StandardAero is First MRO to Complete ERAU/SSPC’s New Aerospace Coatings Application Certification As paints and their proper application requirements become more sophisticated, so must the training that aircraft painters receive to do the job properly. “Historically, learning how to paint has been primarily on-the-job type training,” explained Mike Menard, VP/GM, StardardAero’s Springfield Completions Center. “A lot of ‘tribal knowl- edge’ was passed along, but there was no consistent baseline or body of knowledge.” To ensure its customers are getting the best quality of work possible, when Menard heard about the Aerospace Coatings Application (
www.sspc.org/ACAS/) certifica- tion programing being offered as a joint venture between Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and the Society for Protective Coatings (SSPC), the StandardAero team wanted to be the first MRO to take advan- tage of the certification training. “The program is great. It offers techni- cians a good theoretical base on which to build their craft and that translates into a better result for our customers,” Menard said. “That theoretical knowledge is often what’s missing from OJT—you know what needs to be done but you don’t know why. Knowing why is more important today than ever.”
“For example, any painter worth their salt will tell you that proper surface clean- ing and preparation is critical,” he added. “But they really don’t know why. What are the things at the chemical level that make it work or not work? This certification cre- ates a much better, more consistent foun- dation for our craftsmen.” The ERAU/SSPC certification program consists of six training modules that are completed by the technician online. Menard said that it takes about six-weeks for a working painter to complete that part of the training.
“For the final exam an Embry-Riddle instructor came to the shop to see each technician put his or her knowledge into practice,” he said. “You have to prep and paint a piece of aluminum using the proper technical data sheets and you have to know why you are doing each step.” “Going through the course gives you the understanding of what you are doing and why,” Menard said. “Now they know why humidity is important and why it matters what order you mix the two-part paints.” Menard said that it also helps make for better moral among its employees. “It’s been a good way to challenge our painters. They use the same techniques they always have, but now they have a clear understand- ing of how it all works,” he said. “We’re investing in our employees’ futures. They are true craftsmen. We’re just providing them with a better foundation.”
38 Aviation Maintenance |
avm-mag.com | April 2013
According to Julie Voisin, a Sherwin-Williams product manager, clearcoat is very tough and there are multiple mils of it on top of the basecoat. She said repairs can be as simple as buffi ng them out.
“We’re constantly working to enhance the application ‘robustness’ of these new finishes,” he said. “By robustness, I mean the ease of application, where if you follow a certain set of parameters you’ll get a consistent finish, cure and film properties.” In fact, following processes and
procedures is so critical to achieving the level of finish quality today’s customer demands that Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and the Society of Protective Coatings have joined to create the industry’s first Certification for Coatings Application (see sidebar). “We have a rule-of-thumb, that states
if you are going to paint anything bigger than a dollar bill, you really need to do it in the right facility and environment to do it correctly,” Wood said. “You need to be precise in your measurement of the materials. Precise in the equipment you are using. You need the correct ventilation and air flow.”
“Remember that a lot of these new paints have modular components based on their application conditions. The size of the panel to be painted, ambient air temperature, air flow—all these kinds of things,” he said. “Really, if you’re going to paint an eight-inch square, you going to want to use a different solvent than if you’re going to paint the entire wing or airplane.”
Paint Repair 101 Wood said that today’s BC/CC coatings are a lot easier to repair than the old finishes and that you can definitely use today’s paint with the old paints. “It’s not going to crater or fish-eye massively or anything like that,” he said. “That old paint has long cured enough so that won’t be a problem.” However, Wood stressed that you would need to follow the paint manufacturer’s published procedures and processes, including the appropriate pre-treatment steps to the letter. “I’ve seen more mistakes caused by people being in a hurry than anything,” Wood warned. “If they would just slow down a bit on the front side and
make sure everything is correct before they actually mix the paint.”
Ed Mullins, technical specialist, at PPG
Aerospace stated that a good rule-of-thumb is to start with a checklist. “Best practices within the paint industry always lead back to the cleanliness of the substrate,” he said. “A good clean substrate provides a solid foundation for good paint application. He also suggested that technicians take
full advantage of the information available to them on the Internet. “There’s much more good information available now,” he said. “Refer to the information that is available. That often eliminates a costly mistake.” And when you are doing your research,
remember that, unlike a single-stage paint, you’re dealing with a BC/CC finish so you may have repair options and the Internet is a good place to search them out. For example, if, like on your car’s finish, you see a white mark on one of the color areas, you may be only looking at damage to the clearcoat. In fact, clearcoat is very tough and there are multiple mils of it on top of the basecoat. “Repairs can be as simple as buffing the clearcoat or a localized section of the basecoat scheme,” Ms. Voisin said.
Sherwin-Williams has a really good
video on repairing minor surface damage/ blemishes on YouTube: (
www.youtube.com/ watch?v=AifGkQ87HJA) “The only caveat on buffing is you really need to get in tune with your supplier of these types of materials,” Wood stated. “They have really changed a lot in the past few years—not only the compounds but also the technology of the pads and equipment. They’re really more designed for today’s paint coatings.”
Sometimes the clearcoat itself is damaged to the extent where you will need to respray. “You can do some of what I call ‘blending of clearcoats,’” he explained, “but I tell technicians all the time if you can get a clean panel-break and you can tape off the panel, then go ahead and respray the entire panel. You’ll get a much better repair.”
Sherwin-Williams image
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