Planning a dry-docking coating project

A dry docking is one of the most expensive things a vessel does when it is not earning. The ship is out of the water, the yard is on the clock, and every day on the blocks costs money in fees and lost trading time. When a coating job overruns, it is rarely because the paint was slow — it is because the planning left gaps. Good preparation is what keeps the work on schedule and the vessel back in service on the promised date.

Plan the scope early

The single biggest cause of delay is deciding what to do after the ship is already in the dock. Long before the vessel arrives, the scope should be settled area by area: which surfaces are being touched up and which are being taken back to bare steel and fully recoated.

A typical scope covers several distinct zones, each with its own system:

Underwater hull — the antifouling and its anticorrosive primers, usually the critical-path item.
Boot-top — the waterline band that takes the harshest mix of sun, abrasion and fouling.
Topsides — the visible above-water hull, where finish and colour matter.
Decks — non-slip and hard-wearing systems for working areas.
Tanks and internals — ballast and cargo tanks, which often drive the schedule because of access and ventilation.

Once the scope is fixed, the volumes can be calculated and the products ordered ahead of time. Nothing wastes a docking window like waiting for material that should already have been on the quay.

Preparation and the weather window

Coatings only perform if they are applied to a sound, clean surface. The first job in the dock is washing and blasting to strip off fouling, soluble salts and any failed or loose coating. Skip this and the finest paint system in the world will simply peel away with the layer beneath it.

The harder challenge is the environment. Paint cures within a narrow band of conditions, and a covered dock is not always a controlled one. Humidity, steel temperature and the dew point all have to be managed — apply a coat when the steel is near or below dew point and moisture forms under the film, wrecking adhesion. Each product also needs a realistic minimum time to cure before the next coat goes on. Trying to claw back a lost day by overcoating too soon is one of the most common causes of early failure.

Product choices for fast turnaround

Not all systems take the same time to build. Fast-recoat primers and antifoulings are designed to shorten the interval between coats, which pulls hours and sometimes whole days off the time on the blocks. On a tight docking, choosing a faster-curing scheme can be worth more than the difference in material price.

The choice is not only about speed, though. The system has to match the vessel's next trading period — how long until the following docking, the waters it will work in, and how active it will be. A fast turnaround is no bargain if the coating does not last until the next planned yard visit.

The role of inspection

Getting the work right the first time depends on independent eyes. A FROSIO-certified inspector confirms that surface preparation meets the specified standard, checks environmental conditions before each coat, and measures dry film thickness once the system is built. This matters for two reasons: it protects the quality of the job, and it protects the warranty. Most manufacturers' coating guarantees are conditional on documented preparation and film thickness — without that record, a claim has little to stand on.

Key takeaways

Fix the scope area by area and order products before the vessel docks.
Preparation and dew-point control decide whether the coating holds.
Fast-recoat systems shorten time on the blocks when matched to the trading period.
FROSIO inspection secures both quality and the coating warranty.

Where Marisell fits

As a main Hempel dealer, we help owners and yards plan a docking that runs to time. We specify the coating scheme for each zone, deliver the right products to the yard on schedule, and provide independent inspection so the work is documented and warranty conditions are met. You can read more on our dry docking page, see the full range of marine applications we supply, or contact us with the vessel and its docking dates.

A well-planned docking is not a cost to be endured but a chance to reset the vessel's protection for years to come. Plan the scope early, control the conditions, and the coating job will be the part of the docking that finishes on time.