As the tough economic conditions continue to affect industry in all marketplaces, particularly manufacturing, preserving cash flow has become an even greater priority. The aftermath of September 11th has not helped the situation for many companies and fiscal belts are being pulled tighter and tighter, all the time.

One area where major cost savings can be realized using coatings technology is in the upgrade of a material system. In better times parts can be replaced, but through the use of coatings longer life can be achieved. Advances in coatings technology not only provide the means for the repair of worn equipment as a valid long-term solution, they can also provide immediate cost savings by the elimination of anti-galling through the use of General Magnaplate coatings such as Hi-T Lube® on gears, and NEDOX® on wear plates.

General Magnaplate has been able to provide customers who are facing enormous capital equipment expenditure with a solution that will free up critical cash flow. This often makes the difference in a tough economy, and provides an alternative to other less favorable solutions for cash flow preservation, such as workforce cutbacks and marketing reductions.

The company offers a range of "synergistic" enhancement coatings, which protect parts against wear, abrasion, and corrosion. When applied to all types of base metals, these coatings give the metals an extremely hard surface and instill other properties such as lubricity, resulting in reduced friction. A number of the products are USDA, NSF/FDA and AgriCanada compliant, making them highly suitable for use by manufacturers across the pharmaceutical and food industries.

Synergistic coatings were initially developed for the early NASA space program, which found that existing coatings could not protect their space hardware from the harsh elements of space. General Magnaplate now offers thirteen high-tech metal enhancing coating processes, which are applied in a multistep process that starts with a series of specialized cleaning treatments. An enhancement of the substrate's surface is then performed by conversion, deposition, thermal spray, or a blend matrix of all three technologies.

The process continues with a controlled infusion of proprietary polymers or dry-lubricating metals. Unlike less sophisticated paint-on coatings, these particles are mechanically cross-linked and locked in through a proprietary process to become a permanent, integral part of the new surface.

These permanent, non-stick, self-lubricating coatings can be used to protect and enhance the operation of sealing bars, molds, and other parts against abrasive wear and corrosion. Coupling this with the release properties of the coating, you dramatically extend the service life of parts, which leads to significant cost savings. In fact, General Magnaplate has developed a "One Stop Shop" program to repair damaged parts across its four American plants and our Canadian facility.

A wide range of surface enhancement coatings has been developed to solve many different types of metal performance problems. Plasmadize, for example, can offer metals lubricity and wear resistance unsurpassed by conventional thermal sprays. Magnaplate HMF imparts wear performance to aluminum, steel, stainless steel, copper, and other alloys.

Whether coating stainless steel balls to eliminate galling and extend the life of a valve, or coating a mold to protect against abrasion and erosion, the use of General Magnaplate's high quality coatings can extend the life of critical equipment. And more importantly, extending the life of parts can free up cash flow in difficult times.