1、1SSPC-QP COMJuly 17, 2015SSPC: The Society for Protective CoatingsCOMMENTARY ON QUALIFICATION PROCEDURES 1. HISTORY OF QP STANDARDSThis commentary is for information only and is not part of SSPC-QP 1, QP 2, QP 3, QP 4, QP 5, QP 6, QP 7, QP 8, QP 9, QS 1 or QN 1. SSPC currently develops six types of
2、consensus standards, one type being the “Qualification Pro-cedure,” or QP. QPs are published procedures, developed by SSPC technical committees through a consensus process, which define a sequence of actions or functions a contract-ing firm or inspection firm must meet to establish a level of compet
3、ence or qualification. They are in essence models for coatings industry-specific Quality Management Systems or QMS. This commentary will summarize the current QP Quality System standards and explain how they can be used to (1) improve the process of qualifying a contractor or inspection firm to perf
4、orm work and (2) provide a QMS for the contractor or inspection firm to improve its coating and related processes in order to reduce costly rework, latent defects, and become more productive and efficient.The first five qualification procedures, QP 1, QP 2, QP 3, QP 6, and QP 8 were developed by SSP
5、C to form the basis of administrative certification programs designed to provide facility owners and specifying architects, engineers and coat-ing specification writers with a tool to use when evaluating the qualifications of contractors who apply protective coatings in the field or shop. Because of
6、 the onerous task of reviewing submittals and evaluating contractors on site and the annual volume of industrial and marine painting projects contracted each year, SSPC established these certification programs as a service to the facility owner or its consulting engineer representative who otherwise
7、 would lack the staff and time to review applications and visit contractors on site to qualify them in accordance with QP 1, 2, 3, 6, or 8. Facility owners can use QP 1, 2, 3, 6, or 8 certifications as a basis for an independent, third party evaluation of the primary capabilities of the contrac-tors
8、 they place on bid lists or hire for painting, metallizing, or polymer surfacing installation over concrete.QP 4 was developed by SSPC to provide facility owners with a standard to measure the qualifications of demolition and repair contractors who remove or disturb hazardous coating in the process
9、of cutting or repairing previously painted steel. SSPC does not currently offer an independent certification program to QP 4.QP 5 was developed by SSPC to provide owners with a standard with which to evaluate the qualification of companies who provide coating and lining inspection services. QS 1 pro
10、vides owners who require a higher level of quality control for their projects with a standard against which a contractors quality system may be evaluated. QS 1 is intended to supple-ment QP 1, QP 3, QP 6 or QP 8 requirements.QP 7 establishes criteria for preliminary qualification of contractors who
11、intend to apply for certification to an industrial or architectural/commercial coating contractor certification program but have less than 12 months experience (or no experience) in field application of industrial or architectural/commercial protective coatings. QN 1 was developed by SSPC to qualify
12、 contractors and paint shops that perform coating work in or for nuclear power plants. QN 1 is based on a compilation of ASTM consensus documents developed by and for the nuclear power industry and is not an SSPC consensus standard.2. SUMMARY OF SSPC QUALIFICATION PROCEDURES2.1 SSPC-QP 1, STANDARD P
13、ROCEDURE FOR EVALUATING PAINTING CONTRACTORS (FIELD APPLICATION TO COMPLEX INDUSTRIAL AND MARINE STEEL STRUCTURES): SSPC issued the first version of QP 1 in September 1989, after consensus on its content was reached by SSPCs Technical Committee for Applicator Prequalification. QP 1 was reviewed and
14、reissued in August 1998, February 2008, and most recently in September 2013.QP 1 is essentially the basis for SSPCs Painting Contrac-tor Certification Program (PCCP), also established in 1989. The PCCP is an administrative program set up by SSPC to independently evaluate industrial painting contract
15、ors against the requirements of QP 1 and other QPs.The QP 1 procedure identifies four function areas of the contractors quality system that have to be evaluated: man-agement procedures; technical capabilities; quality control procedures; and safety, health, and general environmental compliance proce
16、dures. The objective of using the certification is to determine whether the painting contractor has the capability to perform surface preparation and coating application in the field (i.e., on site) on complex industrial steel structures such as bridges, storage tanks, power generation facilities, s
17、hips and offshore platforms, and other industrial and marine structures.Once SSPC determines, through its evaluation process, that a contracting firm meets the requirements of QP 1, SSPC issues a certificate to that effect. The evaluation process con-sists of a review of detailed submittals and an o
