Contractor Certifications
By Donna Speidel

I recently visited "Angie's List" to read the reviews on a striping subcontractor an engineer asked me about. To my surprise, there were no such contractors, let alone reviews on her virtual list, and I was left wondering if the contractor was capable of good work.

In my post-Angie-anger, I began to become very skeptical, imagining the low-bid contractor would be unqualified and the project would barely last through the warranty period. After all, we've come to expect those results from the low-bidder.

Shouldn't we be expecting more? Shouldn't the specifications clearly define higher expectations?

The FAA thinks so, particularly when its funding is footing some of the bill. In July of 2014, the FAA took some big steps toward answering those questions by establishing new criteria in AC 150/5370-10G, P620.

There were several changes, many of which put more responsibility on the painting contractor than ever before; and it's all good. Striping contractors are now responsible for:

1. Certifying in writing the surface was adequately prepared,
2. Certifying in writing the equipment is appropriate for the type of material being applied,
3. Certifying in writing the environmental conditions are appropriate for the materials being applied,
4. Applying test lines to demonstrate accurate coverage rates of paint and glass beads, and
5. Achieving minimum retro-reflectivity values at installation.

These measures are intended to improve the application process itself. Of course, they won't guarantee a good application; it merely gives the inspector a few more tools for quality control. In theory, the airport now has a better chance of getting what it's paying for assuming the inspector knows:

1. What an adequately prepared surface requires,
2. What type of equipment is appropriate for the material being applied,
3. What environmental conditions to monitor other than the temperature,
4. How long it will take use 5 gallons of paint in the requisite area, and
5. How to properly evaluate retro-reflectivity.

The Angie's List website is headlined with the question: "Tired of Lousy Service?" I know the airports are. Maybe my next career move will consist of a start-up called "Donna's List"... until then you're going to have to just email me for counsel!