Plascoat Helps Power New Street Lighting Innovations
Lighting column manufacturer, Mallatite Limited has secured a major lighting Private Finance Initiative (PFI) project in partnership with Skanska for the UK's Surrey County Council for the supply of approximately 70,000 lighting columns provided with a unique anti corrosion coating in specified colours
Global market leader in the production of thermoplastic powder coatings, Plascoat, undertook a programme of materials and process innovation with Mallatite and their client to achieve a durable, aesthetic and best value coating solution, suitable for the whole of the project.
Skanska for its part has undertaken to renew the lighting columns as detailed within the Core Investment Period of five years and further maintain the inventory for a period of twenty five years.
Mallatite Managing Director Alan Paterson says that "we are delighted to have secured such a prestigious contract in partnership with Skanska who are an extremely professional and innovative company who wholly support quality and longevity within their vision. Collectively with Plascoat we can offer the industry leading and proven anti-corrosion solutions for the lighting and traffic markets which are both environmental and user-friendly.'
Plascoat PPA571 offers a unique prompt application process via an automated in line system providing the customer with a long lasting winning design solution. Plascoat Sales and Technical Director Patrick Benson says that 'this work in Surrey is an important and significant milestone for us at Plascoat and for the social contribution of polymer coatings generally. The twenty first century will, we hope, see more and more use of our coating technology in street furniture and in the public domain generally - both preserving the lifetime of these products and also improving the environmental aesthetic. We fully support the quality work being done at Mallatite in this regard.'
Plascoat's PPA 571 has been specifically designed to provide a long lasting, tough coating for exterior applications to mild steel, galvanised steel and aluminium. It is based on an alloy of acid modified polyolefin. It is halogen free with a very low toxicity index. The Plascoat coating is resistant to stress cracking, adverse weather conditions, detergents, salt spray and typical airborne pollutants. The coating maintains excellent adhesion to the metal substrate without the need for a separate primer. The material also provides a good degree of electrical insulation, abrasion and impact resistance.
PPA 571 is normally applied by the fluidised bed process, but it can also be applied by flock-spray or flame spray techniques.
Plascoat is a world leader in the design, manufacture and supply of thermoplastic powders - primarily for the protective coating of metals.
The company - part of the IPT Group - has facilities in Holland and in Farnham, Surrey, UK and a sister coating company based in Kingswinford, West Midlands. Plascoat has over fifty years' experience in supplying worldwide clients and users of plastic coatings, and offers a world-wide technical and sales support for its product range, the breadth and depth of which is second to none. Current production capacity exceeds 30,000 tonnes per year and the company is accredited to the International ISO 9001:2000 quality standard.
Over eighty five percent of UK production is exported to international users and clients. Plascoat's programme of continuous product and technical development sees it constantly introducing new applications and new materials to the worldwide market.
In recent times it has become clear that - with an increasing demand for public environmental care and for health and safety - thermoplastic powder coatings represent the future for finishing in construction and related markets.
Plastic Coating Benefits:
Plascoat materials offer:
Long term corrosion protection to metal items
No VOC's, plasticisers, TGIC or halogen
No cracking, peeling or chipping
Excellent coverage of edges and welds
Superior resistance to salt, sea, sand and sun
Vandal and graffiti
Good grip and warm feel
Sound and electrical insulation properties
Very low smoke on burning
Food and water contact approvals
Applying Plascoat's thermoplastic coating powders
Plastic coating is the process of applying a thermoplastic to the surface of metal items in order to provide long-term corrosion, impact and chemical resistance while also offering an attractive decorative finish.
Plastics tend to be applied a little thicker than standard paints and are generally impermeable to water or aggressive chemicals. As a result thermoplastics are ideal for very long term protection of metal in the construction and automotive industries or for the coating of welded items such as wire products, fencing, cylinders and pipes.
Plascoat's coatings are supplied in powder (or liquid) form and are usually applied in the factory by standard fluid-bed (fluidised bed) or electrostatic spray techniques.
Thermoplastic powders can be coated in two primary methods, using either the fluidised bed dip coating process or by electrostatic spraying as summarised below.
Fluidised Bed Coating - features and benefits
100% coating efficiency,
Faster cycle times,v
Thicker coating providing: functional protection, longer life, impact resistance but with higher material usage,
Superior edge coverage,v
Requires fluidised bed to be full of powder,
Electrostatic spraying - features and benefits
Freely available sources of spray equipment,
Thinner coatings,
Lower material usage,
Reduced inventory requirement,
Lower coating efficiency (depending on the article and reclaim facilities)
All further Plascoat produce and service details from Patrick Benson.
Tel. 01252 733777.
www.plascoat.com
patrick_benson@plascoat.com
For further details of Mallatite products and services,
contact
Alan Paterson
at the company.
01246 593280 Tel.
www.mallatite.co.uk
