STP ShaliMark
Hot-applied, retroreflective thermoplastic road marking compound built for Indian highways — melts at 180–200°C, bonds to asphalt and concrete, and outlasts conventional road paint several times over.
What is it?
A hot-applied thermoplastic road marking paint from STP Ltd, based on petroleum resin with pre-mixed and drop-on glass beads for night-time retroreflectivity. Conforms to BS 3262 and MORTH Clause 803.4.
Where is it used?
Lane lines, edge lines, zebra crossings, arrows, lettering and hatching on highways, expressways, urban roads, toll plazas, airport aprons and taxiways — on both asphalt and concrete pavements.
Why use it?
A single hot-applied pass lays a film several times thicker than road paint, so markings last 3–5 times longer, stay visible at night and hold their colour under Indian sun and monsoon cycles.
How is it applied?
Melted at 180–200°C in a pre-heater, laid by screed extrusion or spray machine, with BS 6088 Type II drop-on beads dispensed at 250–300 g/m² onto the fresh line.
About STP ShaliMark
ShaliMark is STP Ltd’s hot-applied thermoplastic road marking compound — the workhorse specification for permanent markings on Indian carriageways. Instead of a thin solvent- or water-borne paint film, ShaliMark is supplied as a dry compound of petroleum resin binder, pigments, fillers and pre-mixed glass beads. On site, it is melted in a boiler or pre-heater at 180–200°C and drawn across the pavement as a molten ribbon that fuses to the surface and sets as it cools. The result is a marking two to four times thicker than paint, which is why thermoplastic lines routinely deliver three to five times the service life on trafficked roads.
For contractors bidding NHAI, MORTH or municipal work, the compliance story matters as much as the material: ShaliMark conforms to BS 3262 and to Clause 803.4 of the MORTH Specifications for Road and Bridge Works, the clause under which hot-applied thermoplastic markings are almost universally tendered in India. It is produced in standard white and yellow, packed in 30 kg HDPE bags with a 12-month shelf life, and works on both bituminous and concrete pavements. Space Arc supplies ShaliMark pan-India and can arrange machine application through experienced road marking crews.
The technical insight
Two mechanisms do the work. First, the bond: because ShaliMark arrives on the pavement molten at 180–200°C, it slightly softens the top of a bituminous surface and fuses into it — a thermal weld rather than a paint film relying on surface grip. Setting happens by cooling, not solvent evaporation, so a full-thickness line can be laid in one pass and carries traffic soon after it cools. Second, the optics: retroreflection. Glass beads pre-mixed in the compound and drop-on beads seeded into the molten surface sit half-embedded in the line. Headlight beams enter each bead, refract, reflect off the pigmented material behind it and return towards the driver’s eye — which is what makes the line glow at night. As traffic slowly wears the surface, fresh pre-mix beads keep getting exposed, so reflectivity is renewed through the marking’s life rather than lost with the first layer.
