Introducing Jimmy Phillips, Sales & Marketing Manager, Powdertech Surface Science

We are delighted to welcome Jimmy Phillips to our team as Marketing and Sales Manager. Jimmy joins us with nearly twenty years’ experience in marketing and commercial roles and is a specialist at communicating complex technical ideas.

He began his career at oil and gas consultancy firm Rhead Group (now part of Costain plc.) where he also completed his MBA, before working for industry bodies including the British Valve and Actuator Association. He joins us from agricultural machinery manufacturer RootWave where he helped launch innovative electrical weed control products.

Jimmy said: “The first thing that struck me about Powdertech Surface Science was that James and the team here have a clear idea of the value that they offer. The business has invested in technical experts and the latest technology and wants to build long term partnerships with its customers. This fits with my ethos perfectly and I am looking forward to helping the business to build on its recent growth.”

Battery Tech Expo at the Wing, Silverstone

April 25th 2024 09:00 - 16:30

We are looking forward to discussing the precision powder coating required in this sector with visitors and exhibitors and hope to see you there - stand B41. For EV Batteries, specialist surface coating techniques are essential in order to provide battery assemblies with both electrical insulation and protection from corrosion. These are expertly delivered by our team at Powdertech Surface Science. The event brings together professionals from across the advanced battery technology and energy storage sector to connect, innovate and do business.

Marketing & Sales Manager for an expanding business

Join our lively, motivated team

With continuing growth in our services and in the sectors we serve, we are looking for a dynamic Marketing & Sales Manager to join our ambitious team and make a significant contribution to driving the business forward.

We are an innovative company with an enthusiastic and mutually supportive team, proud of our leadership position in the industry. We have a culture of technical excellence, long-term customer relationships and a desire to exceed customer expectations.

Full details of the role and how to apply can be found HERE

Precision powder coating at Southern Manufacturing & Electronics Show Feb 2024

Nothing beats meeting people in person and being able to describe and show our work. We are looking forward to showcasing our precision powder coating service INTRICOAT at the Southern Manufacturing & Electronics Show 2024. This runs from 6-8th February and is held at the £35m Farnborough International Exhibition and Conference Centre which boasts easy access, free onsite parking and world class facilities.

The show is aimed at people involved in design, engineering production and procurement. The latest in production hardware, services, components, consumables and technology will be on display, covering a wide range of industries including Aerospace/Defence, Automotive, Electronics Assembly/ Production, Industrial Machinery, Packaging/Handling/Logistics, Energy, Marine, Medical/PharmaBio, Mechanical Engineering and Metal Processing.

INTRICOAT is our highly detailed and meticulous powder coating service for high value and complex intricate aluminium components. These include part of medical devices, radar housings, electronics, and high end sports equipment.

Visit our stand and find out what makes INTRICOAT a premium powder coating service, required by producers of premium products.

Powdertech TiZr for structural bonding in innovative electric vehicle

Within the recently launched lightweight commercial vehicle from Watt Electric Vehicle Company (WEVC), our optimised TiZr passivation is used to enhance adhesive bonding for the lightweight aluminium chassis.

On lightweight aluminium, Powdertech TiZr passivation matches anodising for enhanced adhesive bonding strength. Read our technical paper and case study. 

TiZr for enhanced structural bonding, in preference to anodising

• Optimised TiZr passivation of the aluminium enables strong and repeatable bonding of the high strength aluminium adhesive, delivering a rigid core structure.

• WEVC has used TiZr for this vehicle build, in preference to anodising, as it enhances adhesive bonding to the same degree, and uses less energy. The stable layer formed is also suitable for welding.

Innovation in the build

• Lightweighting is key. A unique vehicle architecture, the PACES platform, is formed from lightweight aluminium extrusions.

• The extrusions interlock and bond together using a patented innovation known as FlexTech®.

• This is the first commercial electric vehicle to be using recycled aluminium for its chassis build.

• The battery base plate utilises another Powdertech Surface Science process - PowderBond - an adhesive-free surface treatment to bond polypropylene composite material to aluminium. PowderBond has been used to create a lightweight, strong and rigid 'sandwich' laminate of aluminium and composite material for the fully integrated structural battery case. For more on PowderBond visit https://www.powderbond.co.uk/

Electric vehicle charging on our premises

A small addition to our premises but one we hope will be a big assistance to customer, visitors and employees who have already embraced the electric vehicle world and can now charge up on our site.

Small adaptions, from generating our own electricity, using recyclable materials wherever possible and supporting EVs, will hopefully contribute to the wider effort.

TiZr for enhanced bonding in Nichols N1A

When the work you perform is hidden from view and never to see the light of day, one’s pride resides in the finished article.
  


Such it is for the Powdertech Surface Science team; we are extremely proud that our optimised TiZr service plays an essential part, albeit hidden, in the construction of the striking and phenomenal Nichols Cars N1A super car. 

