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Tapes and maskants are necessary tools in the finishing industry, but they don't have to be necessary evils.
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Masking Motivations
by Dan Davis, Senior Editor Industrial Paint & Powder
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Paint Masks
Suppliers of tapes and maskants face an uphill battle. When most finishers are asked about masks, they look for their respirators.
But it's a battle that these suppliers are winning--slowly but surely. As consolidation takes place in the finishing industry and as quality programs force finishers to be more cognizant of their coating practices, masking is being seen in a new light.
Instead of an afterthought, masking is being addressed as part of the design process.
Price remains an overall concern for many in the finishing industry. Unfortunately, shortcuts taken to keep down material expenditures may be costing the finisher down the road.
Ty Sarajian, vice president of operations for EPSI, has seen his company grow from a simple manufacturer of rubber parts to a source for solutions to masking problems. He estimates the company now develops about 500 new custom products per year. Some developments have even led to patents.
For a recent computer-cabinet application, EPSI developed a labor-saving mask that is awaiting its patent approval. Prior to EPSI getting involved, the finisher was applying a mask to the computer cabinet, removing the mask after powder coating and attaching an electromagnetic interference gasketing to the bare metal area that was previously masked.
The gasketing ensures a continuous electrical field in which the computer can operate. The manufacturer was concerned because the gasketing was not always lined up properly. To solve the problem, EPSI engineers designed a mask/gasketing package. The mask/gasketing combination is placed on the computer cabinet prior to powder coating, and the masking is removed afterwards, leaving the gasketing in place. Sarajian says engineers are also working on a mask that can also act as a gasketing, so that the process becomes a one-step operation.
In another patent-pending application, EPSI engineers added a special twist to the popular green polyester dots that are common place in the finishing industry. They embossed concentric circles on the translucent dots so that users might be able to target masking areas. By lining up the "bulls-eye," a masker is assured that the mask is being applied to the correct area on the part to be finished. "This idea started out as a dot, and we took it to the next step when we applied for the patent. We realized that we could do this on any type of shape." Sarajian says.
A finisher almost requires the expertise of a masking supplier nowadays when he's seeking out a masking solution.
With so many choices, one might think finishers are overwhelmed. Sarajian sees just the opposite happening to his finishing customers.
"We're getting stranger and stranger applications," he says. "Our customers are becoming bolder with their expectations."
Paint masks or powder coating masks you can find high temperature masking and paint masks.
Industrial Paint and Powder
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