COATINGS
Giving structures a new lease of life
Adding a bit
Applying a coat of paint to railway infrastructure assets may seem easy, but the whole process is tightly controlled and thoroughly planned. Rail Technology Magazine spoke toNathan Wiles to find out more
The refurbishment of an historic bascule bridge in Wales points the way forward for coatings, saysDavid Heal
A
ll sorts of structures need protective coatings, and few more so than listed bridges. Over the past two years, one company has shown how it’s done, using an epoxy glass-flake system to completely regenerate Camarthen Bascule Bridge.
PPG Protective and Marine Coatings has created products that can be used for civil and infrastructure buildings, offshore, petrochemical, power, rail and marine structures.
Its products have been used on countless bridges, both new construction and maintenance, using 25 year certified Network Rail approved systems.
PPG supplied all of the maintenance coatings for the refurbishment of the historic bascule bridge in Carmarthen from 2008 to 2010. The bascule bridge is a listed structure
FOR MORE INFORMATION
David Heal UK & Ireland Manager, Protective Coatings, PPG Protective & Marine Coatings T: +44 (0)1773 837300 E:
pmcsalesuk@ppg.com W:
www.sigmacoatings.com
26 | rail technology magazine Dec/Jan 11
and so product quality and performance was of utmost performance for the contract.
Using its Network Rail approved epoxy glass-flake system, PPG worked closely with Tema engineering to provide onsite technical support to ensure the project was completed to the required standard and the historic bascule bridge now has a new lease of life as a result.
This case study is just one example of how PPG can offer complete specification advice and coating system recommendations for the full range of substrates and exposure conditions. PPG can offer extended performance lifetimes of up to 25 years, utilising unique and economic coating technologies.
PPG holds a complete range of 25 year certified systems to Network Rail NR/L3/ CIV/039 (previously RT98) and also has a newly approved range of coatings for London Underground, approved to LUL 1-085 for use in section 12 areas.
when carrying out any type of work on Britain’s railways and this is especially important when engineers work on projects which involve dealing with aged infrastructure.
S
Our ancestors were not as safety conscious as we are today and often used substances which we now know can pose a significant risk, such as lead-based paints.
It is therefore very important the right precautions are taken by engineers when either removing or applying paint.
A good example is some enclosed work which recently took place on a railway bridge on Chester Road in Manchester.
“Whilst we have internal Network Rail standards, we tend to work to British standards when removing or applying paint,” says Nathan Wiles, project manager at Network Rail.
“Primarily, we need to consider the environment and safety, with all staff who work in that kind of environment being subject to the Control of Lead at Work (CLAW) regulations. This means that they are monitored regularly and have their blood screened in compliance with the CLAW regulations.
“At the outset of any project we
would carry out paint-testing on the structure to analyse levels of lead in the paint, because that is primarily what we are concerned with.
“Once we have a result from that reading, we are then able to establish the levels of controls needed in order to contain that lead content.”
By doing this the team can ensure that they are not exposing any personnel or the general public to any health hazards.
“The first thing for us to
afety is always the number one concern
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