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Technically speaking, Metal Finishing is defined as the process of attaching various parts of given machinery into a workable product. Sounds like solving a jigsaw puzzle isn't it? They are not only confined to machinery but also to sculptures and other fittings that are to be assembled into a productive form. For example, we can buy various spare parts of a computer and assemble it by ourselves and voila…! We have a computer of our own. But, its feasibility lies in the iron and steel industry where it is thriving under pressure situations and didn't face the downfall even in the great recession period of the American stock market crashes in the late 1950s. Metal Finishing in the industrial sector provides a wide range of surface finishing and conditioning services, for small to medium-sized parts, to the medical, aircraft, aerospace, electronics, and energy and transportation industries.

General Metal Finishing was recognized in 1972 to supply functional barrel electroplating services to the commercial switch manufacturing. Through it's commitment to quality and customer satisfaction, GMF is now a leader in the field of specification rack, barrel and vibratory plating serving a large range of markets which include military/defense, aerospace, medical, telecommunication, automotive and commercial electronics. With two plating facilities totaling more than 40,000 square feet and over 100 dedicated employees General Metal Finishing offers what manufacturing leaders need today ... quality, competitiveness, consistency and service.

Metal Finishing keeps readers knowledgeable on the practical and technical aspects of finishing metal plating products, including waste treatment and pollution control. Metal Finishing provides how-to articles along with news, developments, patents, and shop problems.

Actions Supporting Metal Finishers and Improving the Environment

Promoting Environmental Management Systems

An EMS is a continual cycle of planning, implementing, reviewing, and improving the processes and actions that an organization undertakes to meet its business and environmental goals. A growing number of metal finishing companies have turned to EMS to help achieve continual performance improvement. These firms have discovered that by using an EMS to improve the efficiency of their everyday operations, they can:

• Reduce costs;
• Improve regulatory compliance;
• Stay competitive;
• Enhance operational decisions;
• Improve public image; and
• Reduce risk to the environmental and employees

EPA has collaborated with the industry's major trade associations to create several tools to help metal finishers develop EMSs:

• A Guide to Developing an Environmental Management System for Metal Finishing Facilities provides a simple step-by-step process for EMS implementation.
• Business Case for EMS: This brochure highlights the benefits of EMS implementation at metal finishing facilities. Environmental Management Systems: Systematically Improving your Performance was created in partnership with NAMF, AESF, and MFSA.

Performance Measurement

• The performance trends for the metal finishing sector are highlighted in the 2006 Sector Strategies Performance Report. A performance report was also issued in 2004.
• The National Metal Finishing Resource Center (NMFRC) continues to collect data, maintain, and update the benchmarking database Exit EPA Disclaimer , and provide report cards to individual companies on their progress, environmental costs, and cost savings.

Regulatory Policy Issues

Sector Strategies continues to provide independent analysis of policy options for ongoing regulatory matters including a possible RCRA F006 exclusion to promote metals recovery and reuse.

Earlier Accomplishments

• National Strategic Goals Program: the first sector-based voluntary performance program; participation by 511 firms, 22 states, over 80 POTWs.
• Cumulative Environmental reductions (by 2002): sludge shipments to landfills by 2.5 million lbs; wastewater by 2.08B gals; metals to water by 251K lbs; organic chemical releases by 5.3 million lbs.
• RCRA final rule to extend allowable F006 sludge storage time to 180 days
• Living the Vision: first-ever sector-based annual environmental report

Metal finishing involves a series of processes that provide the surfaces of manufactured parts with a number of desirable physical, chemical, and appearance qualities. Nearly all manufactured or fabricated products made of metal or having metal components feature some type of metal finishing. There are 46 different processes regulated under metal finishing standards featuring different technologies, operational steps, inputs, and outputs.

Metal Compounds

Metals are coated onto parts in metal plating shops to increase wear resistance, corrosion resistance, or for enhanced appearance. Metals are supplied to plating baths either in their metallic form or complexed with another compound, such as cyanides, oxides, sufides, or chlorides. Some primary metals used that are of significant environmental or health concern and their applications include:

 

 

Cadmium is typically plated onto steel and iron parts to defend them from highly mordant environments, such as those found in the nautical industry. Other properties of cadmium include good solder capability, ductility, preservation of luster, a low coefficient of friction, and ease of deposition. Primary routes of revelation for cadmium are ingestion or inhalation. Long-term exposure to cadmium results in a number of negative possessions, including emphysema, kidney disease, anemia, liver interruption, and bone disease.

 

  

 

Chromium coatings provide outstanding wear resistance and corrosion protection, as well as an intense, highly reflective surface. Two main types of chromium coatings are used - attractive and hard chrome. Decorative coatings are applied primarily for exterior purposes, while hard chrome coatings are thicker layers of chromium used to give a part extra wear resistance. Chromium exposure can occur by ingestion, inhalation, and skin amalgamation. The form of chromium that is of main health concern in metals plating is hexavalent chromium, which is extremely toxic due to its strong oxidation characteristics and high covering permeability. Hexavalent chromium is also mutagenic, and various hexavalent chromium compounds are classified as person carcinogens by EPA.

