Quick Turnaround is Key for Architectural Coating Shop

Are you familiar with the Mirage Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, the Trump Hotel Las Vegas, or the Long Beach and San Diego (California) Courthouses? Surely, you know the One World Trade Center in New York? These are only some examples of the building projects that Certified Enameling Inc. (Los Angeles, California) has contributed to as an established architectural metal finishing applicator that completes coating processes for building facades.

Glazing companies, installation companies, general contractors, window and door manufacturers depend on Certified Enameling for its liquid Kynar coating (a metal finishing that contains polyvinylidene fluoride or polyvinylidene difluoride) and powder coating services for their products’ finishes. High-rise buildings, high-end residential properties and office spaces, schools, universities and hospitals benefit from the company’s professional craftsmanship.

According to Adrian Quijano, president, the shop also caters to companies that need plate panels coated, which are constructed out of 0.125 aluminum that has been etched and cleaned.

Efficiency is what he believes differentiates Certified Enameling from its competition, enabling fast turnaround for its customers. “We can service our clients in three to five days on coating processing,” he explains. “We can intermix all our colors, which enables us to speed up that process. We can produce close to about 100,000 square feet of coated products and material in one single shift. And that has been our edge for quite some time.”

Reaching goals

Certified Enameling began in 1953, coating refrigeration components, die-cast toys and sporting equipment, and has gradually evolved to focusing solely on architectural finishing, in which it has been immersed for the past 40 years. Initially delving into architecture meant coating a large volume of extruded products, and then years later, facade components.

The company uses Kynar coatings from PPG, Valspar, AkzoNobel and liquid coatings that meet American Architectural Manufacturers Association (AAMA) specifications, including the AAMA 2605 standard. Kynar coatings are nonreactive and thermoplastic. Thermoplastic becomes pliable when heated above a specific temperature and then, upon cooling, returns to a solid state.

Kynar 500 PVDF resin is a popular choice because it retains a glossy finish, durability and versatility.

The finishing company also provides powder coating capabilities that include architectural powders and high-performing powders.

Reaching the point of providing many finishing services for the architecture industry was a milestone for the company. Now, still providing services only to this specialized industry, it has transitioned into an all-in-one service company, incorporating a fabrication division. Adding this capability in-house enables the production of general sheet metal work as well as architectural component manufacturing of wall panels, facade columns and brake metal shapes (sheet metal formed into shapes using a press brake) that it was unable to provide previously.

With the expansion of in-house fabrication, the company can coat beyond brake metals, trim works, and doors and windows it initially coated. In addition to those components, it now boasts a much longer list of facade components it finishes, which comprises of plate panels, column covers, skylights and metal roofs.

Illustrating its commitment to its new process, Certified Enameling has branched out from its headquarters in L.A. to perform fabrication at a new location in Pomona, California. Between its two facilities, the company staffs about 80 employees.

Mostly automated processes

The company runs conveyorized, automated equipment for its processes, starting with a five-stage wash process where products are sprayed with

nozzles and risers through every stage, according to Quijano. From the wash tunnels, they go through drying stages to force-dry the product. These processes are followed by primer application, then color coating, and finally the cure cycle. The cure cycle consists of a three-zone oven that enables faster curing.

“It’s all continuous; nothing stops,” Quijano says. “And then products go through our quality control processing to prestaging of packaging. Then one more quality process before packaging. After packaging, it’s ready to ship.”

He adds that the shop can run close to 30 orders per day, performing multiple color changes on the fly.

Even though automation is a large part of the business’s functionality, staffing these efficient processes has been a challenge. “A lot of our processing areas aside from the conveyor system require manual labor to some extent,” Quijano explains. “We continue to refine our approach and get more creative as we go.”

Like many manufacturers, Certified Enameling is faced with the obstacle of finding people with strong work ethics who are willing to grow their skillsets and eventually replace the retiring employees.

A streamlining tool

To streamline processes for its valuable employees and for its customers, the company invested in Steelhead Technologies’ software after learning on LinkedIn that it is geared specifically for coating shops. Quijano says his team loves the easy access the software provides for their work orders, which is available via iPads they carry on the shop floor.

“Everybody likes the fact that we can email information to customers about estimating, processing, order writing, images and so forth,” he explains about the program that it implemented about a year ago. He adds that it simplifies the operations side as well, including giving transparency into quality control, processing and shipping.

“The full visibility of where the orders stand is my favorite feature,” he explains. “My customers have a portal they can access and look at their orders, too.”

Trending challenges and big plans

Relying on the construction industry for success, Certified Enameling thrives with its customers’ growth yet feels the pain when slowdowns occur.

Currently, Quijano says high-end residential construction is a steady market, but commercial projects are at a standstill. “We don’t see a lot of work ramping up in the immediate future,” he explains. “It might be light going into the first and second quarter of next year.” Therefore, the challenge is maintaining workflow, especially when its large glazing contractors are slow, he adds.

Privately financed construction projects in the U.S. are experiencing only moderate growth, Quijano says, and the industry's outlook depends on how quickly support from decreasing interest rates can take effect.

Despite these challenges, the company is dedicated to expanding and diversifying its capabilities while focusing on an all-in-one solution for its facade and commercial development industry customers. This includes the possibility of offering aluminum composite material (ACM), which is made of two sheets of pre-finished aluminum, bonded to a polyethylene core, and pre-coated products that don’t require a post-paint approach.

“Eventually, we would like to get to the point where we are more of a metal supplier of some sort,” Quijano explains. He adds that the company has a lot of big plans, which involve some robotic automation processing to improve its processes.

“As far as equipment on our fabrication side is concerned, we’re now gearing up to install our newest lasers that will be operational by the end of the year.”