TS 12590

TS 12590 is a vocational standard for vehicle painters. It defines the occupation, the way practitioners are classified, the tools and equipment used in the job, and the basic and occupational qualities expected at each level, together with the criteria used to measure and evaluate those qualities. Vehicle refinishing is a skilled automotive trade that depends on surface preparation, controlled coating application, and a consistent final finish.

Occupational scope and classification

The core focus of this standard is the description and classification of people who perform vehicle painting work. In general technical terms, vehicle painting includes preparing body surfaces, applying primer and topcoat layers, managing colour match, and maintaining coating quality. The standard frames this occupation across different levels so that the role can be defined in a structured and comparable way.

Tools, equipment, and assessed qualifications

Its scope also includes the tools and equipment to be used, as well as the basic and professional attributes required of each class of worker, along with the measurement criteria and evaluation principles for those attributes. In broader industry practice, such standards commonly address surface preparation, coating technique, equipment handling, work discipline, and the quality-related behaviours that affect the final result. This makes vehicle painting not only a matter of application skill, but also of proper equipment use and consistent assessment.

As a vocational reference, TS 12590 helps establish a common professional language for automotive repair and refinishing work. It clarifies what the occupation involves, what tools are associated with it, and how competence is organised and judged within the trade.