Industrial paint solutions

Automatic equipment used to decorate substrates made of wood and its derivatives, and synthetic materials is found in many industrial sectors, from building to automotive and aerospace, furniture, glass, packaging and durable goods. Surface finishing techniques embellish the product and ensure superior functional characteristics.

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Coating solutions

Discover industrial coating machines

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What is meant by industrial paint or coating?

Rarely will you find an unfinished surface on any product. Most objects are coated with paints that can be water or solvent-based, UV acrylic, polyurethane, polyester and stains. These are applied mostly using automatic machines and in a precise order to ensure correct surface coating. Different stages of the process include coating with multiple layers, brushing and sanding, flash-off, matting, drying or curing. Application can be done using roller coating, spray coating, vacuum coating or curtain coating methods. Different product geometries require different coating solutions. Raised and flat panels will be processed on horizontal finishing lines, whereas 3D objects, window frames or doors can be painted using anthropomorphic robots; edges are finished on dedicated equipment.

Benefits

What are the benefits of industrial coating technologies?

Active in this industry since the 1960s, Cefla Finishing designs and manufactures the widest existing range of surface finishing solutions as integrated lines or tailor-made, stand-alone machines. Boasting 300 active patents and an installed base reaching around 15,000 machines worldwide, we develop coating equipment to maximise production efficiency and improve sustainability.
As an alternative to manual coating, automatic industrial coating ensures:

  • Consistent quality: machines can be configured to provide the same quality finish day after day, week after week.
  • Superior transfer efficiency: according to the selected technology, coating parameters can be set to ensure up to 100% transfer efficiency.
  • Improved productivity: fewer handling operations and special systems built into the machines minimise downtime and reduce lead times.
  • Overall sustainability: technologies, efficiency levels and automation strategies improve sustainability from an environmental, user-friendly and economic point of view.
Cefla Finishing_LAB_Linea Spruzzatrici_01e02-2020_001

In which industries are industrial paint solutions used?

Integrated industrial coating lines can be found in many sectors and are used to coat several different materials and substrates:

Materials

Sectors

Fields of application

Here is a selection of specific products that can be coated using industrial equipment

APPLICATIONS

01

Flat panels

Flat panels can be of many different substrate materials, from wood to plastic, metal or ceramics. Usually coated on roller coating equipment, curtain coaters, industrial digital printers, vacuum coaters and spray coaters can also be used.
02

Raised or curved panels

Generally speaking, raised panels are coated using spray coaters which also manage to coat the edges. However, panels with shallow grooves can also be processed on a roller coater with a soft rubber application roller.
03

External wall covering

Wall coverings must withstand the elements, so their physical and chemical characteristics need to be considered in the coating process, as well as aesthetic factors.
04

Electronics and whiteware

Plastic parts, panels and other elements of a domestic appliance need to be coated at the end of the production process. Different shapes and sizes must be considered, as well as each piece’s specific function.
05

Solar panels

Requiring special coatings and nanometric thicknesses, solar panels need to be coated on specially-built equipment, which manages these needs and minimises consumption of expensive coatings.
06

Plastic components

Plastic is used more and more often in many sectors, but as an economic substrate, it needs to be decorated in a way that increases its perceived quality. This can be achieved with the correct, bespoke finishing technology.
07

Profiles and door profiles

Sanding, sealing and coating all sides of a moulding is a frequent process for profiles used in the building industry. They can be vacuum coated or spray coated in a continuous process.
08

Windows

Windows can be coated as assembled or non-assembled elements. Depending on this condition, we advise overhead spray-coating lines or vacuum coaters and impregnation solutions for non-assembled parts.
09

Parquet

Finishing techniques for parquet differ according to their use once laid. Curtain coaters to add abrasion-resistant materials, industrial digital printers for a haptic effect are just 2 possible technologies.
10

Musical instruments

From pianos to harps and cajones, a musical instrument that requires a coating process always represents a challenge, not only for the aesthetic qualities, but for the acoustic ones too.
11

Pots

Non-stick surface treatments and other heat-resistant coatings are applied to pots and pans on a roller coater, while still in their flat form, or on a spraying line, if already formed.

How many different industrial coating techniques exist?

Each coating technique was developed to address specific situations, semi-finished or finished products. There is no better way to do it, but the most suitable way, and each technique has its pros and cons. Let’s take a look at the four most common technologies:

Ranging from simple machines to replace manual spray coating operations up to anthropomorphic robots that use software and 3D reading barriers to map out coating trajectories, spray coating solutions are extremely varied. The flexibility of spray guns able to reach almost all spraying angles makes this technique ideal for more complex shapes.

