A maintenance technician in a white hard hat and navy coveralls sits at a desk in an industrial office, reviewing technical blueprints on a clipboard surrounded by a laptop, blue document binders, safety earmuffs, goggles, and hand tools.

What Materials and Certifications Do I Need for My Service?

At Colton Industries, material selection and proper ratings are built into every product we make—whether it’s a steam trap, strainer, or valve. Our customers rely on us to provide equipment that fits their operating conditions, meets their codes, and lasts in real-world environments.

If you’re wondering which materials and certifications are right for your service, here’s how we approach it.

The short answer

Choose materials based on your pressure, temperature, fluid, and environment, and verify that your traps, strainers, and valves meet the appropriate pressure ratings and quality standards. Look for manufacturers, like Colton, that operate under a certified quality system (such as ISO 9001) and design to recognized standards.

Common body materials and where we use them

We offer a range of materials so you can match performance to the application:

  • Cast Iron

    • Typical use: Low- to medium-pressure steam and hot water, HVAC systems.

    • Benefits: Cost-effective and widely used.

    • Considerations: Not recommended for very high pressures, temperatures, or severe thermal shock.

  • Ductile Iron

    • Typical use: Water and general service where extra strength is beneficial.

    • Benefits: Better impact resistance and strength than cast iron.

  • Carbon Steel

    • Typical use: Higher-pressure steam and industrial process applications.

    • Benefits: Handles higher pressure and temperature; good general-purpose choice.

  • Stainless Steel

    • Typical use: Corrosive media, high-purity systems, food and beverage, and pharma.

    • Benefits: Excellent corrosion resistance and cleanability.

  • Bronze / Brass

    • Typical use: HVAC, plumbing, and smaller utility valves.

    • Benefits: Good corrosion resistance in many water-based systems.

Our team can help you match Colton’s material options to your exact service so you don’t over- or under-spec.

Internal components matter too

It’s not just about the valve or strainer body:

  • Screens and baskets in Colton strainers are commonly stainless steel to resist corrosion and wear.

  • Valve trim (plugs, seats, discs) must handle erosion, cavitation, and cycling over time.

  • Steam trap internals are chosen to withstand temperature swings, pressure changes, and contaminants in the condensate.

If your system handles dirty, corrosive, or high-velocity fluids, this level of detail becomes critical.

Certifications and standards to look for

Using properly rated equipment from a certified manufacturer is essential for safety and compliance.

Key points we focus on:

  • Quality Management: ISO 9001
     Colton operates under a structured quality system so you can trust the consistency of our products and documentation.

  • Pressure and Design Standards
     Our valves, traps, and strainers are designed to appropriate ASME/ANSI standards (e.g., Class 150, Class 300) and pressure-temperature ratings.

  • Industry-specific requirements
     Depending on your industry and region, you may also need to meet additional codes or local regulations. We work with customers and reps to align our products with those needs.

Matching materials and certifications to your service

Here’s how we typically guide customers through the decision:

  1. Define your operating conditions

    • Pressure, temperature, fluid properties, indoor/outdoor location.

  2. Identify any codes or standards you must meet

    • Boiler and pressure vessel codes, building codes, corporate engineering standards.

  3. Shortlist materials

    • For example:

      • Low-pressure building steam: cast or ductile iron may be appropriate.

      • High-pressure process steam: carbon steel or stainless steel.

      • Corrosive or sanitary applications: stainless steel.

  4. Verify ratings and approvals

    • Ensure that selected components meet or exceed your design pressure and temperature.

  5. Standardize where possible

    • Using common materials and ratings across your facility simplifies inventory and training.

Colton and Steam Specialty can help you document and standardize these decisions so future projects are easier to specify and maintain.

Pitfalls we help customers avoid

We frequently help correct issues like:

  • Choosing valves and strainers solely on upfront cost rather than lifecycle cost.

  • Mixing dissimilar metals that accelerate corrosion in wet systems.

  • Using components with insufficient pressure or temperature ratings.

  • Overlooking documentation and traceability needed for audits and inspections.

Building quality into the specification stage is always cheaper than trying to fix it later.

Make materials and certifications part of your standard, not an afterthought

When you choose Colton products, you’re getting:

  • Materials that are appropriate for real-world conditions

  • Designs that follow recognized standards and ratings

  • Products manufactured under a certified quality system

That combination is what keeps steam and pipeline systems across North America running safely and efficiently.

If you’d like help reviewing an existing spec—or building a standard from scratch—our engineering team and our Steam Specialty partners are ready to collaborate.