Services

St Louis E-Coating

We offer “Electro-Coat” (ecoating)
with zinc phosphate pretreatment.

E-coating Process in Saint Louis, Missouri

Capabilities of E-Coat

  • Consistant Coating Thickness
  • Excellent Corrosion Protection
  • Used As A Primer
  • Coats Hard to Reach Areas
  • Superior Edge Coverage

Components Processed

  • Multi-Metal Assemblies
  • Screw Machine Parts
  • Weldments
  • Stampings
  • Castings
  • Tubes

E-coating (electrophoretic painting) is an electrodeposition coating, often referred to as a “plated on paint” and “electrocoat” or “ecoating.” Its applications are numerous given its unique ability to coat unreachable surfaces that traditional plating cannot easily access. E-coat is applied to the surface of a part through an immersion process in which the coating is deposited from a water based solution to coat a conductive part (much like zinc plating or nickel chrome plating).

Why E-Coating?

E-coating (e-coat) is the preferred coating for many original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the automotive, agricultural and appliance industries.  This widespread preference is in part due to its exceptional corrosion resistance and consistent film thickness across a sampling of parts. Another quality that adds value to this process is that e-coating automatically limits the quantity of paint applied to a surface. As paint film builds on the surface, an insulating layer is built which resists the deposit of excess paint.

While this epoxy coating is very chemical resistant, it is not very UV resistant, and that should be kept in mind when considering the application of the coating.

A Closer Look at E-Coating

Unlike that of a plating process, the unique quality of ecoating is that any surface (even of a complex part) that the paint can “wet” can be coated. The inside diameter (“ID”) of a tube can be as uniformly coated as its outside diameter (OD) thanks to the consistent current distribution of e-coating. This principle applies to even deeply recessed products.  In the case of these hard-to-reach areas, due to the Faraday effect, plating is not an optional however at Microfinish, the parts can often be readily coated in the e-coat process because of its tremendous “throw power” (a term used to describe the capability of an electroplating process to evenly apply coating on a surface).

Microfinish’s E-Coating Process

Parts at our St. Louis e-coating facility go through four steps in our e coat process:

  1. We start with a thorough cleaning of parts through a combination of an alkaline soak and electro cleaning process.
  2. Parts are then zinc phosphate (increasing the corrosion resistance and adhesion of the coating to the part being coated).
  3. Parts then enter the e-coat tank at which point they are coated by providing them a negative charge and positively charged paint particles are electronically deposited, coating the parts.
  4. After thoroughly rinsing the parts, they are cured and then packaged.

Microfinish’s process does not involve an acid station, which enables us to run heat treated without the need to bake for hydrogen embrittlement relief after coating parts. Our line set also offers zinc and aluminum diecastings without the pretreatment process attacking or etching non-ferrous substrates. We utilize PPG’s Powercon 6000, which is approved by GM, Toyota, Chrysler, CAT, Deere and Honda, just to name a few.

The resulting consistent film thickness, high corrosion qualities, and distinct cosmetic qualities make ecoating an ideal choice for many applications.

Authorized Almco Distributor

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Microfinish complies with all federal, state and local environmental rules & regulations.
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