Where it is used
- Centre lines, lane lines and edge lines on national and state highways and expressways
- Zebra crossings and pedestrian crossing blocks at junctions
- Directional arrows, lettering, symbols and chevron hatching
- Speed breaker and rumble strip marking for traffic calming
- Median, path divider and channelising markings on urban roads
- Toll plaza approach and lane discipline markings
- Airport apron and taxiway markings
- Internal roads of townships, industrial parks and logistics hubs
Key advantages
- Retroreflective by design — pre-mixed plus BS 6088 drop-on beads keep lines visible in headlights night after night
- Three to five times the service life of conventional road marking paint
- Fuses to bituminous surfaces and adheres well to concrete pavements
- Sets by cooling, so lanes can be reopened to traffic quickly after application
- Superior weathering resistance and colour stability under UV, heat and monsoon exposure
- Textured bead-dressed surface contributes useful skid resistance for vehicles crossing the line
- Melts easily and behaves consistently in standard pre-heaters and screed machines
- Tender-ready compliance with BS 3262 and MORTH Clause 803.4
Limitations & considerations
- Needs dedicated plant — a pre-heater/boiler and screed or spray applicator; this is not a brush-and-roller product
- Weather-sensitive application window: pavement temperature 5–40°C and relative humidity below 80%; damp or dusty surfaces cause adhesion failure
- New concrete must be at least 28 days old before marking, and concrete surfaces generally benefit from a primer coat — confirm with the STP method statement
- Prolonged holding of the melt or overheating beyond the recommended range degrades the resin and dulls the whiteness of the line
- Night-time performance depends on disciplined bead work — under-dosed or poorly embedded drop-on beads show up as dull lines within weeks
- Not the right choice for in-plant factory floors exposed to chemical spillage, where epoxy line marking systems perform better
Selection & best practice
Start with the surface: it must be clean, dry and free of loose aggregate, dust, oil and curing compounds, with new concrete cured at least 28 days. Check the weather window — pavement between 5°C and 40°C and humidity under 80%; never mark a damp road. Melt the compound in the pre-heater at 180–200°C with continuous agitation, and avoid holding material at temperature longer than necessary, since extended heating discolours white lines. Lay lane markings by screed box at the thickness the contract specifies — MORTH practice for lane lines is a minimum of 2.5 mm including beads — and use the machine’s in-built dispenser to seed BS 6088 Type II drop-on beads at 250–300 g/m² onto the still-molten line so they embed to roughly half their diameter. Mask or pre-mark alignment before the machine run; thermoplastic sets fast and gives little room for correction. Keep unopened 30 kg bags dry and off the ground; shelf life is 12 months in original sealed packing.
Specifications
| Type | Hot-applied, retroreflective thermoplastic road marking compound |
| Binder / composition | Petroleum resin based, with pre-mixed glass beads |
| Standards compliance | BS 3262; MORTH Specifications Clause 803.4 |
| Drop-on glass beads | Type II to BS 6088, dispensed at 250–300 g/m² |
| Melting / application temperature | 180–200°C in pre-heater |
| Softening point | 102 ± 9.5°C |
| Flash point | 270°C |
| Colours | White and yellow |
| Packing and shelf life | 30 kg HDPE bag; 12 months in original sealed packing |
Industry use cases
National & State Highways
Long-life lane, edge and centre line marking on NHAI and PWD packages tendered under MORTH Clause 803.4, where thermoplastic is the default specification.
Urban & Municipal Roads
Zebra crossings, junction hatching, arrows and lettering for city corporations and smart city corridors that need markings to survive heavy mixed traffic.
Airports
Apron and taxiway markings where retroreflectivity and durability under slow, heavy wheel loads are essential.
Toll Plazas & Expressways
Lane discipline, chevron and channelising markings at high-speed approaches where night visibility directly affects safety.
Industrial Townships & Logistics Parks
Internal road networks, truck circulation routes and pedestrian crossings inside private campuses and warehousing hubs.
Frequently asked questions
What thickness should ShaliMark be applied at?
Can it be applied on concrete roads?
How is night-time visibility achieved and maintained?
What equipment does application need?
How soon can traffic run over fresh markings?
Does Space Arc apply ShaliMark or only supply it?
How we position STP ShaliMark
ShaliMark is the right call when the specification says hot-applied thermoplastic — which is most Indian road tenders. Where hot application isn’t practical, STP’s own cold-applied options fit better: ShaliMark WB 40 water-based acrylic for budget marking on lower-traffic internal roads, and ShaliMark WB 60 where you still want retroreflectivity without the melting plant. For coloured surface treatments such as bus lanes and cycle tracks, look at STP’s ShaliSeal CSS A and CSS WB coloured slurry seals. And for line marking inside factories and warehouses — where chemical spillage and forklift abrasion dominate — an epoxy floor system from Fosroc’s Nitoflor family, which Space Arc also stocks, is usually the more durable choice than any road marking compound.
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