Experience has shown that qualified supervisors and skilled workers are essential for manufacturing premium-quality thermal spray products. This paper describes the training defined by EWF guidelines and reviews prevailing curricula. Changes and reforms associated with DIN EN ISO 14922 and ISO Norm 14918 are also presented along with emerging trends in thermal spray training and certification.

This paper provides an overview of ISO standards, EWF education and training guidelines, and GTS certification, explaining how they work together to improve the proficiency and productivity of individuals and organizations involved in thermal spraying.

Thermal spraying is a continuously growing technology in the field of surfacing, already established long time in many high-tech-applications. In air craft turbines, in power generating technology or even in printing and paper industry, numerous requirements of the coatings are solved with the help of thermal spraying. To rule such a special process, how it is called in the language of standardization, because the results of such processes can only be proofed by nondestructive methods in a very restricted way, you need to use calibrated and controlled equipment and parameters as well as adequately experienced, trained and qualified personnel. The GTS – Association of Thermal Sprayers e.V. was founded with the aim to meet these problems successfully. On one hand the association should promote the profile of the thermal spraying technology. On the other hand the GTS wanted to define a quality standard for TS companies concerning to its quality management system, the spraying procedures and the personnel. These requirements were completed by international acknowledged EWF-training guidelines for supervising personnel and workers up to now. EN and ISO standards in the field of quality management, applications and testing were also created.

The GTS certificate, is the only certificate worldwide which, in addition to the quality management elements of DIN EN ISO 9001:2000, includes a personnel, process and, on request, also a product certification for thermal spraying. The rules for certification were worked out by the thermal spray users, i.e. GTS members, themselves and have proved to be very effective. Today, the GTS certificate serves as a basis for assessing a certified GTS member should inconsistencies or legal disputes arise. The certificate demonstrates that the certified company has a visible quality standard and that it also meets specified quality requirements in its day-to-day business operations.

This paper reviews the new DIN EN ISO personnel qualification and quality management standards and EWF training guidelines for European thermal sprayers. EWF education and training programs run for a period of three weeks, filling critical gaps in knowledge and experience. The primary aim of the ISO standards is to facilitate a reproducible process for spraying coatings of a consistent quality. Paper text in German.