What is Powder Coating?

What is Powder Coating? Powder Coating is a type of coating applied to surfaces as a free-flowing dry powder. Companies work with us to finish their products in virtually any colour, texture, and finish.

Powder Coating can finish virtually any metal and is suitable for businesses and consumers. The powder is a mixture of ground resin particles, and pigment applied electrostatically to the product or part. This is done with a powder coating gun or in an automated powder coating booth. The powder is then cured under heat between 200ºC and 240ºC. This results in a high-quality, uniform, durable finish that complies with environmental policies.

Thanks to its many benefits, this type of powder coating has become more popular since its introduction in the 1960s. It’s tougher than conventional paint, incredibly durable, and scratch-resistant. While pliable, it is hard enough to withstand impact without marking. It’s also more resistant to fading and wearing than other finishes. While traditional paint has to be left to dry, powder-coated items can go directly into an oven, so there is no flash-off period. This is possible because it contains no solvents.

The History of Powder Coating

It started when a German Scientist named Dr Erwin Gemmer developed a fluidised bed coating process for processing thermoset powder coatings and patented it in May 1953. Thanks to his invention, between 1958 and 1965, almost all powder coatings with thicknesses between 150 µm and 500 µm were processed using his method. Around the same time, thermoset epoxy had become available. Bosch went on to develop a prototype for epoxy resin powder for electrical insulation.

Electrostatic powder coating was introduced in 1962 in the US and Europe, removing the fluidised bed coating process from use. Between 1966 and 1973, the polyurethane, polyester, epoxy, and epoxy-polyester hybrid thermostats that are still in use today were developed and sold commercially.

Since then, power coatings have gradually increased in use worldwide. Constant innovation, improved formulations, the development of new applications, and the increasing number of environmental protection laws have driven this.

Contact Sheet Metal Services to find out more about our powder coating service.