18、n-site audit at both the contractors business offices and an operating job site. Facility owners, specifying architects and engineers, and others who hire industrial/marine painting contractors for coating work in the field can then use this certification as part 2SSPC-QP COMJuly 17, 2015of the preq
19、ualification process for evaluating bids or proposals from contractors.2.2. SSPC-QP 2, “STANDARD PROCEDURE FOR EVALUATING THE QUALIFICATIONS OF PAINTING CONTRACTORS TO REMOVE HAZARDOUS PAINT”: SSPC issued QP 2 in late 1993 as an interim standard. A final version of QP 2 was issued in August 1995. Th
20、e standard was revised in 2000 and again in 2009 by the SSPC C.3.5.B, Hazardous Paint Removal Qualification Technical Committee.QP 2 is the basis for the QP 2 certification program, developed as a supplement to the QP 1 program in 1993 as part of PCCPs first expansion. As with QP 1, the consensus qu
21、alification procedure formed the basis of an administrative program to evaluate whether a contractor that met the require-ments of QP 1 also had the capability to effectively manage the removal of hazardous (e.g. lead-, chromate-, arsenic- and cadmium-containing) paints from industrial steel and mar
22、ine structures.QP 2 establishes several categories of qualification based on the contractors capability to remove, contain, and properly handle and store hazardous paint debris. In addition to meet-ing the requirements of QP 1, three more function areas of the contractors quality system are evaluate
23、d. They include: management of hazardous paint removal operations; technical capabilities; and personnel qualifications and training as they relate to hazardous paint removal operations. QP 2 defines two categories of qualification, A and B, which are based on the use of negative air pressure in con
24、tainment structures. As with QP 1, contractors seeking QP 2 certification must provide a series of submittals to SSPC for review and acceptance and also undergo an audit at one of their active hazardous paint removal job sites. QP 2 is designed to be used side-by-side with QP 1 to evaluate painting
25、contractors who must remove hazardous paint in conjunction with surface preparation and maintenance repainting operations.2.3. SSPC-QP 3, “STANDARD PROCEDURE FOR EVALUATING THE QUALIFICATIONS OF SHOP PAINTING CONTRACTORS”: QP 3 was developed by the SSPC Committee on Shop Coating Qualification and pu
26、blished in 1995. QP 3 defines a procedure for evaluating shop painting organizations (e.g. shipyard paint departments, structural steel and miscellaneous metal parts fabrication shops; blast and paint shops) that apply industrial protective coatings in a permanent, stationary facility or shop. The r
27、equirements for QP 3 are similar to those for QP 1, except that QP 3 requirements are applicable to shop coating operations.SSPC also set up an administrative program in 1996 to evaluate shops against the requirements of QP 3. Facility owners and others who contract for shop painting services use th
28、is program to evaluate the capabilities of the paint shop. QP 3 establishes several qualification categories based on the degree to which the shop can isolate coating operations from outdoor weather conditions and control ambient conditions.SSPC revised its QP 3 procedure and administrative cer-tifi
29、cation program in 1999 to coordinate its program with that of the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC), which certifies structural steel fabrication shops that apply protective coatings in the shop after fabrication of new structural steel. In 2010, SSPC and AISC developed a joint standar
30、d, SSPC QP 3/AISC 420.10, that sets the standard for shop painting of protective coatings on steel and metal substrates and is used by both organizations to evaluate the qualifications of paint shops. The AISC Sophisticated Paint Endorsement (SPE) program is recognized by SSPC as an equivalent to SS
31、PCs QP 3 program. While SSPCs QP 3 program is a stand-alone program, AISCs Sophisticated Paint Endorsement can only be achieved by fabrication shops that also hold AISC steel fabricator certification.2.4 SSPC-QP 4, “STANDARD PROCEDURE FOR EVALUATING THE QUALIFICATIONS OF CONTRACTORS DISTURBING HAZAR
32、DOUS PAINT DURING DEMOLITION AND REPAIR WORK”: SSPC-QP 4, developed by SSPC Technical Committees C.5.3., Removal of Hazardous Coatings and C.3.5, Applicator Prequalification, was issued by SSPC in 1997. It is similar to QP 1, QP 2 and QP 3 in that it establishes a consensus procedure to evaluate the
33、 capability of a general contractor to invoke appropriate worker and environmental protection programs while disturbing hazardous (e.g. lead based) paint incidental to demolition or repair work. QP 4 is intended to evaluate contractors who are not paint-ing contractors but who disturb hazardous pain
