Global industrial coatings supplier PPG has introduced its PPG Envirocron Extreme Protection Edge powder coatings for corrosion protection.

PPG is represented in South Africa by paint manufacturer Prominent Paints, based in Alrode, Gauteng.

The powder coating uses a patent-pending, advanced powder coatings technology that delivers notable edge corrosion protection in one coat. Specially formulated to cover sharp edges created during metal fabrication, this new technology provides coverage that improves on standard one-coat and two-coat powder systems.

“PPG Envirocron Extreme Protection Edge powder coatings are the first one-coat product to successfully unite these characteristics, offering customers a range of benefits and benchmark performance that cannot be replicated by any other coating on the market,” says PPG powder coatings global product manager Shelley Verdun.

The powder coatings mark a significant technical advancement in edge coverage, offering applicators a competitive advantage in protecting the most vulnerable areas of metal exposed to corrosive conditions. The direct-to-metal coatings are fully reclaimable and deliver significant savings in material, labour, utilities and time.

The powder coatings require no primer, and applicators do not need to modify their existing coatings lines or add equipment to use this new solution. Applicators also can save capital costs by avoiding the need to finish edges with mechanical edge rounding or blasting equipment. Longer term, the powder coatings have the potential to reduce warranty claims and improve resale value by extending the product life cycle.

“Combining uniform edge coverage and exceptional corrosion protection in a primerless, one-coat system is a challenge that coatings manufacturers have been facing for many years,” says Verdun.

The powder coatings add industry-changing performance to the company’s existing world-class polyester powder coatings technology, which has provided decades of field-proven environmental and corrosion resistance.

The new coatings are available in a full range of standard and custom-matched colours, including mica and metallics, and can be applied using manual and automatic powder coating systems.

Additionally, PPG launched its PPG Asset Integrity Management (AIM) system in the US and Canada, in February.

This software-based asset management system assists facility owners, managers and maintenance engineers in scheduling, budgeting and optimising the corrosion protection of metal structures, buildings and equipment under their care for up to 20 years in the future.

The PPG AIM system is based on proprietary algorithms developed by PPG from National Association of Corrosion Engineers 509 and International Standards Organisation 12944 corrosion-forecasting standards. Using data collected by PPG personnel during an initial mapping and field assessment procedure, the system predicts how quickly assets will corrode and helps identify the optimal time to recoat those assets before corrosion can occur.

The collected information is catalogued in the PPG AIM asset manager tool, which asset owners and maintenance engineers can use to proactively rank and prioritise maintenance spending over multiple years. The result is a comprehensive, plant-wide maintenance planning, scheduling and budget strategy.

Acting as the user interface, the asset manager tool provides daily access to asset-related details. These include time-stamped photos, condition analyses, plots, documents, inspection reports and other relevant attachments and information.

The PPG AIM system also delivers a range of ancillary benefits, including reducing the need to inventory and field assess assets every few years. Another is adding the ability to estimate the costs associated with deferring maintenance on specific assets when funds are not allocated for them.

“Asset owners and maintenance engineers are often forced by budget constraints and other circumstances to repair or replace equipment when the cost is highest and the risk to operate is greatest,” says PPG protective and marine coatings US sales director Scott Doering.

He asserts that the PPG AIM system assists customers in replacing expensive ‘run-to-failure’ maintenance schemes with proactive planning that can lower overall cost and greatly extend asset service life.

PPG’s protective and marine coatings (PMC) products protect customer assets in some of the world’s most demanding conditions and environments, such as projects in energy, infrastructure and marine markets.

PPG-PMC product lines include PPG PSX, PPG Amerlock, PPG Pitt-Char and PPG Hi-Temp series.