Service · Plant setup

Powder coating lines — integrated design from pre-treatment to curing

A powder coating line is only as good as its pre-treatment. We design both together — not as separate vendor scopes — which is why our lines hold up in third-party salt-spray testing.

The most common cause of powder coating field failure on aluminium is not the powder, not the curing oven, and not the operator — it's the pre-treatment. A chromate or chrome-free conversion coating has to be chemistry-matched to the alloy and to the powder system, and most turnkey vendors treat pre-treatment as an afterthought. We don't. See our deep dive on aluminium powder coating pre-treatment for why.

What the service covers

Pre-treatment line design

Multi-stage chemical conversion (degreasing, etching, desmutting, conversion coating, DI rinse) sized for your throughput and alloy mix.

Spray booth specification

Manual, semi-automatic, or fully automatic booths with cartridge or cyclone recovery. Powder reclaim optimised to cut consumption 15–20%.

Oven sizing & airflow

Cure oven sized to hit full cure on the slowest-heating mass in your load. Airflow and temperature uniformity validated with profiling before handover.

Conveyor system layout

Overhead conveyor designed for your part mix — straight or closed-loop, with indexing stations if automation is planned.

Recovery system design

Cyclone and cartridge-based recovery with colour-change protocols. Critical for job-shops running multiple colours.

Commissioning support

First production runs, DFT control, defect troubleshooting, and operator training — all on-site.

How we approach it

  1. Production study — part geometry, alloy, throughput, colour count, and quality target.
  2. Process selection — chromate vs chrome-free, oven type (batch vs conveyorised), booth automation level.
  3. Full line layout — pre-treatment → drying → booth → cure → cooling → unloading, with conveyor path and utility routing.
  4. Vendor selection — RFQ-ready equipment spec; vendor drawings reviewed; no kickbacks, ever.
  5. Commissioning & trial production — process validation, DFT control, operator training. Hand over a line running at spec.

What you get at handover

Frequently asked questions

Should we go chromate or chrome-free pre-treatment?

For most Indian applications chrome-free (zirconium or titanium-based) is now the pragmatic choice — MPCB and TNPCB consents are moving against hexavalent chromate. The main exception is aerospace or defence work with legacy specs that still require chromate. We'll recommend based on your regulatory environment.

What's the difference between a powder coating line and an anodizing line?

Anodizing is electrochemical — it converts the aluminium surface into an oxide layer grown from the metal itself. Powder coating deposits a separate polymer layer on top. Anodizing is more durable and looks more premium; powder coating offers wider colour range and lower cost per square metre. Many customers run both for different product lines.

Can you design a combined anodizing + powder coating line?

Yes — combined lines share pre-treatment and material handling infrastructure, which saves floor space and capex. But the booth and oven are separate from the anodizing tanks. We've designed combined facilities for extruders who want both architectural finishes on the same shop floor.

How do we control DFT consistency?

Three levers: gun-to-part distance, kV setting, and line speed. On manual booths, consistency is operator skill; on automatic booths, it's setup and maintenance of reciprocators. Either way, continuous DFT measurement with a coating thickness gauge and a written acceptance band is what makes quality stick.

Designing a new powder coating line, or retrofitting an old one?

Send us your part mix and throughput target — we'll tell you what a realistic line costs and how long it takes to commission.

Start the conversation Call +91 77984 83087