A wide range of products for industrial painting

Lechler Tech offers products to combat the phenomenon of corrosion, designed to comply with the specifications to which they are subjected

In the industrial field, there are many needs and requirements that must often be considered especially in the case of metal products prone to corrosion.

Corrosion is the natural result of the deterioration of metal due to its chemical reaction with the surrounding environment. Any product or steel structure that is unprotected and exposed to air and water or is in direct contact with the ground will corrode and require maintenance.

One of the best ways to prevent corrosion is to protect the object with a painting cycle.

A suitable painting cycle is essential to ensure appropriate protection and use of the product according to the customer’s needs or requirements. Lechler Tech offers a wide range of anti-corrosion products designed to meet specific needs and specifications. We offer products for direct application on the surface of metal that guarantee a primary barrier against rust, as well as more performing products and ones of high resistance suitable for more aggressive environmental and process conditions.

The table lists the many products of the Lechler Tech brand which include basic anti-rust products; more protective and easy-to-use wash primers; quick-drying primers; and more specific anti-corrosion primers of different chemical properties which, in more aggressive conditions, can be painted over with organic zinc coatings that offer very high resistance to corrosion. Lechler Tech completes this range with products for direct application on metal that serve a dual purpose: protective and aesthetic.

It should be pointed out that, for an object to be fully protected, a finish should also be applied. This can be provided in the colour and of the level of opacity you require, and it will make the object duly resistant to atmospheric agents and ageing. Lechler Tech offers solutions involving different chemical properties and glosses, to be combined with primers/undercoats (see the table) and different application systems.

BINDER TABLE

TABLE OF COLORED PRODUCTS

Certified Systems

All the painting cycles required to ensure the full protection of metals against corrosion were created and tested in our laboratories according to the international standard ISO 12944.

What is ISO 12944?

Standard ISO 12944 was introduced in 1998, revised in 2007 and updated in 2018 with some significant changes and additions. It now consists of nine sections referring to paints and coatings for steel structures that are exposed to the elements, submerged or buried.

Part 6 of the standard (IS0 12944-6) specifies methods for laboratory tests and conditions for evaluating paint systems for the protection of carbon steel structures against corrosion.

Industry professionals (such as facility and plant owners, corrosion protection companies or construction companies) use the detailed, unambiguous and easily understood standards set forth in Part Two of ISO 12944 to ensure that the coatings they use and/or provide guarantee the expected level of protection against corrosion in the environment in which they will be located.

Why is ISO 12944 so important?

Painting cycles compliant with the standard offer the following advantages:

·       Confidence that the corrosion protection you choose will meet your needs

·       An objective approach to choosing the most suitable paint system

·       A simple table for reference

·       A significant idea of the duration of your paint system (for scheduling maintenance in time)

·       A universally accepted standard

It defines the appropriate ISO Environment and outlines the most suitable characteristics of the product to be painted, so that you can select an appropriate cycle in terms of both technical and aesthetic performance, and avoid unexpected costs. Therefore, a customer who chooses a Lechler Tech certified cycle will know the exact degree of protection to be expected.

ISO 12944: protection of the product in three simple steps

Step 1 - Classification of the environment to which the object is exposed

The standard classifies environments into different categories, which are then evaluated on the basis of their ability to corrode unprotected steel. The updated version of 2018 mentions 5 different categories from C1 to C5 (ranging from very low to very high), while a new category CX (extreme), has been introduced for offshore and industrial environments with very high humidity.

 The table below lists the environments in which the object can be found with the related classes. 

CORROSION CLASS TABLE

Step 2 - Determination of the useful time required before carrying out initial significant maintenance

The standard provides guidance on the expected life of the coating until initial significant maintenance. A new durability rating was added in the 2018 update, “over 25 years”.

A hypothetical “life cycle” of the applied protection can be identified with this Table. The higher the durability required by the specification, the longer the time required for initial maintenance.

DURABILITY TABLE

Step 3 - Selection of the painting cycle that best suits your needs

These characteristics of environmental corrosivity and durability of the coating are evaluated, as defined in ISO 12944-6, with artificial accelerated ageing tests to measure the resistance of the coating cycles to water, humidity and salt spray, as an index of the wet adhesion and barrier properties of the film. The tests are designed to ensure, with a high probability, that a painting cycle really has the characteristics necessary for the durability required in the intended application. The 2018 update of ISO 12944 introduced changes to these laboratory test methods. Cyclical tests more representative of real-world corrosion conditions were introduced for the categories C4 very high, C5 high and C5 very high.

The painting cycles available in the download section were specially selected according to ISO 12944-6.

Training & Information

Due to the increasing importance and complexity of the issue of protection against corrosion, the skilled and qualified Technical Assistance and Training Team of Lechler Tech can offer special training sessions on request to provide you with further information or clarifications.