The New Face Of Chrome Plating

New technology taking the area of chrome plating having the ability to chrome plate metal in addition to non-metal surfaces (plastic, fiberglass, wood, just about any surface). Minus the pitfalls of conventional chrome plating and its own environmental hazards.

Used in an array of industries chrome plating is becoming increasingly difficult recently. Regulations made to drive back the safety and environmental hazards of hexavalent chrome have increased the expense of chrome plating and burdened facilities performing plating services. Conventional chrome plating has several limitations and can't be used to chrome plate many surfaces. While industry downsizing and consolidation has resulted in the closure or offshore relocation of as much as 1 / 2 of the chrome plating shops in THE UNITED STATES because of EPA regulations. Europe is ambivalent and Asia is basically unconcerned with regulating chrome plating pushing a lot of THE UNITED STATES chrome plating over seas.

The need has arisen for an alternative solution to chrome plating that will not have environmentally friendly and safety issues of conventional chrome plating. Chemical metalizing runs on the chemical process rather than a power process to add metal to a substrate. One advantage is nonmetal and also metal could be chrome plated (plastic, fiberglass, wood, just about any surface). Addititionally there is more flexibility in the parts making for fewer failures because of flex. The added flexibility is because of the thinness of the coating. With conventional chrome plating the thickness of the various layers of metals applied will not enable flexibility this may create a failure of the part. The procedure will not use hexavalent chromium the primary environmental issue of conventional chrome.

It may also be tinted to attain colors such as for example gold, black chrome, even red, blue or green. The only real down side of the new process is that the durability is related to that of a high-end industrial or automotive finish. Chemical metalizing have not yet reached the particular level to dominate most of hard chroming uses but is currently a viable solution for some chroming needs. For more information or learn if our process can work for you personally please contact me.