The best way to ensure you hire certified industrial coating contractors is to check their certifications. Certified contractors know how to apply the correct industrial coatings to properly prepared surfaces to prevent corrosion. Using uncertified contractors can lead to coating failures, corrosion, and structural problems.
The Society for Protective Coatings (SSPC) and National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE) jointly developed standards for the education, training, experience, knowledge, and skills required for professional industrial painters. Coating Application Specialist (CAS) certification ensures individual craft workers have experience and training in all aspects of hands-on surface preparation and coating application of complex industrial and marine structures. This certification program also meets the requirements of ISO 17024.
A brief explanation of the QP1 and QP2 certifications is below. Visit https://www.sspc.org/qp-programs/ and https://www.sspc.org/qp-cas-qp1/ for more information.
SSPC / CAS QP1 Certification
Field Application of Coatings to Complex Industrial and Marine Structures
The QP1 certification was designed to meet the needs of contractors, owners, and others who hire certified industrial painting contractors. The certification is an internationally recognized program that evaluates the practices of industrial painting contractors in key areas of business, including management procedures, quality control, and safety, health, and environmental compliance.
QP1 certification gives facility owners a way to evaluate whether the contractor has the capability to perform surface preparations and coating application in the field on complex industrial and marine structures. The complicated nature of coating systems and the specific surface preparations required for these systems have made the QP1 guidelines vital to the longevity of applied protective coatings.
SSPC / CAS QP2 Certification
Field Removal of Hazardous Coatings
QP2 builds on the standards and guidelines of QP1 to further qualify an industrial coating contractor in hazardous paint removal operations. It is a nationally recognized program that evaluates the capabilities of industrial paint contractors to safely remove and properly manage hazardous coating material in the field.
To be certified, industrial contractors must demonstrate competence in these key areas:
- Management of hazardous paint removal projects
- Technical capabilities related to hazardous paint removal
- Personnel qualifications and training
- Safety and environmental compliance programs
QP1 and QP2 certifications give you peace of mind when hiring industrial coating contractors to work on complex industrial and marine structures. These standards are considered the minimum level of service and quality for today’s coatings industry for structures such as:
- Bridges
- Food and beverage facilities
- Offshore drilling
- Power generation facilities
- Petro / chemical plants
- Storage tanks
- Ships maintenance
- Wastewater treatment facilities
Please contact us at (410) 564-5876 or sales@FinishingSolutionsNetwork.com if you have questions or want to be connected with a certified industrial coating contractor in your area.
