Testing is an important part of the powder coating process at Powdertech, it gives us and you assurance that we are in control of your product and our processes.
There are 5 basic areas which we constantly monitor:
- Chemical pre-treatment, the most critical part of the powder coating process.
- In-line inspection of material. Checking your material and our coating during the process.
- Off-line testing of our processes in our laboratory.
- Process plant parameters.
- External testing
1. Chemical pre-treatment (4 tests).
Our chemical plant can process galvanized steel and aluminium at the same time with pre-programmed 6 or 8-stages and multiple time and speed settings.
There are 3 key stages: etch, conversion and rinses. We have laboratory facilities to measure the etch rate of our chemicals to 0.0001 of a gram/m2, the conductivity of all our rinses, the pH of all process chemicals and the conversion rates of our chrome-free system.
2. In-line inspection (4 tests)
We check gloss level, film thickness and adhesion as part of the production process. In addition we check colour against standards or samples and batch to batch.
3. Off-line testing (8 tests)
In our laboratory we test coated panels for gloss, colour and film thickness to confirm the in-line tests. Further tests include bend, impact, cross hatch (adhesion), saw cut and pressure cooker.
4. Process plant (1 test)
Our curing ovens are regularly temperature profiled with electronic recorders.
5. External testing (1-test)
Process chemicals are externally tested and audited at least once per month and sample panels of coated material are continually on test in acetic acid salt spray (AASS) cabinets for in excess of 1000 hours.
These 18 tests are just part of our commitment to ensuring that we deliver the best possible performing metal finishing to our customers.
