On an Ashghal project the road marking package is small in value and large in nuisance. It is one of the last items before handover, it is inspected closely, and a rejected material submittal can hold up the opening of a road that cost hundreds of millions to build. This article sets out what a main contractor should ask for from a road marking subcontractor, why submittals get rejected, and how to run the package so the lines go down on programme. For the background on the approved lists themselves, see our AVL road marking guide for Qatar.
What the reviewer is checking
A consultant reviewing a road marking submittal on a public project is checking three things: that the material complies with the specification and the referenced standards (and, where required, appears on the relevant approved list); that the method of application will achieve the specified thickness, bead loading and reflectivity; and that the subcontractor can demonstrate it did so. Each of those maps to a set of documents.
The pre-award checklist
Company documents
- Commercial registration and trade licence
- Insurance certificates — public liability, workmen’s compensation, plant
- HSE policy, and a site-specific risk assessment when the site is known
- Organisation chart and supervisor CVs; crew training records for hot works and traffic management
- Equipment list — pre-heaters, screed and extrusion applicators, spray stripers, bead dispensers, removal plant — with ownership stated
Material documents
- Product data sheet for the marking material, naming the standard it complies with (for thermoplastic, BS 3262 or AASHTO M249 type specifications are commonly cited; for cold plastics and paints, the relevant BS EN 1871 type or the standard named in the project specification)
- Manufacturer’s compliance statement and third-party test reports for the material properties the specification lists
- Glass bead data sheet and certificate to the referenced bead standard (BS 6088 or AASHTO M247 type grades)
- Primer data sheet where concrete, block paving or aged surfaces are involved
- For road studs and signs: product data, reflector and sheeting certificates to the specified standard
- Samples where the consultant requires them — usually a material sample and a bead sample, sometimes a cured line sample
Method and quality documents
- Method statement: surface preparation, set-out, application temperature, thickness control, bead application rate, curing and reopening, traffic management, weather limits
- Inspection and test plan with hold points — set-out approval, thickness checks, bead application, retro-reflectivity, final inspection
- Application record template: location, date, material batch, ambient and material temperature, wet or dry thickness, bead rate, inspector signature
- Warranty statement and maintenance guidance
A subcontractor who can put this package on the table before award will get the submittal through review. One who cannot will delay the road. Ask for it early.
Why submittals get rejected
The data sheet does not name the standard. A glossy brochure is not a data sheet. The reviewer needs to see the standard and the tested properties.
The beads are missing. Glass beads are a separate product with a separate certificate. Submittals frequently include the thermoplastic and forget the beads, and the reviewer will not approve a marking system with no reflectivity evidence.
The method statement is generic. A method statement that does not state the application thickness, the material temperature and the bead rate for this project will come back with comments. Copy-and-paste from another project is obvious.
No ITP hold points. The consultant wants to inspect set-out before material goes down and thickness during the run. If the ITP does not offer those hold points, it will be asked to.
Thickness or material does not match the specification. A 1.5 mm sprayed line offered where 3 mm screed is specified will be rejected however good the data sheet is.
During the works: the records that close the package
Approval is only the start. During application the subcontractor should be recording every run — where, when, what batch, what temperature, what thickness, what bead rate — and the consultant’s inspector should be signing hold points. At the end, the records, the certificates and the as-built markings are compiled into the handover file. A subcontractor that keeps these records as it goes hands over the same week the lines are finished; one that reconstructs them afterwards does not.
Private projects: the same logic, lighter
A private developer’s car park or compound is governed by the consultant’s specification, not by Ashghal’s lists, and the consultant may or may not require the full package. Even so, the material data sheet, bead certificate, method statement and a simple application record take an hour to produce and protect the client if the markings fail. We provide them as standard on every project. For car park specifics, see car park bay sizes and standards in Qatar.
How UniGulf Traffic handles the package
We work to Ashghal and QCS specifications and supply the material approval documentation main contractors need for submittal: data sheets and certificates for the marking material and glass beads, method statements written for the project, ITPs with the hold points reviewers expect, equipment and crew records, and application records completed on site. We compile the package in your consultant’s format and answer technical queries during review. Our thermoplastic and MMA cold plastic pages describe the materials the submittal will reference.
Ask for the package before award. It is the fastest way to find out whether a road marking subcontractor is going to be a problem.
A worked example: the submittal that went through first time
A typical package we issued for a main contractor on an industrial estate road scheme ran to eleven documents and one box of samples. The material submittal listed the thermoplastic product with its compliance statement to the referenced standard, the third-party test report for softening point, luminance and bead content, the glass bead certificate with gradation and roundness, and the primer data sheet for the concrete approach slabs. The method statement was written for that road — 3 mm screed lines at 150 mm and 200 mm, arrows by hand screed, material temperature range, bead application rate per square metre, sweeping and blowing before application, a dry-surface check, night working under the contractor’s traffic management plan. The ITP had four hold points: set-out approval, first-run thickness check, bead coverage check and final inspection. The consultant returned it approved with one comment — a request for a trial length of 50 m — which was laid, measured and accepted the following night. The lines went down on programme, the application records were signed nightly, and the handover file was issued the week the marking finished. Nothing in that package was unusual. It simply answered every question the reviewer was going to ask before the reviewer asked it.
Three questions to ask at the tender interview
- “Show me the last submittal you had approved.” A competent subcontractor has one on a laptop.
- “Who owns the pre-heater and the screed machine?” Hired plant means programme risk.
- “What is on your application record?” If the answer is vague, the records will be reconstructed after the fact.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Ashghal AVL?
The approved vendor list — with its related approved material and product lists — maintained by Ashghal, the Public Works Authority, recording vendors, materials and products reviewed and accepted for use on its projects. Consultants refer to it when reviewing material submittals.
What documents should I request from a road marking subcontractor?
Company registration and insurance, HSE documents, an equipment list, product data sheets and test certificates for the marking material and glass beads, primer data where relevant, a project-specific method statement, an inspection and test plan with hold points, an application record template and a warranty statement.
Why was our road marking submittal rejected?
The most common reasons are a data sheet that does not name the standard, a missing glass bead certificate, a generic method statement without thickness and bead rate, an ITP without hold points, or a material or thickness that does not match the specification.
Do private car parks need Ashghal approval?
Usually not. Private sites follow the consultant’s specification, which often references QCS. The same documents still make review faster and protect the client.
Does UniGulf Traffic prepare submittals?
Yes. We compile the material submittal, method statement, ITP and records in your consultant’s format and support the review.
Get a free site visit and a same-day quotation
Send us the location, the approximate area or number of bays and any drawings you have. A UniGulf engineer will survey the site, confirm the material specification and send an itemised quotation — usually the same working day.