34、t in conjunction with non-painting work such as bridge demolition or structural repair. A painting contractor certified to QP 2 also meets the requirements of QP 4 and thus is also capable of performing such demolition and repair work.QP 4 differs from QP 1, 2 and 3 in one important aspect: SSPC doe
35、s not offer an administrative certification program to evaluate general contractors against the requirements of QP 4. This is primarily because SSPC does not normally provide services to repair and structural demolition contractors who tend to belong to other trade or professional associations that
36、represent their interests.The impetus for QP 4 came from bridge maintenance authorities who asked SSPC to develop a procedure that could be invoked in contracts to evaluate the capabilities of contractors that performed demolition work but did not repair or apply coatings.The intent of QP 4 is to en
37、sure that demolition and repair contractors are capable of implementing the same worker and environmental protection programs on site as the painting contractors are required to do under QP 2.2.5 SSPC-QP 5, “STANDARD PROCEDURE FOR EVALUATING THE QUALIFICATIONS OF COATING AND LINING INSPECTION AGENCI
38、ES”: SSPC-QP 5, developed by the SSPC C.6 Group Committee on Education and Certification, was issued by SSPC in 1999. The QP 5 standard was revised in July 2012. It differs from the QP standards mentioned above in that it establishes a procedure 3SSPC-QP COMJuly 17, 2015to evaluate companies that pr
39、ovide coating inspection services rather than contracting firms performing construction work. QP 5 provides facility owners issuing requests for proposals (RFPs) for inspection services with standardized criteria for evaluating and qualifying inspection firms. Facility owners can use QP 5 by requiri
40、ng firms submitting proposals for coating inspection work to submit evidence that they meet the requirements of SSPC-QP 5 as part of the owners evaluation process prior to selecting an inspection firm.SSPC began offering an administrative certification program to QP 5 in 2001. The standard was last
41、updated in 2012.2.6 SSPC-QP 6, “STANDARD PROCEDURE FOR EVALUATING THE QUALIFICATIONS OF CONTRACTORS WHO APPLY THERMAL SPRAY COATINGS (METALLIZING) FOR CORROSION PROTECTION OF STEEL AND CONCRETE STRUCTURES”: SSPC-QP 6 was developed by Technical Committees C.3.5, Applicator Prequalification and C.1.6.
42、B, Thermal Spray Coatings and issued in August 2004. Unless otherwise specified, QP 1 certification for field surface preparation and coating application or QP 3 for shop surface preparation and coating application are required to supplement the requirements of QP 6. The QP 6 requirements are simila
43、r to QP 1 and QP 3 except that they define a quality system for the thermal spray metallizing specialty process. SSPC introduced an administrative program in 2005 to evaluate contractors and shops against the QP 6 standard. QP 6 defines two qualification categories: one for steel, and one for concre
44、te. A contractor may be qualified for steel, concrete, or both steel and concrete. 2.7 SSPC-QP 7, PROCEDURE FOR EVALUATING COATING CONTRACTORS WITH LIMITED WORK EXPERIENCE: This procedure establishes criteria for preliminary qualification of contractors who intend to apply for certification to an in
45、dustrial or architectural/commercial coating contractor certification program but have less than 12 months experience (or no experience) in field application of industrial or architectural/commercial protective coatings. It requires submission of most of the written material required for a full cert
46、ification with the exception of documentation of work experience. After the contractor completes the work experience for required full certification, satsifactory audit of an eligible active project is will complete the certification requirement. The procedure was originally issued in 2004 and was l
47、ast revised in 2014.2.8 SSPC-QP 8, “STANDARD PROCEDURE FOR EVALUATING THE QUALIFICATIONS OF CONTRACTING FIRMS THAT INSTALL POLYMER COATINGS OR SURFACINGS ON CONCRETE AND OTHER CEMENTITIOUS SURFACES”: The QP 8 qualification procedure, issued in July 2003, was developed by SSPC technical committee C.3
48、.5 on Applicator Prequalification and members of the Polymer Coating and Surfacing Institute (PCSI). The QP 8 standard is being updated with the revision expected to be released by the end of 2014. QP 8 is intended to provide owners with a procedure for evaluating the qualifications of contractors w
49、ho install coating and lining systems on concrete and other cementitious surfaces (e.g., primary and secondary containments). Many QP 8 requirements are similar to those of QP 1 and QP 3, with additional special requirements for repair, surface preparation, and application of coatings to concrete substrates. The 2015 update of QP 8 includes additional supplemental qualification categories for contractors who apply coatings on concrete for immersion service or apply them underwater, or who install FRP applications for atmospheric and immersion service. In 2006 SSPC began offering an
