PAINTING PROCEDURE

Sr.No. CONTENT

1 Scope

2 General

3 Surface Preparation

4 Application of coatings

5 Inspection

6 Safety

7 Storage
1.1 Scope

This specification covers the minimum requirements for surface preparation, priming,
painting and inspection relating to new construction projects.

1.2 Applicable International Standards

The following standards and standard forms are referred in this specification and shall
be used:

As per Customer Specification.

SURFACE PREPARATION

Blast Cleaning

All surface shall be blasted to a preparation degree of SA 2.5”, clean to near white metal. For
blasting except sand,Any material can used to make required surface.

Environmental Conditions

Blast cleaning shall not be conducted when the temperature of the surface is less than 3 0C
above dew point of the surrounding air or when the relative humidity of the air is greater than
95%.
It is essential to ensure that no condensation occurs on blasted surface. To prevent dust and
abrasive contamination, blast cleaning shall not be done in open areas close to painting
operation or wet coated surface. Blast cleaning shall be permitted only during daylight hours,
except that rough blasting shall be allowed during the night providing that the surface is given
a light blasting to the specified standard in daylight thereafter.

When blast cleaning is in enclosed spaces, such as tanks and vessels, adequate ventilation
shall be provided. The direction of ventilation shall normally be away from the blast site, i.e. in
tanks from bottom to top.

Blast Cleaning Techniques

Maximum speed and the most effective cleaning are obtained by systematic, even blasting.
Blasting the work in squares may be helpful.

Blast cleaning shall overlap by a minimum of 25mm into any adjacent coated areas. Any
surface not primed and/or wetted by rain or moisture shall be blasted against prior to being
painted.

Wet abrasive blast cleaning shall not be allowed without prior permission of the company.
Prior to Blast Cleaning

Grease oil, etc. shall be removed by means of solvent cleaning or by high pressure water
jetting or steam cleaning with, if necessary, an alkaline cleaning agent. Excessive rust scale
shall be removed using impact-cleaning tools.
All bolts holes shall be solvent cleaned prior to blast cleaning.
All sharp ages shall be removed or rounded off.
To prevent damage during blast cleaning valve steams, gauges, nameplates, area to be welded
etc. shall be protected using suitable covers of adhesive masking tape. Such items and area
shall remain protected until the painting is completed.

Grade of Surface Finish

Mill scale, rust, corrosion products, paint or any other foreign matters shall be removed by
blast cleaning to one of the grades specified.
For each painting and coating system the grades of surface finish by blast cleaning shall be
blasted to a preparation degree of SA 2.5”, however cross –reference to other national and
professional standards is also given in Table-1.

Degree of Roughness

The require degree of surface roughness or peak to valley height after blast cleaning shall be
of 30 to 60 microns

Very thorough blasting, removal of mill scale, rust foreign matter to the extent that only slight
traces are remaining as stains in the form of spots and strips

Post Blasting Cleaning & painting

After blasting the surface shall be completely cleaned by means of compressed moister free
air.
Time constraints between blasting and the application of paint coatings max 4 hrs or as
specified by paint manufacturers whichever is greater, shall be strictly applied. Should delay
between blasting and painting caused flash rusting of the steel surface, that surface shall be
given a sweep blasting before painting proceed.

Metal surface for which blast cleaning is specified but which because of their location cannot
be open blasted shall be prepared by suitable method technique to provide good adhesion.

COATING APPLICATION:-

Coating system

All paint material /paint coating system shall be used as specified in approved DRG
Weather Conditions

Cleaning, surfaces preparation, or coating work shall not be undertaken in unsuitable

environmental conditions, includes:-

- High wind speeds (greater than 15 knots)

- Airborne dust or sand
- Rain, fog, mist or when there is free moisture on the prepared surface
- Steel temperature / air temperature les than 5oC
- Steel temperature less than 3 oC above due point of the surrounding air or relative
humidity greater than 80%
- Where there is likelihood that weather condition will change within 2 hours such that the
above conditions apply

Weather Protection

Where environmental circumstances and/or contractors program and/or construction

methods require weather protection of all or part of the structure to be painted, the
contractor shall provide and equipment such as tents, heating burners, ventilation, and
equipment for dehumidification, scaffoldings, screening, etc.

