PRODUCTS & PROCESSES
The soft spray of the Encore HD powder coating system ensures maximum process control .
convenient powder handling with low operator and maintenance effort , so the powder feed center plays a significant role in the efficiency of the entire system .
“ After one year of in-house powder coating in single-shift operation , we are still in a phase of recording data , but we can already safely note three interesting observations as interim results : In terms of quality , throughput time and costs , our expectations have even been far exceeded ,” says Kleiner , summarizing his experience . “ The dense-phase technology is absolutely convincing for us in terms of application efficiency and coverage , and even when coating corners and recesses , we achieve a superior coating quality .”
Single coatings are usually applied to layer thicknesses between 60 and 80 µ and achieves uniform high coating quality and film thickness without reworking . Particularly demanding enclosures , such as parking meter machines , are double coated to withstand the effects of weathering for a long period of time . Special coatings , such as those produced by the Augsburg company for Tier 1 suppliers to the aerospace and medical technology industries , are also consistently applied . “ We regularly use the function of storing recipes in the powder coating system and retrieving them at any time ,” explains Mr . Kleiner .
“ Instead of having to spend time adjusting the system to the new order after a changeover , we simply call up the required parameters from the system controller and off we go ,” he says and he is very pleased with the minimal set-up times . They also
benefit from the user-friendly operation of the entire system via the colour touch screen of the PowderPilot ® HD control system . All parameters of both the powder application and the booth control are displayed and controlled centrally using easy-to-read icons . For different products and powder materials , numerous , highly adaptable programs can be stored so that processes leading to optimum coating results can be reproduced as desired . The system operator is supported in his work by step-by-step instructions , thus reducing intensive training phases to a minimum .
The result : Unmatched coating quality and savings
As expected , the company has also recorded a major time savings in terms of throughput times , “ For the quantity of sheet metal and other parts that we now process in the course of a shift , we had to allow for around five days in the times of outsourced job coating - and we also had a great deal of logistical effort , which is now also eliminated ,” says Kleiner . Since time is money , the managing director calculates that without any logistics adds up to monthly savings of around 10,000 euros .
“ As I said , we are currently still collecting data that we will systematically evaluate in
The company ' s range of products and services focuses on enclosure construction including system solutions .
the near future in order to incorporate the knowledge gained into the further optimisation of our processes ,” says Mr . Kleiner . It is quite possible that de Crignis will then make its knowledge available to external customers . “ We cover our own requirements with our highly efficient system in single-shift operation . A second shift would create large capacities that we could offer to sheet metal processors in the region . The powder coating system would then add job coating to our portfolio ”.
Find out more about dense-phase technology on our website www . nordson . com / hdlv .
64 APRIL 2021 read online : www . surfaceworld . com