High Appearance Standards

Q: We have a job shop and we do mostly general industrial parts in fairly neutral colors with average appearance standards. We have not been very successful with parts that need high cosmetic standards such as appliance or automotive. Our system is reliable but the equipment is kind of old and we do not use automatic guns. We do not have a powder room around our booth and we get by with the work we do now.

We have been asked to take on a job that requires a class “A” appearance in a high gloss black powder. The part is trim for exterior automotive. The project is high volume and would pay well so we are very interested in the work, but not sure that our system can perform at that level. Can you advise us on how to approach this potential work?

A: If you are considering exterior automotive work, you have a challenge. Not only will the appearance standards be more than the other work you describe, but the performance is demanding too. If your system was not designed for this type of work and you are not accustomed to it, you may find that you cannot take on this project.

When you analyze some high gloss coatings, the small debris that may go unnoticed in some powder materials may be highly visible in a high gloss with high visual standards. A small amount of fiber, dust or other materials can cause a reject of a product with high appearance standards. The same particles in another finish may be invisible or unimportant. To achieve this level of cosmetic quality you need protection from dirt around the coating area and a very clean environment. From what you describe, it does not sound like you currently have that level of control over dirt.

In addition, you will need a robust pretreatment process with exceptional quality and control to get the corrosion resistance and mechanical performance needed for automotive specifications.

I would be very cautious about quoting it or accepting the work without some trials of the powder and possibly the subject parts. True class “A” finishes need to be coated on systems that are designed and maintained for that level of cosmetic quality. Powder rooms with air control, oven cleaning, a clean shop, a conveyor sanitary pan and other features are built into the design to provide the protection needed against the normal dirt in and around a coating operation. I suggest you stay away from this work unless you can prove to yourself that you can do it and produce a high yield of defect-free parts. Otherwise, you are likely to wind up with a lot of rejects and possible trouble.