Mobil Fuel Stations
Steel Columns Blast and Recoat, Mount Wellington

Fuel Installations

LOCATION

Mount Wellington, Auckland

SERVICE

Thermoplastic Coatings for Structural Steel with IBIX industrial

The Challenge

Forecourt steel columns at the fuel stations are constantly exposed to fuel splash, weather and the risk of vehicle impacts, conditions that wear down conventional paint quickly. Repainting on a normal cycle would have meant repeated disruption to a live, operating fuel site. The columns needed a coating approach that could withstand this exposure for longer while the work itself was planned around ongoing forecourt operations and fuel-site safety requirements.

Our Approach

BlastOff sandblasted the rusted steel columns back to clean metal, removing corrosion so the new coating could bond to a sound surface. A thermoplastic coating was then applied, fusing a polymer layer over the steel that offers greater resistance to impact, abrasion and chemicals than a conventional paint system, a relevant advantage given the fuel splash and vehicle traffic around the columns. All work was sequenced around live forecourt operations and the safety requirements of an active fuel site.

The Outcome

The Mobil fuel station columns are now protected by a fused thermoplastic coating in place of their previous corroded paint finish, applied while the forecourts remained in operation. The completed columns give Fuel Installations a coating system designed to better withstand fuel splash, weather and vehicle impact than the conventional paint it replaced, without disrupting the working fuel sites during the coating programme.

Coating Forecourt Steel on Live Mobil Sites Without Shutting Down Operations

Canopy steel columns across Mobil fuel station sites in Mount Wellington, Auckland, face conditions that wear down conventional paint quickly: constant fuel splash, weather exposure and the ever-present risk of vehicle impact on a busy forecourt. Repainting on a normal cycle would have meant repeated disruption to sites that needed to stay open and operating, so Fuel Installations needed a coating approach that could hold up longer under this exposure while the work itself fitted around live forecourt activity and fuel-site safety requirements.

BlastOff sandblasted the rusted columns back to clean metal, clearing corrosion so the new coating could bond to a sound surface, before applying a thermoplastic coating that fuses a polymer layer over the steel. This method offers greater resistance to impact, abrasion and chemicals than a conventional paint system, a relevant advantage given the fuel splash and traffic the columns are exposed to daily. All of the work was sequenced around ongoing forecourt operations, keeping the sites functional throughout the coating programme. The columns are now protected by a fused system in place of their previous corroded paint finish.

For operators managing steel assets on live commercial or industrial sites, whether fuel stations, depots or similar high-traffic environments, this project illustrates why the coating method and the site logistics need to be planned together rather than treated as separate problems. A fused thermoplastic system can outlast conventional paint in demanding conditions, but the sequencing of blasting, coating and site access still needs to work around whatever the asset is used for day to day. Anyone scoping comparable steel protection work should raise exposure conditions, access constraints and operational hours early. BlastOff’s thermoplastic coating service for structural steel delivered the blasting and coating as one sequence.