Powder coating is a metal finishing process that involves the application of dry, free-flowing, coloured powder to a fabricated part or product via electrostatic means. The coated metal then undergoes heat curing to harden it.

Powder Coating Basics

Powder coat is one of the most popular modern finishing techniques available in the market in today’s date, and it is a quickly growing technique even more popular across the industry. Experiencing approximately 25% percent growth after 2019, the powder coating market has been experiencing huge leaps in technology. It is developed as a new coating technology to improve the coating over the metal fabrication. 

Read the blog further to learn more about powder coating, what are the advantages of it, and which of the common materials that are powder coated.

What Is the Powder Coating Process?

Powder coating is a technique that is used to give a perfect finishing to any metal fabrication. The entire powder coating process is mentioned below.

1. Prepare:

The surface of the material first goes through the cleaning process. Cleaning includes the removal of old paint from the surface, and it also prepares the surface for maximum adhesion between the metal and coating. This is done throughout the cleaning.

2. Attach: 

This process depends upon the metal fabrication. Finishers either spray the powder coating metal to a prepared surface or dip the surface into a fluid containing particles of dissolved powder. In both the methods, professional surface finishers make the particles bind to the item using either electricity or heat.

3. Cure: 

After the attaching process, the item is placed into an oven where the heat dries the powder-coated surface. After this, your metal fabrication is ready to go to their owner.

What Are the Advantages of Powder Coating?

Powder coating is uniquely applied to metal fabrication, and the technique gives a host of benefits and features to the metal. A few of the benefits include:

Durability:

Powder coatings maintain the resistance to abrasion and corrosion, especially compared to liquid coatings.

Longevity:

The good quality of a powder coating is sufficient for years, remaining bright and vivid with less fading over a longer period. 

Variety: 

Powder coating comes in a variety of colors and coatings, all depend on the particular needs of the application.

Less Toxic: 

Solvent-based powder coatings release volatile, and it often spreads toxic compounds into the air at the time of heating or electrification.

Cost-Efficient: 

Powder coating has several benefits, and it requires less time as compared to other coating techniques. It is a reasonable option, especially if you are considering the quality and durability of the product.

What Kinds of Metal Fabrication Are Powder Coated?

The demand for metal powder coating has increased due to the fact that it has many advantages as shown above. Let’s see some areas where we use a powder coating.

Appliances

The appliance industry uses the largest portion of the powder coating, considering about 1/3 of all industrial powder coated parts. Powder coating is popular within this field because of its two-fold benefit of being both aesthetically pleasant as well as resistant to abrasion and corrosion.

Outdoor Products

 Outdoor units such as vehicles and other agricultural equipment are used daily, and they are often left outdoors for hours. To protect the colors of this equipment, we generally use powder coating, which provides a durable finish that will be sufficient for years.

Architecture and Construction

The Architectural and building market is one of the fastest-growing markets for powder coating. The main reason for this is their durability. Because it has a wide range of colors and finishes.  Nowadays many construction companies are turning to powder coatings methods to provide long-term exterior finishes for outdoor venues and public works projects

Automotive Items

Powder coat is commonly used everywhere in the automotive industry as a basecoat or finish coat for the many automotive components.

What type of powder coating should I choose? 

Powder coatings have four basic types, and each gives a different performance.  

• Epoxy:  This provides the best corrosion protection.  

• Hybrid(s): Typically, this type offers the best chemical and solvent resistance.

• Polyurethane: It gives you enough flexibility and hardness suited for moving parts.

• Polyester: For the highest exterior stability and performance, you can use this type.

Summary

Powder coating offers several important benefits that can help you improve the quality of your metal and enhance your competitive position in the market.