Powder Coating

With a renewed long line of powder-coated materials, ERD Metal produces high-quality surface finishes all in accordance with Qualicoat standards. Whatever the project, we have the tools to surpass you and your business’ expectations.

What is Powder Coating?

Essentially, powder coating is the finishing process where dry, free-flowing, thermoplastic powder is applied to a surface, melted, and evenly hardened into a coating. This practice is not exclusive to aluminum, and can be applied to metals, plastics, glass, and more. Where conventional liquid methods would limit product customization, powder coating allows for both functional and decorative finishes in a wide variety of colours, finishes and textures.

Powder coating can be achieved in two ways: electrostatic spray deposition (ESD) and fluidized bed application. Regardless of which method is used, both produce even, hard finishes and are more environmentally safe and cost-effective than liquid applications.

How it Works

Powder coating can be broken down into three stages. Each stage requires a set of materials and equipment specific to its characteristics. The result of completing all the stages is a durable high quality finish. These stages include:

Preparation

First, residue is removed from the surface of the substrate though cleaning and treatment. Leftover dirt, debris, and more could affect the adhesion of the powder as well as the result and quality of the final finish.

Application

Whether we use electrostatic deposition (EDS) or fluidised bed powder coating is dependent on the coating material you’ve selected. The EDS method is commonly used on metal parts, and involves a powder spray booth, powder feeder, with an electrostatic spray gun, and a power gun. Fluidized bed powder coating involves dipping preheated parts into the powder material.

Curing

Whichever method used during the application process will determine the method used for curing the material. The EDS method requires the powdered parts to be cured in a powder curing room. Materials treated with the fluidized powder coating method will be heated in similar ovens to the ones used in the EDS method.

The Benefits of Powder Coating

Increased durability
Specialized finishes
Environmentally friendly
Faster turnaround time
Lower overall material costs

ERD Metal works with leading international paint suppliers to build a wide variety of custom and standard RAL colors. Our goal is to ensure consistent high-quality surface finishes across all products by meticulously controlling each process.