Technical Authority
Built from years in the trench, not in the classroom.
Founder Background
Raphoon was founded on a direct premise: you cannot effectively inspect what you have not built yourself. Our principal spent years in active construction — running plural component pumps, wrapping field joints in the trench, and managing the material and environmental realities that no specification document anticipates.
That transition — from applicator to inspector to consultant — produces a perspective that engineers who have sat only in offices cannot replicate. We know where corners get cut, where moisture hides, and what a "compliant" DFT reading can hide about the surface beneath it.
The Path Behind the Work
Applicator
Years of hands-on coating application across pipeline construction projects. Direct experience with every failure mode that spec writers never anticipate.
Inspector
Third-party inspection work informed by application knowledge. Finding defects that pass visual checks but fail in the soil three years later.
Consultant & Author
Publishing technical findings, participating in standards committees, and delivering system-level guidance for operators and contractors.
Credentials & Participation
Industry Publications
- — Published in NACE Corrosion
- — Contributions to Materials Performance
- — Technical papers on field joint failure modes
- — Whitepapers on HDD coating system selection
Standards Participation
- — Active member of NACE/AMPP and ISO Committees
- — Contributor to API standards work
- — Pipeline industry working groups
- — Coating specification review panels
Training Delivered
- — On-site applicator qualification programs
- — QC inspector training for major operators
- — Pre-project crew readiness assessments
- — Post-failure root cause workshops
Publications & Industry Resources
All PublicationsPeer-reviewed conference papers, journal articles, and industry interviews authored by Ron Raphoon. Primary sources — not summaries. Papers available by request.
Risk Evaluation of Potential Coating Damage From HDD
AMPP CORROSION 2022
A structured framework for evaluating coating damage risk before HDD installation — covering bore design, soil conditions, rock hardness, and pull force interactions.
Request PDFPipeline Coatings, Key Points Specifically for Transmission Pipeline Coating
AMPP CORROSION 2022
Field-practical inspection guide for pipeline-specific coating types (FBE, heat shrink sleeves, tape wrapping, injection molding) that CIP courses do not adequately address.
Request PDFPHMSA Regulation on HDD Coating and PRCI Guidance
NACE CORROSION 2019
Comparison of PHMSA's CFR coating requirements against PRCI research findings — identifying the gaps between what regulation requires and what best-practice engineering recommends.
Request PDFThe Hidden Damage Done to Protective Coatings
Materials Performance, Vol. 56, No. 8
Examination of coating damage from HDD installation and why relying on cathodic protection as a substitute for an intact coating is insufficient in high-consequence areas.
Request PDFHow to Reduce Pipe Installation Damage on HDDs
Trenchless Technology Magazine — February 2024
Defines the SAIG threat profile (shearing, abrasion, impact, gouge) for HDD installations and the design criteria for ARO systems that address all four forces simultaneously.
Read ArticleWorld Pipeline Interview: Protecting Pipe Coatings During Pullback
Denso North America / World Pipeline — 2017
Recorded interview covering the technical case for fiber-reinforced URO systems for HDD, and why standard FBE-only approaches are insufficient for pullback operations.
View InterviewTechnical Video Library — @pipelinecoating
YouTube — Pipeline Coating Channel
Short training videos on SSPC surface cleanliness, AMPP SP0188-2024 holiday testing updates, NACE SP0394 FBE coatings, and Shore-D cure verification for composite repairs.
Browse Videos"A passed holiday test isn't the final word."
Real integrity starts before the coating touches the steel — in the surface prep, the environmental controls, and the training of the crew. Our job is to ensure what actually happens in the field matches what the specification requires.
Work directly with the specialist.
No account managers or intake teams. You speak with the person who has been in the trench.
Contact Raphoon