Ventilation

When painting is carried out in enclosed spaces, adequate ventilation shall be provided. The
capacity of the ventilation shall be sufficient to keep the concentration of solvent vapor in the
air below 10% of the lower explosion limit at all areas within the workspace. This is considered
adequate for personnel health protection, avoidance of explosion hazards and to ensure
adequate evaporation of solvent from the paint.

Direction of ventilation shall be from top to bottom to withdraw vapors, which are heavier
than the air, where access at the bottom of the space is not available, suction ducts shall be
suspended from the roof with opening near to the bottom of spaces served.

Application Technique

General

Application of coatings shall be in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations.

Application of primer shall normally be by brush or by airless spray, except in the case of
stripe coats, which shall be by brush only. Brush marks shall be avoided as these indicate low
DFT in the valley of the marks.

Each coat shall be allowed to dry for at least the time recommended by the manufacturer.
Airless Spray

All liners and pots shall be thoroughly cleaned before any addition is made of new materials.
The spray gun shall be held not closer than 450mm from surface and not further than 600mm
and shall always be held at right angle to it. Even, parallel passes shall be made, each pass
overlapping the other by 50%.

Large surface shall be ‘cross coated’ by receiving passes in two directions at right angles to
each other. The gun shall not be operated continuously but will be triggered before and after
each pass to obtain the correct spray pattern and avoid runs and sags. Spray width adjustment
on the gun and readjustment of atomizing pressure at the regulators shall be made until the
desire spray pattern is obtained.

Each coat shall be applied uniformly and completely over the entire surface. Great care shall
be taken to avoid areas of low DFT and ‘misses’. All runs and sags shall be brushed out
immediately, or the paint shall be removed and the surfaces resprayed.

Before spraying each coat, all areas such as corners, angles, edges, welds, flanges, brackets,
bolts, nuts and interstices shall be given a brush coat to ensure that these areas have at least
the minimum specified film thickness.

Brush

Coating shall be brushed on to all areas, when cannot be adequately spray coated, e.g.,
difficult access, complex shape, etc.

Surface not accessible to brush shall be painted by Company-approved means to ensure a

uniform paint film of adequate thickness.

Roller

Application by roller shall only be done on large flat or slightly curved surfaces where
application by spray is not possible. This method is not suitable for painting rough areas of
crevices.

INSPECTION

Visual Inspection

After each coat the coating shall be inspected visually. The paint system applied should have
the correct shade, degree of gloss and evenness and be free from cracks, holidays, runs, sags,
wrinkles, patch ness, brush or roller marks or other defects that may deleterious to the quality
of the coating.

Dry Film Thickness (DFT)

DFT shall be measured after each coat at randomly chosen location. The density of measuring
points shall be at the discretion of the inspector but shall normally be once every 4 square
meters for large areas and once every 1 square meter for small areas or structures.

The acceptance norms are:-

 Average measured DFT shall be ≥ 90% of prescribed DFT.

 Minimum measured DFT shall be ≥ 80% of prescribed DFT for any coat.

Instrument:-

The instrument’s working range shall be adequate for the specified coating thickness and
shall cover a minimum of 150% of the expected DFT.

The instruments, which shall be checked or calibrated before measurements, shall have an
accuracy of better than +10%.

Records shall be kept of DFTs measured., minimum and maximum values shall be reported.

SAFETY

When paints containing volatile solvents are applied in enclosed or confined spaces, two
hazards exist: Fire & Explosion hazards and Toxic hazard. Precautions must be taken to
eliminate these dangers.

Fire and Explosion Hazard

When the following factors are presents, there is a high risk of creating a fire or an explosion;
they are:

- When the concentration of vapour in air is between the lower explosion limit (LEL) and the
upper explosion limit (UEL).
- When a flammable liquid, in contact with air (open container) is at a temperature above
its flashpoint.
- When there is a source of ignition with high enough temperature and energy to initiate
the explosion reaction.

These conditions shall be avoided at all times during the handling and application of paints or
coatings.

Source of Ignition

All potential sources of ignition shall be strictly controlled. Smoking shall be prohibited in all
areas where paint is stored, handled or used.

Sparks, hot surfaces, flames and all other sources of ignition must be absolutely prevented.
Flameproof lighting and electrical equipment must be used, spark proof tools and clothing
shall be used, and all hot work in adjacent compartments shall be prohibited.
Storage:-

Storage of paint shall be as per paint supplier instructions with regard to storing and using of paint
shall be followed. Paint shall be used on first-in first-out basis.

Prepared by Approved BY