‘Qualicoat - a Global Standard’

As the Qualicoat standard for architectural powder coating in the UK continues to gain widespread acceptance it is important to remember that the Standard is not just UK based.

With offices based in Zurich Qualicoat offer Licences to countries who want to adopt the standards laid down by the association. Qualicoat UK and Ireland have been granted the licence for this region and have been successfully producing and monitoring powder coat quality in the UK and Ireland for eight years. There are many European counties that have adopted the standard, but further afield there are associations in Australia, China, Mexico and more recently ‘Quali Middle East Association’ (QMEA) which brings together licences already granted in the Middle East into one Association.

Activity is still very high in the Middle East and it is estimated that 25% of the worlds cranes are currently operating in Dubai alone. In 2006 the UAE construction industry was estimated at $221 billion. QMEA goal is to protect the quality of architectural coatings as required for the Middle East climatic conditions as well as provide the best and fair practices to achieve quality coating on aluminium.

Not only does the Zurich based association set a quality label for architectural powder coating, it also sets a standard which crosses boundaries. A project specified in Dubai can be coated in the UK and meet the standard so standards have moved away from being country specific. As an international association Qualicoat is run by its members from all the country associations involved. In order to update and further improve standards the association has currently twelve working groups active each working on a particular aspect of coating standards. Qualicoat UK and Ireland are involved with several of the working groups to offer support and research as well as feedback to its own members.

One of the latest updates (update sheet 24) available from the Qualicoat website covers the ‘structured finishes’ now available. This update seeks to explain how the structure, or textured finish, is obtained and what general terminology can be used. The descriptions fall into three categories ‘Leathered (or orange peel)’, ‘Textured (or sandpaper)’ and ‘Wrinkled’. Again with these standard definitions laid down the chance of misinterpretation within a specification is greatly reduced.

Current news and information on architectural powder coating is frequently updated on the UK website at www.qualicoatuki.org. The European website offers the complete specification which can be found at www.qualicoat.net. Printed literature and telephone support is available from Qualicoat UK and Ireland Head Office in Birmingham on 0121 601 6746.