# Hold points, witness points and the ITP Source: https://coatmentor.com/learn/hold-points/ · Updated 2026-10-04 What an inspection and test plan lists, and the difference between a hold point and a witness point. *Figure: A hold point stops the work until the inspector releases it. At a witness point the work goes on if the inspector does not come.* An inspection and test plan (ITP) lists each inspection or test, its acceptance criteria, its frequency, who does it, and the hold and witness points. - **Hold point:** work stops until the inspection is done and the work is released. Example: surface preparation accepted before priming. - **Witness point:** the inspector is notified and may attend, but work can continue if the inspector does not come. ## The why: coatings hide their own faults A coat covers what is under it. After the primer is on, nobody can see the blast profile, the dust or the salts below it without removing the primer. The same holds for each later coat. A fault buried under the next coat shows up years later as a blister or a rust spot. A hold point puts a stop at the moment before the work is hidden. It forces a check while a correction is still cheap. It also fixes responsibility, because a written release says who accepted the work and when. A witness point is lighter. The contractor gives notice, and the inspector may attend. If the inspector does not come in the agreed notice time, the contractor continues. Use it where a missed check costs less, or where records and later checks can cover the gap. ## Where the points come from The inspection and test plan is a project document. It lists the activities in order. For each activity it gives the specification or standard, the method, the acceptance criteria, the responsible party, the records and the signatures. The parties agree the ITP and the notice procedure at the pre-job conference, before work starts. Typical hold points are these: - Surface preparation accepted before the first coat. - Each coat accepted before the next one, because it checks the DFT, the defects and the cure ([cure and recoat](https://coatmentor.com/learn/cure-and-recoat/)). - A holiday test and its repairs on a lining, before the lining goes into service or is closed ([holiday testing](https://coatmentor.com/learn/holiday-testing/)). - Final acceptance before handover. ## In the field 1. Read the ITP before the job. Know which points are holds and which are witnesses. 2. Agree the notice time and the way of notice, for example a form or a message. Record each notice with its date and time. 3. At a hold point, inspect the work against the acceptance criteria. Take the readings. 4. If the work passes, give a written release with the date, time and signature. If it fails, raise a nonconformance and keep the hold. 5. At a witness point, attend if you can. If you cannot, record that you did not attend and check the contractor's records later. 6. Show the points covered in the daily report. ## A worked scenario A contractor finishes blasting one wall of a tank. The ITP makes surface preparation a hold point before priming, so the foreman gives notice. The inspector inspects the wall and finds that the cleanliness grade and the profile are correct. A soluble salt test, however, shows too much contamination. The inspector does not release the hold. The contractor washes the wall and cleans it again. The inspector tests the salts again, and this time they are within the limit. She signs a written release with the time, and the priming starts. Now see the other way. If the foreman had primed without notice, the salts would sit under the primer. Blisters might appear a year later. Nobody could prove what the wall looked like at the time, and the owner could demand removal of the coating at the contractor's cost. The hold point and its record prevent that dispute. A witness point looks different. The ITP lists the DFT survey of the final coat as a witness point. The contractor gives notice, but the inspector is ill and cannot attend. The notice time passes and the survey goes ahead. The inspector then reviews the readings and the gauge records the next morning, and she makes her own spot checks. All of this goes in the report. ## What the inspector records - The ITP step, the date and time of the notice, and who gave it. - The inspection result and the readings. - The release or the rejection, with the time and the signature. - For a witness point: whether the inspector attended. ## Exam traps - Trap: "At a hold point, work can go on if the inspector is late." Work must stop until the work is released. Only a witness point allows work to continue. - Trap: "A verbal release is enough." The release is written. - Trap: "At a witness point the inspector must attend." The inspector may attend. The contractor can continue if the inspector does not come in the agreed time. - Trap: "Hold points are only at the start of the job." They also sit between coats, at the holiday test and at final acceptance. - Trap: "The ITP is the inspector's private checklist." The parties agree the ITP, and it is a project document. - Trap: "The ITP and the daily report are the same." The ITP plans the checks. The report records what happened. See also [reference areas](https://coatmentor.com/learn/reference-areas/), which the parties often use at these points to judge production work. **80** practice items in the members area mention this topic (CIP 1: 34 · CIP 2: 36 · FROSIO written: 10). ## Related - **The inspector's job:** [Reference (control) areas](https://coatmentor.com/learn/reference-areas/) · [Reports, nonconformances and traceability](https://coatmentor.com/learn/inspection-reports/) ## About this page Written from the published standards and coating practice, in our own words, and checked on 2026-10-04. Found an error? It goes in the [corrections log](https://coatmentor.com/method/). CoatMentor is an independent study aid. It is not affiliated with ISO, AMPP, SSPC, NACE International, ASTM or FROSIO.