this can have on the surface life of coatings. I will writing about an unusual creature I recently discovered on an inland bridge. Melissa will cover how, as an independent ICATS training company, we have been able to help support local authorities getting people back to work as well as providing contractors with a good source of trained operatives. We also want you to have your say and recently we sent out an e-mail asking if you had coatings related questions the response was fantastic and unfortunately we will not be able to put every question in the newsletter but we do promise to answer every question even if it is a personal response. Once again I would like to thank everyone for their support in 2011 and look forward to working with all of you in 2012 to help improve quality to reduce costs.

Q & A P.3
Our Services & Qualifications

Services
Coatings Condition Surveys Painting Works Inspection Specification Writing Project Consultancy Paint Sampling & Analysis Failure Analysis Project Management & Support

Qualifications
All of our inspectors are ICorr / NACE qualified and have many years experience our range of certificates include: Icorr/NACE level 2 or 3 Inspectors Confined Space Tickets LUL Entry Permits PTS Cards NEBOSH Achilles LINK UP Approved Institute of corrosion sustaining member

Andrew Patterson Director WWW.PAINT-INSPECTION.CO.UK

Technical Advice

Surface Cleanliness
Ambient Conditions To paint or not to paint this is the question!!!
Its that time of the year when we are getting towards warmer day time temperatures which are more suited for external painting contracts, but beware as we are not entirely out of the woods with temperatures dropping at sunset and the dew point hovering around the steel temperature. With the current financial climate and budgets being slashed, it is critical for painting projects to meet the specification and be quality controlled so that the coating system can reach its life expectancy in terms of minor and major maintenance. During the ICATS training programme we drive the importance of good surface preparation and other key factors which affect the long term performance of the system, such as mixing the paint correctly, applying the paint when the ambient conditions are in specification and application overall from coating thickness etc. Specifications mainly work to the 85 to 90% Relative Humidity rule, air temperature above 5c and the steel temperature 3c above the dew point. This is fine when applying the coating system but as previously mentioned this time of year the evening temperatures drop away and in most cases the coating system is still in the curing process. A number of factors can take place when the coating hasnt cured out and the conditions become less than ideal; one being is that the solvent will not evaporate to complete the curing process, the curing Amines will bloom as the humidity rises and so on. Overall

Microscopic Creatures Make An Inland Highways Bridge Their Home.

During a recent survey of a highways bridge one of our inspectors (whilst using a specialist piece of visual equipment) noticed a large number of microscopic creatures moving along the failure line of the protective coating system. What potential effect may they have on any protective coating system? Eventually the natural history museum identified these creatures as Pscoids, during discussions they were surprised to hear that these insects had made their home on an inland bridge, and this is far removed from their usual habitat. It appears that the particular ones observed had managed to find a fungi of their particular liking upon the exposed steel work of the structure, through some form of rapid evolution it was possible that they were also managing to survive by extruding moisture from the surface by burrowing under the protective coating system. The history museum believed it was possible that with enough of them, they could severely damage the paint by lifting it away from the surface as they migrated along the substrate. Even more unusual is that most Pscoids are winged making their movements easy when food sources have been depleted. The Pscoids observed on the bridge were wingless and this may go some way in helping understand how they have evolved to survive in such an environment. The picture below shows an image taken of a Pscoid on top of a zinc salt grain.

this is not an ideal scenario and the inevitable will eventually happen, with either a coating failure or a delay in the programme as the works are revisited. So where are the solutions? Well a number of mechanisms can be put into place to prevent a potential coating failure. One being that the works are delayed until the summer, but this presents its own unique problems as the seasonal programme window will be relatively small and even then night time temperatures and Relative humiditys are not guaranteed. Large painting contracts normally have temporary works in the form of fixed scaffolding which is sheeted in, so heaters and dehumidifiers are employed to avoid any potentially problems. On smaller maintenance projects the works are normally open and controlled heating is not a solution, so other options need to be looked at and using a winter curing agent could provide a solution as it speeds up the curing process and also looking at coating systems which have a greater tolerance and proven track record in low temperature curing. Overall the importance of the painting programme and using the correct coating system are one of the key factors to long term performance, so specifications should be written with these key indicators in mind, along with technical assistance from the coating manufacturers. Next newsletter: Amine bloom, what does it mean and how is the system affected. Images: Left: Appearance of amine blush/bloom Top: Elcometer 319 with steel temperature probe.

ICATS Training News

Here at Paint Inspection Ltd, we are delighted with our new offices and ICATS workshop at Trafalgar Wharf, Portchester. It has certainly been a very busy time for us since we moved here. We introduced our Industrial Coatings Applicator Training Scheme early last year, serving Individuals and Companies requiring ICATS Certification. Ian, Andrew and I set up and ran courses every four to five weeks, fitting them around our Survey and Inspection schedule, and sharing a workshop with a neighbouring paint spraying company. How things have changed! After some very successful results working with Companies, Local Authorities, Charities and Government bodies we now run ICATS courses fortnightly and have created a new workshop for our trainees. Our clients are from diverse backgrounds ranging from new recruits to the Coatings Industry, to seasoned painters with more than 30 years of experience. In conjunction with the local council we have also completed our 4th full course with another 6 courses booked with the probation service to assist ex offenders in gaining a new start. These candidates will have also completed employability checks and usually CSCS Certification to further elevate their chances of gaining long term employment. Currently Paint Inspection Ltd success rate is over 50% of training to employment and feedback from contractors who have taken trainees from the course has been excellent. Paint Inspection Ltd understands the true meaning of Corporate Social Responsibility. They put 150% into ensuring customers and trainees are happy. I have seldom worked with a company that puts so much effort and time back into the local community where they are based. It has always been worth picking up the phone to see if they can assist with diverse community-based projects. If they cannot help they often know someone who can help and will make an introduction.

Linda Taylor - Portsmouth City Council

We also send our trainers to companies to administer ICATS and for specialist modules, Paint Spraying and Abrasive Blast Cleaning, keeping our trainers and our company very busy. Melissa Borthwick, Company Secretary For information on how we can help train operatives, or the availability of ICATS certified personnel then please feel free to contact myself at Tel 023 93233147 or e-mail melissa@paint-inspection.co.uk

Q&A
I Have A White Powdery Deposits All Over My Structure What Is It? It sounds like you potentially have chalking. To simply check wipe your hand across the surface using a little pressure. You can use a coloured rag instead of your hand. Choose a dark rag for light paint colours and a light rag for dark paint colours. If some of the pigment comes off, usually a light colour when compared to your existing paint colour, then your existing paint is chalking, The primary cause is exposure to sunlight! Ultra violet light breaks down the binders in the paint and releases the pigments. Another cause is a reaction between the binders and oxygen, this is paint oxidation. Both of these processes occur simultaneously and have an effect on all types of finishes. While all of this chemistry is happening, the paint sheen will become progressively duller and the paint film thinner. The paint film thins from the effects of rain as it washes away the chalking paint residue.

Equipment News

Paint Inspection Ltd have been trialling the new Defelsko Positector. This gauge is unique as it only requires 1 body that can adapt to different inspection regimes with snap on adaptors. This negates the need to carry multiple units onto site. For more information go to www.dftinstruments.co.uk