News

Demystifying the Powder Coating Specification

Thursday March 17, 2022

So you’ve decided to specify a powder coating on your project. Maybe your project owner values sustainability and wants to use materials with a lower carbon footprint. Maybe your last project was delayed for months due to long lead times for liquid paint and you want to avoid those headaches on this project. Maybe your project is a LEED project and you need EPDs for the Materials and Resources credit. Or maybe you simply want a performance coating that is tough, lasts a long time, and that fabricators appreciate (high transfer efficiency, jnegligible VOCs and odor- free, and low reject rate). Whatever the reason, you made a good choice. Now, how do you specify it?

Diving in: to dip or to spray

Friday March 4, 2022

Fluidized Dip Coating Vs. Electrostatic Spray Coatings – The Deep Dive

“What’s better…spray or dip?” I get asked this question a lot regarding thermoplastic powder coatings. The two processes could not be more different. Electrostatic Spray Powder (ESP) is an elegant process that employs a carefully metered amount of powder which is propelled through an electric field that makes the charged particle race towards the grounded part resulting in a wonderfully even coating. Nice. On the other hand, Fluidized Bed Dipping (FBD) is a brute force endeavor if there ever was one. A hot part is submerged in a bed of fluffy powder, moved around with great agitation to keep the film build even, and once out of the bed, the part is vigorously shaken to remove excess powder. Lots of agitation and shaking. However, there is no metering, no pumps, no coating booth, no electrostatics...just a hot part and a bucket of powder with a little air in the bottom. Simple, but perhaps a little less elegant.

Optimal Prime: How Powder is Transforming Primers on Wood/MDF

Tuesday March 1, 2022

Perhaps you’ve read about the revolution that is taking over the wood finishes market? Efficient, technically excellent, with gorgeous aesthetics and an enviable environmental footprint – advancements in powder coatings mean that wood finishers now have powder technology available to them.