Articles
From the CEO: Positive Change in Manufacturing Industries
Rick Kline Sr. discusses how Gardner Business Media’s trade publications exist to highlight successes in manufacturing, and how Products Finishing and our sister brands in the Gardner family foster positive changes by doing so.
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Color is Key: Getting Color Right in Powder Coatings
What do powder coaters need to know about color management? Rik Mertens of Datacolor explains how digitalization helps save time and avoid error.
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Dürr Unveils Solution for Digital Paint Layer Calculation
Dürr simulation software uses a digital twin to simulate layer thicknesses directly in the spray booth.
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Video: An Interview with Emily Peck, Laboratory Manager
Emily Peck of MicroCare was on Products Finishing's 40 Under 40 list for 2020. She spoke with managing editor Jenny Rush about sustainability, career goals and advice.
WatchHow to Troubleshoot and Fix Nickel Show from Hex-Chrome Baths
Nickel show on parts from hexavalent chromium baths can have many causes. Adam Blakeley of MacDermid Enthone lays out potential causes and how to fix them.
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Understanding the Anodic Oxide Finish – The First Commercially Available Nanoscale Coating
Dr. Jude M. Runge is the 2020 recipient of the NASF William Blum Scientific Achievement Award. The COVID-19 crisis and the cancellation of SUR/FIN 2020 have affected the timing of the formal award and her delivery of the William Blum Lecture. To honor her properly now, it is timely to publish one of her earlier papers, showing the caliber of her work. Here, she notes that nanomaterials, nanotechnology and nanoprocessing are the marketing buzzwords for the 21st century, stressing that, after all, conventional anodizing processes yield a nanoscale finish. Armed with this knowledge, the ease, reliability and reproducibility of the anodic finish enable insights into new applications.
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How to Maintain Vibratory Finishing Media
Vibratory finishers and vibratory media require cleaning and maintenance to function properly. Here are tips to keep yours running well.
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An Introduction to Fundamental Research on the Mechanism of the Electrodeposition of Metals
From time to time, it has been our intent to present seminal papers from past issues of NASF/AESF journals that are of such significance that, decades later, they bear another look. As Einstein is associated with relativity, Drs. Conway and Bockris are synonymous with theoretical electrochemistry. This paper is in large measure, the result of Project #16, and, as the authors modestly describe it, is “an attempt to describe to the electroplater who understands the basic ideas of electrochemistry, what is being done in research on fundamental electrode processes.” This “attempt” did rather well.
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Finishing Index Reports First Expansion in COVID Era
New orders, production and employment activity all reported expanding activity in August, fueling a broad-based rise in the Finishing Index.
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Thermal Aging Effects Between Thick-Film Metallizations and Reflowed Solder Creams
Originally published as S.J. Muckett, et al., Plating and Surface Finishing, 73 (1), 44-51 (1986), this paper was awarded the 1987 AESF Gold Medal for Best Paper published in Plating and Surface Finishing in 1986. With the passage of time, Pb-containing solders have been found to have issues regarding toxicity and health. Nonetheless, the work, methodology and results discussed here remain valuable from a research standpoint.
Read MoreManufacturing, Management and Racial Inequality
How can finishers take action about (not just discuss) racial inequality? Matthew Kirchner describes his ways of giving back to the community and promoting equality in manufacturing.
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When to Use Air Spray Guns or Rotary Bell Atomizers for Robotics
For automated finishing, are air spray guns or rotary bell atomizers better? Mark Dion from Dürr Systems explains the pros and cons of both for robotic painting.
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