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The ASTM A 123/A 123M specification covers individual steel pieces as well as assemblies of various classes of
material. The four material categories covered in ASTM A 123/A 123M include structural steel and plates, strips and
bars, pipes and tubing, and wires. A fabrication can have more than one material category such as a frame assembly.
Any combination of these products can be assembled into a single fabrication and then can be hot-dip galvanized, as
seen in 2
.

It is the responsibility of the designer and fabricator to ensure the product has been properly designed and built before
the hot-dip galvanizing process. The galvanizer should be made aware of any necessary special instructions or
requests in advance of shipping the materials to the galvanizing plant. These requests should be stated on the
purchase order for the hot-dip galvanizing.

It is the responsibility of the galvanizer to ensure compliance with the specifications as long as the product has been
designed and fabricated in accordance with the referenced specifications. However, if the galvanizer has to perform
additional work in order to prepare the product for hot-dip galvanizing, such as drilling holes to facilitate drainage or
venting, it must be approved by the customer. Once the material has been hot-dip galvanized, it can be fully inspected
at the galvanizing plant prior to shipment.

Any materials rejected by the inspectors for reasons other than embrittlement may be stripped, regalvanized, and
resubmitted for inspection. The ASTM specifications A 143/A 143M, ASTM A 384/A 384M, and ASTM A 385
provide guidelines for preparing products for hot-dip galvanizing. The requirements listed in ASTM A 123/A 123M
include coating thickness, finish, appearance, and adherence. These are each defined below and discussed in more
detail later in this course.

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± dependent upon material category and steel thickness
  ± continuous, smooth, uniform
 c  ± free from uncoated areas, blisters, flux deposits and gross dross inclusions as well as having no
heavy zinc deposits that interfere with intended use
 c  ± the entire coating should have a strong adherence throughout the service life of galvanized steel
The hot-dip galvanized coating is intended for products fabricated into their final shape that will be exposed to
corrosive environmental conditions. Once a product has been hot-dip galvanized, any further fabrication, which very
rarely occurs, may have negative effects on the corrosion protection of the coating. The coating grade is defined as
the required thickness of the coating and is given in microns. All coating thickness requirements in specification
ASTM A 123/A 123M, as seen in 
 , are minimums; there are no maximum coating thickness
requirements in either specification.

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The time to first maintenance of hot-dip galvanized steel is directly proportional to the thickness of the hot-dip
galvanized coating. With all other variables held constant, the thicker the zinc coating, the longer the life of the steel.
The aim of the finish and appearance requirements is to ensure no coatings have problem areas that are deficient of
zinc or have surface defects that would interfere with the intended use of the product. In addition, the coating should
have a strong adherence throughout the service of the hot-dip galvanized steel.