Opinion
certification were clearly stated: ‘…it also provides evidence of flawed management of teams and of contractors, including the dubious practice of self-certification’. The need for a flawless training programme to educate and train specifiers, structure managers, architects, surveyors and anyone involved in setting up, appointing and managing painting contracts is evident. Those responsible for steel structures of all kinds realised that there was a significant sphere of learning required to understand the methodology needed to obtain the maximum life of a coating system for the protection of structures before the next maintenance had to be put in place. The ICATS initiative has more recently been supported by numerous other training programmes. These take the subject of corrosion control by coatings into much more detail and are aimed at specifiers and the engineering world, to encourage the adoption of good practice and to achieve a maintenance painting target life of 25 to 35 years. A further initiative now being put together jointly by the Steel Construction Institute, the British Constructional Steelwork Association and TATA Steel, is a web- based training course for engineers,
architects and specifiers, which will help engineering management on coating projects to ensure that the self- certification procedure does not allow ‘dubious practice’ to become ‘flawed practice’.
This new training scheme is also being supported by a more in-depth, diploma-based qualification and training programme. This is based on a private initiative called Corrodere, introduced by the UK’s MPI Group corrosion control training section.
The Corrodere scheme is being widely accepted by the engineering and protective coating industries, as it provides a necessary basic background and qualifications for all engineers and coating specialists to take into account not only information previously provided by the coatings industry, but also the necessary requirements of surface preparation, application, inspection and testing to ensure that coating contracts are providing the optimum performance and the longest time to next maintenance intervention.
This spread of knowledge reduces the whole life costing of any structure – in particular bridges, which generally are expected to have a 125 year life. The right
training programmes and anti-corrosion and coatings technology mean that many structures exceed that age and not only are premature failures prevented, but the applied coating gives maximum performance. Major bridge structures, such as the refurbishment of the Forth Rail Bridge, which has recently been completed, puts an end to the old saying: ‘It’s like painting the Forth Rail Bridge, once they get to the end they have to start all over again.’
The major refurbishment of this old and famous structure, which was completed at the end of 2011 by an ICATS registered company with ICATS qualified operatives, is expected of have a coating life to first maintenance of between 25 and 30 years. The understanding, care, products and quality control of the work on this structure sets a benchmark for coating projects on both new and existing structures, as part of railway strategy for the future.
Similar examples of this type of understanding, care and attention have been provided in the refurbishment and extension of London’s St Pancras station and the recently completed, £500m project to build an extension at Kings Cross station. These successful, and carefully put together, projects can be contrasted with projects where attention to detail, technical care and knowledge have not been recognised or implemented. Those premature, costly failures can be seen in examples such as the Eurostar station at Ashford and at various bridges and viaducts where breakdown of the coatings have been evident in under five years.
It is therefore vital for technical and financial reasons to ensure that all those involved in repainting projects on steel railway structures ‘get it right first time’, thus saving vast sums of money and preventing unnecessary, frustrating, delays to the travelling public. David H Deacon FTSC, FICorr is the founder and director of the UK’s Steel Protection Consultancy. He is a past president of the Institute of Corrosion and was presented with a unique lifetime achievement award for his 40-plus years of service to that professional specialist body. Among scores of railway related contracts, SPC has been retained on the Forth Rail, St Pancras and King’s Cross projects.
PAGE 60 DECEMBER 2012
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