 

 

Nickel coatings are used for decorative purposes or to get better corrosion resistance, wear resistance, and magnetic characteristics. Nickel is measured to be very flexible in metal plating because the properties of nickel coatings can be prohibited and varied relatively easily. For decorative purposes, nickels can provide a variety of finishes. Nickel exposure occurs from side to side inhalation and ingestion. Long-term revelation to nickel is related with an increase in lung cancer.

 

 

 The latest method of depositing nickel on a clean refractory metal surface to form a multilayer article is: wherein the full thickness of nickel can be plated prior to the intermetallic bonding of the metals. The metal surface is cleaned and etched prior to the application of a first layer of nickel on the surface by electroplating means. After the article is rinsed, a second layer of nickel is applied to the first layer of nickel by electroplating means. The article is then heated in the absence of air to cause intermetallic bonding between nickel and the refractory metal substrate."

Other metals that are fairly common in the industry include copper, zinc, and precious metals such as silver and gold.

Metal Platings Category

• Copper Plating Chemicals
• Nickel Plating Chemicals
• Zinc Plating Chemicals
• Silver Plating Chemicals
• Tin Plating Chemicals
• Acid Tin Plating Process
• Pci Satin Tin Plating Process
• Immersion Tin Plating Process
• Basic Salts
• Brass Plating Chemicals
• Chrome Plating Chemicals
• Cadmium Plating Chemicals

 A significant amount of metal finishing is found within companies that manufacture products rather than those that specialize in metal finishing. These are referred to as "captive" operations. However, a great deal of metal finishing is contracted to independent establishments, called "job shops." The existence of the job shop finishing industry can be understood by looking at the relationship of metal finishing to the rest of the manufacturing process. Metal finishing is generally the last operation before sale or assembly. It can require capital intensive operations but may have a minor financial impact on the overall value-added of the product. Metal finishing is also chemical intensive, generates waste streams that are expensive to treat, and is heavily impacted by environmental regulations. As a result of these characteristics, many firms decide to outsource their metal finishing to job shops.

The supplement, the Metal Finishing Guidebook & Directory Issue, is a complete source for all metal finishing process operations, from basis material preparation to final quality control testing. An additional supplement, the Metal Finishing Organic Guidebook & Directory is the complementary complete source for all organic finishing operation. Both Guidebooks and Directories contain complete listings of manufacturers of finishing equipment, processes and supplies with addresses and phone numbers for easy accessibility.

 

 

Electroplate metal finishing is used to finish your part surface by submersing the part in a tank of chemicals and, in some cases applying an electric current. Such processes coat or alter the part surface with a thin layer. Plating can be used to prevent corrosion, increase mechanical durability, alter surface friction, improve appearance, etc. Plating can be done for parts made by all fabrication machines and is generally used when your part is made of a metal. Plating does not hide or smooth surface imperfections. For example if you mill a part with 63 surface finish and then silver plate, it will not look like jewelry. Larger parts are usually plated on Racks. Barrel plating is used for a larger quantity of small parts. Electroplating is the process of using an electrical current to coat an electrically conductive object with a thin layer of metal. If you are interested in learning more about the electroplating process; check out the section on the Electrochemistry Encyclopedia.

 

 

Brushed metal finishing creates a surface texture that removes and hides surface defects. This finish has a parallel grain resulting from an abrasive belt or wire brush moving against the work piece in one direction. Brushing slightly rounds the edges perpendicular to the grain.

 

 

Metal finishing can be categorized into different types for eg: Electroplating, Metal blackening, (black oxide), Corrosion inhibitors / rust preventives, Antiquing and oxidizing, Metal cleaners, Metal Bright Dips, Surface preparations, Chromate Conversion, Phosphate finishes, Waste Treatment Chemicals. All the mentioned processes are self descriptive as their nomenclature suggests. Once the desired product is assembled, they are given the finishing touches as per the customer specifications. They are spruced up by wax finishes, glazed coatings, spray tints or just polished by specialist cleaners to get the desired effect.

Metal plating is another enterprising business in the economic sector.Dravidian means related to populations and ethnicities that natively talk languages belonging to the Dravidian language family. Indeed we Dravidians can boast about ourselves of inventing the technique of metal plating dating back from the chola period, when bronze, brass idols and vessels were coated with gold and studded with precious jewelry. Precious metal like gold was too soft to stand by itself as pots and cutlery. So a template was made in brass or bronze or silver and then the gold was melted according to its purity and coated on the template to give it a originally made effect. Nowadays jewelers also follow this technique for an added advantage. Other common metals used for plating are nickel, cadmium, chrome, copper, tin and zinc. Plating is done is two forms, namely electroplating and chemical plating. Electroplating uses electricity, that can change the atomic structure of the given metal under its influence, to make the adherence possible; Chemical Plating, as the name suggests, uses chemicals to change the standing structure of the given metal and act as adhesives to plate metals according to customization.