Industrial Painting
Brush/Roller Painting
Brushes and Rollers are still the mainstay tools of the modern industrial painter, they may no longer apply the most paint on a project, but these important tools are used extensively to apply stripe coats to welds, edges and rivets, to “cut-in” two colours down a straight edge and to pick out the intricate colouring detail some of our structures require.
The advantages of Brush Application are:
· Works paint into the surface
· Minimal equipment costs
· Relatively easy to use
· Easy to clean and store
· Displaces dust and moisture from the surface (before painting)
· Good for stripe coating (edges, welds etc.)
· Good for touch-up to painted surfaces
· No requirement for compressed air, power etc.
There are of course disadvantages to this method of painting, such as:
· Slow and labour intensive
· Generally applies thin film thicknesses
· Poorer quality of finish compared to Spray Painting
Throughout our works we encounter many different structures; some are easily accessible whilst others contain thousands of narrow nooks and crannies. In order to apply enough paint to achieve the required Dry Film Thickness (thickness of a coat of paint once dry) in these hard to reach areas our painters utilise a variety of professional brushes such as:
· Flat Brushes, for large flat surfaces where spraying is impractical
· Dogs-Leg Brushes, for inaccessible locations and thin steel bars/girders
· Fitch Brush, used in small areas for cutting in and stripe coating
When working upon structures where their are large areas of unobstructed flat steel our ICATS trained industrial painters may utilise traditional rollers to apply the protective coatings. Advantages of roller application are:
· Faster than brush application.
· The roller head is available in various fabrics allowing the roller to be used with a wide range of paint materials
· Extension poles allow the painter to apply coatings to various heights without
scaffolding and towers etc.
· Very easy to use.
The disadvantages of roller application are:
· Although faster than brush application, still more labour extensive compared with spray application methods.
· On other than on completely flat surfaces an element of brush painting will also be required.
As you can see from the points highlighted more traditional methods of hand painting are still widely used throughout the industrial painting industry; however to apply large volumes of paint to the structures we often refurbish requires a somewhat quicker and more reliable method of application, this takes us onto our next section, Airless Spray.
Airless Spray Painting
The most common process for applying industrial coatings is by airless spray techniques. Airless spraying is the application of atomised paint particles via a specially designed pump; the atomisation of the paint is achieved by placing it under extreme pressures, forcing it through a very narrow orifice where it reaches the velocity required for atomisation. Airless spray painting is particularly suitable for the application of anti-corrosive and high performance coatings to structures such as ships, bridges and tanks.
The advantages of Airless Spray Painting are:
· High capacity
· Low paint loss (if correctly used)
· Negligible paint fog
· Excellent coverage in awkward places
· Highly viscous materials can be sprayed easily
· Thick coats easily applied in a single pass
· Mobile unit - only compressed air required
However the disadvantages of this method are:
· Requires highly trained & experienced operatives to correctly carry out the work
· High cost of equipment and spare parts
The majority of TI Protective Coatings projects are coated using this method, we have a large number of ICATS (Industrial Coating Applicator Training Scheme) certified applicators who are experienced in the use of these methods on bridges, tanks, vessels and buildings of various size.
Plural Component Spraying
TI Protective Coatings are able to provide Plural Component fed paint application through the use of our specialist Covercat unit. This machine is widely used upon tank lining projects, but is available for any other areas of work should it be required.
The device works by mixing the paint’s components “Resin” (Part A) and “Curing Agent” (Part B) automatically in the correct proportions within the unit. The paint mixture then travels directly to spray gun for immediate application. This Mix-as-you-go process greatly reduces waste.
Applications
Medium to Large Applications
Shipbuilding and Ship Repair
Heavy Fabrication & Construction
Tank Coating
Pipelining
Features
1 to 6 Gun Capability
Portable System
Simple to Operate
200litre (55Gallon) Drum Feed System
Remote Mix Manifold Options
Heavy Duty Cart with Forklift Slots
Lift Frame Options
Benefits
Minimize waste - Only use what has been mixed.
Allows for use in drums or totes, reducing empty waste cans and buckets.
Ensure proper mix ratio
Greatly reduce the chance for operator error.
Availability to heat material
Reduce viscosity with heat instead of solvent
Add BTU’s not VOC’s
Allows use of “solventless” coatings, no solvent entrapment issues.
Safety benefits
Heated high viscosity materials are sprayed at lower pressure.
Less handling and exposure to potentially dangerous chemicals.
|