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Roller coating systems have evolved significantly and today’s solutions handle not only flat panel surfaces, but also raised panels presenting shallow grooves, such as cabinet doors. Excellent transfer efficiency makes them an ideal choice to reduce the number of coating stages on a finishing line.

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Highly sustainable and with transfer efficiency at almost 100%, this technology is perfect for both panel and edge coating operations, delivering identical results on each surface. Such close control over lacquer consumption makes this a technology in which there is very little waste of consumable products.

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Suitable for all coating types with different viscosities, and the ideal technology for polyurethane lacquers, curtain coaters provide high-quality finishes on flat surfaces, whenever large amounts of coating are required in a single application phase.

Discover some of the principal industrial coating machines

Machines

iGiotto

Materials:

  • Plastic
  • Metal
  • Wood

Machine Type:

  • Spray coating

iBotic

Materials:

  • Plastic
  • Metal
  • Wood

Machine Type:

  • Spray coating

Elispray

Materials:

  • Wood
  • Fibre Cement

Machine Type:

  • Spray coating

Easy

Materials:

  • Plastic
  • Metal
  • Ceramic
  • Wood
  • Fibre Cement

Machine Type:

  • Spray coating

Smartcoater PRO

Materials:

  • Plastic
  • Metal
  • Ceramic
  • Wood
  • Paper
  • Fibre Cement
  • Glass

Machine Type:

  • Curtain and Roller Application

Smartvacuum

Materials:

  • Wood
  • Fibre Cement

Machine Type:

  • Vacuum Coating

Smartedge

Materials:

  • Ceramic
  • Wood
  • Mineral Fibre

Machine Type:

  • Brushing and Sanding
  • Ovens
  • Curtain and Roller Application
  • Handling
  • Vacuum Coating

Case studies

Case study

We have helped hundreds of companies around the world achieve their quality, efficiency, and productivity goals. Here are their stories.
We have helped hundreds of companies around the world achieve their quality, efficiency, and productivity goals. Here are their stories.
01

PWS Distributors Ltd. and fully automated lines for kitchen components

02

Helping HIB boost production volumes of automotive componentry

03

Improved solar panel coating for China’s CSG PVTech Co. Ltd.

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MAGAZINE

Explore the topic on our blog. You can find articles on technologies, innovative techniques, and tips to improve the efficiency of your finishing line.
Explore the topic on our blog. You can find articles on technologies, innovative techniques, and tips to improve the efficiency of your finishing line.
01
    Overhead conveyors

Vertical reciprocating coating system for spherical elements

02
    Coating Technologies

Our LAB Experience

03
    Edge Coating

Straight or flexible? The answer is both!

Experience spanning over 60 years, a network of finishing experts

Experts sharing skills in all areas and all industries, Cefla Finishing is a hub of expertise, a trusted source and partner who can help you achieve your business objectives.

Tell us where you want to go and our finishing experts will help you get there.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

01 How easy is it to start up a coating machine?
It depends on the machine, the type of control and the operator's level of expertise. Generally speaking, it is quite easy.
02 What are the advantages of spray coating?
Firstly, spray coating ensures all sides of the piece are covered. Secondly, the product shape is unimportant and, since it is not a contact-type coating, different tolerances between products are compensated for automatically.
03 How can I rate the quality of roller coating?

The quality of the paint finish is highly subjective. However, opacity and gloss, and obviously, the degree of application, can all be rated.

04 What are the advantages of roller coating?

High flexibility in terms of output rate and choice of cycles/processes according to the line make-up.

Zero solvent emissions thanks to 95% use of products with high dry residue (UV) content.

Possibility of using the roller technique for any application on all flat surfaces.

05 What consumption values should be considered?

Coating product consumption and consumption of solvents required for cleaning the machines in the coating line should certainly be considered and evaluated. Each step of the roller coating process must be monitored in terms of the quantity applied, for each individual machine. Quantities, in fact, may vary according to the type of substrate treated.

06 How many and what types of drying are there?
Mainly two categories: physical and chemical drying. The former is based on hot air, air flow speed and time, while the latter requires a source (typically lamps) to activate some internal components in the lacquer. There are also lacquers that need both of these methods.
07 How do I decide which drying technique is the most suitable?
The recommended type of drying depends on the type of product and is normally defined in agreement with the lacquer manufacturer, to ensure the required coating performance over time. The coating cycle, which also includes drying, is then defined with the aim of obtaining the desired final result, reducing the required investment and optimising performance.