Quality inspection costs

by Abel de la Cruz*

Undoubtedly, one of the valuable activities in the technological process for the application of industrial coatings is the Inspection of Paints or Quality Inspection of Coatings, due to its relationship or influence with the expectation of durability or life of the coating. However, it is uncommon to find information on the application of quality inspection costs, except for costs related to specific tasks or tests that must be performed in accordance with the technical requirements of the work. That is why in this article we have set ourselves the task of collaborating with this aspect in the technology of surface treatment.

The inspection of coatings is the assessment of conformity or compliance with the quality of the painting work or the determination of deviations, through observations, tests, tests, measurements, or comparison of patterns, from the requirements established in the technical specifications of the work.

Coating inspection is an activity executed by the Contractor's Quality Control (QC), Quality Assurance (QA) or Owner's Audit executed by independent companies, or by the Paint Manufacturer's Technical Service.

In order to comply with the quality requirements established in the technical specifications of the work (maintenance or new construction), operational activities are established in the inspection of coatings, such as:

a) The performance of tests, controls, or tests in the process.
b) Definition of acceptance criteria based on testing standards, products and surface protection technology.
c) Preparation of quality plans according to the requirements of the specifications.
(d) The development and implementation of the use of inspection records to demonstrate that the planned results correspond to the intended acceptance criteria.

These activities will undoubtedly be the factors involved in the costs of quality inspection, so for compliance with the technical specifications of surface treatment it is essential to establish that these quality inspection costs must be applied. Failure to do so will simply be voluntary or involuntarily to generate non-quality costs and therefore cause economic losses for the company.

CRIC = CDI + CNI

The Costs of the Quality Inspection (CDI), are those costs resulting from all those activities or requirements related to the Quality Inspection, established in the documentation of the technical specifications or engineering of the project. Depending on the Work, these costs are in a range of 5-15% of the total cost of Pintado, approximately.

Examples of Quality Inspection Costs:

• Tensile adhesion tests.
• Porosity detection tests.
• Wet and dry film thickness measurement.
• Measurement of environmental conditions.
• Measurement of the roughness profile.
• Destructive testing in specimens and in specialized laboratories.
• Preparation of records of tests, measurements, tests, verifications, observations, etc.
• Release and approval reports of manufactures or treated areas, etc.

• Costs of the Prevention Quality Inspection, those that occur before the surface preparation and application process: CDIP.
• Evaluation Quality Inspection Costs, those that occur during the surface preparation and application process: CDIE.

Example of Prevention Quality Inspection (CDIP) Costs:

• Review of process parameters and control points.
• Preparation of quality inspection plans.
• Review and calibration of measuring or test instruments,
• Process calibration (machinery and equipment).
• Pre-working conferences.

• Measurements in process.
• Verification of results.
• Visual inspection.
• Control tests.
• Performance tests.
• Inspection records and technical reports, etc.

a.Carry out reprocesses, redo the work corresponding to a complete item, in some cases, since the quality requirements would not have been met.
b.Replace materials and inputs purchased, since the analyses carried out show that the quality requirements are not met.
c.Carry out the repainting after the work has been completed (new construction or maintenance), that is, generating higher direct and indirect costs.
d.The time taken to complete delayed work, due to non-compliance with quality requirements at the time of execution of the work.
e.Carry out or hire experts or companies specialized in failure analysis, to determine the causes of the problem presented.

Example

• Exceeding the limit film thickness of the coating requires returning to the shot blasting process to remove the paint and reapply correctly.
• Detect during the assembly of the structures, due to handling or other maneuver that involves contact with the paint, the low adhesion of the system on the metal substrate. This defect could require the total or partial removal of the coating on the site, without prejudice to assuming the penalties for non-compliance with the stipulated deadlines.

1. Internal Failure Costs (CFI), those that occur during the execution period of the painting work.
2. External Failure Costs (CFE), those that occur after the deadline of execution of the painting work.

Example of Internal Failure Costs (IFC):

• Failure reprocesses.
• Waste of materials.
• The costs inherent in delays due to quality failures.
• Testing costs for failure analysis.
• Low product quality, etc.

• Customer complaints for failures detected in the work received.
• Quality failures of the work once it was delivered to the client.
• Costs of dealing with claims and repairs.
• Contractual disputes and court litigation, etc.