Nonstick coatings brought major improvements to manufacturing in addition to being extremely helpful in the home. While previous surfaces were certainly durable, nonstick coatings made production processes go so much more smoothly for several reasons. If you’ve had issues with materials sticking to equipment or products not releasing from molds easily, it’s time to take a look at what adding nonstick coatings can do to help you.
Much Easier Clean-up
Just as they do for pots and pans in your kitchen, nonstick coatings make cleaning equipment so much easier. Materials obviously stick less, so there’s less to try to scrape off; what is left releases relatively easily. This makes routine cleaning much easier as well. Plus, if you have to disinfect or sanitize surfaces, that process will be much easier as you have to spend less time cleaning other materials off first. If something goes wrong in the manufacturing process — say, something spills onto a piece of equipment — cleaning that material will also be a lot easier and faster to do.
Better Product Formation and Release
If you make items in molds, such as packaging or tools, you definitely need to add nonstick coatings if you haven’t already done so. Nonstick coatings allow molds to release items with little trouble, and the risk that the mold will retain any residue is greatly reduced if not eliminated. The released product is intact — no tiny bits left behind in the mold — and the part’s dimensions are almost certainly within tolerance. The easier release also reduces the risk of malformation due to the difficulty of removing the part from the mold.
Longer Equipment Lifespan
Nonstick coatings help reduce friction and corrosion. First, there’s less material stuck to the surface of the equipment. That means that there’s less of a chance that moisture or corrosive substances could be trapped against that surface. Second, the nonstick coating (as long as it stays intact) can help protect the equipment’s surface from being exposed to harsh, corrosive environments to begin with. Third, easier cleaning means that there is less risk of cleaning fluids or tools damaging that surface. Fourth, the reduction in friction means the equipment may generate less heat that could damage parts, and finally, the reduction in friction means any surfaces that touch each other are less likely to damage each other through scraping and chipping. Parts move more efficiently, so there’s also less of a drag on connections, gears, and joints in the equipment.
Better Chemical Resistance
Many nonstick coatings don’t react when they come into contact with certain chemicals. Reactivity between a chemical and a surface isn’t necessarily dangerous; sometimes, it just results in discoloration of the surface. However, even that is undesirable as it makes the equipment look worse and can hide true problems. By using a nonreactive, nonstick surface, you keep the equipment looking much better for a longer time.
Great Temperature Resistance
Many nonstick coatings, such as Chemours Teflon finishes and Whitford Xylan coatings, are good at resisting extreme temperatures, especially heat. If you’ve got equipment that has to run in extreme cold or heat, adding a nonstick coating can help protect the materials that the equipment itself is made of. And, that aforementioned reduction in heat from lack of friction won’t increase the ambient heat to an intolerable level.
Sun Coating Company offers several options for nonstick coatings. If you’re not sure which type might be best for your processing plant, contact us so that we can walk you through your choices and help you find a great match for your equipment.