The curved and honed body shape utilises a revolutionary chassis design made almost exclusively from extruded aluminium parts which are adhesively bonded in preference to being welded; carbon fibre is employed in certain areas. This system is the brainchild of Bob Mustard, a veteran of automotive engineering.

Powdertech optimized TiZr pre-treatment prepares the aluminium for enhanced adhesive bonding. The Nichols N1A is undoubtedly one of the most exciting new sports cars to land in the niche vehicle arena – weighing in at around 900kg, with a 7.0-litre V8 engine making 650 bhp.

Find out more in our Case Study

We have passed our latest ISO 9001: 2015 audit

The importance of clean aluminium for surface treatments

How clean is clean ? And how do we know if we have cleaned your aluminium to the best possible level?

Surface contaminants, many that can’t even be seen, will impair the performance of any adhesive or coating applied to the metal. Bond strengths will be unacceptably low, especially in wet environments when surface corrosion can initiate. For Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV) in particular, high levels of cleanliness in the component structure are vitally important to ensuring the integrity and safety of the battery system. We use XRF equipment Dyne inks and UV-Fluorescence to measure the level of aluminium surface contaminants and to demonstrate compliance to specifications detailing RFU limits.

This short video explains just how we know that your metal is as clean as it can be before we apply any surface treatment.

Detailed precise powder coating - INTRICOAT at Subcon 2023

June 8th-9th we were at SUBCON 2023 at the NEC - our thoughts following our first ever show....

Three days well spent (set up included) learning more about our customers, exchanging ideas and exploring potential collaborations. Thank you to everyone who stopped by and chatted with us. Your professional expertise and feedback on the services we provide is greatly appreciated. The Muov TiltBike, showcasing our exceptional INTRICOAT powder coating was a good draw - sorry that we couldn't risk letting anyone having a go ! It's not ours, but kindly lent to us by MUOV. 

In addition to thanking Chris Staunton at MUOV (including his assistance putting up our stand) we'd also like to thank our clients Morgan Motor Company and Blighter Surveillance Systems who allowed us to use their promotional videos in our show reel. Finally a huge thank you to Ben Cottman at Aerial Film and Photo - Media Production for everything show related - including artwork printed and set in place, our superb show reel and a van-based taxi service to get us to the NEC and back.

As we all know, nothing beats chatting with professionals in your industry sector. You can learn a lot,  as well as creating a more tangible awareness of your brand and service offering. 

INTRICOAT is our premium powder coating service, designed for complex low-volume machined aluminium components. Find out more HERE

INTRICOAT powder coating at SubCon 2023, June 7-8, NEC

Precision powder coating and masking for exquisitely machined components

We will be showcasing INTRICOAT on our stand (G120) at SubCon 2023 and look forward to meeting machinists and OEM’s keen to discover this service.

The ability and willingness to powder coat at very low volumes has always been an important aspect of the Powdertech Surface Science service offering. High-end intricately machined devices are often produced in small quantities and require delicate handling and highly accurate masking schemes - hence our separated room for this work. We also like to assist companies making prototype parts who want the best possible surface treatments and metal finishing at this stage of their R&D work.

The care and attention our INTRICOAT team pays to their work creates an exceptional finish. We like to say that INTRICOAT is founded in science and applied as an art.

SubCon 2023 gives us a great opportunity to talk to customers and potential customers face-to-face, answering their questions and explaining in detail exactly what this service offers. We will have the MUOV TiltBike on show as well - displaying INTRICOAT work completed recently for a happy customer.

Launch of eCV1 commercial vehicle - featuring two Powdertech Surface Science processes.

Optimised TiZr process for enhanced bonding and PowderBond both feature in the ETRUX eCV1 electric van

We are delighted to see the ETRUX eCV1 electric van, built in partnership with WEVC making its debut at the Commercial Vehicle Show 2023 this week, April 18-20, NEC Birmingham.

We are proud to have provided two critical aluminium surface treatments for this lightweight vehicle. The aluminium chassis is treated with our optimised TiZr process for enhanced bonding. This energy efficient process creates a stable surface which will allow bonding and welding processes to deliver repeatable, strong, durable adhesive bonds.

The battery base plate utilises another Powdertech Surface Science process - PowderBond - an adhesive-free surface treatment to bond polypropylene composite material to aluminium. PowderBond has been used to create a lightweight, strong and rigid 'sandwich' laminate of aluminium and composite material for the fully integrated structural battery case. For more on PowderBond visit https://www.powderbond.co.uk/

With continued growth we are recruiting again

We have an exciting new role at Powdertech Surface Science as part of our ongoing investment in growth and development. We are looking for a coating engineer with the ability to cover a range of tasks using machinery and also hands-on precision work. This role is an important one in contributing to the company’s growth strategy through our flagship service ‘INTRICOAT’. The role reports to our Engineering Manager.

Powdertech Surface Science is an innovative company with an enthusiastic and mutually supportive team, proud of our leadership position in the industry. We have a culture of technical excellence, long-term customer relationships and a desire to exceed customer expectations.

Full details of the role and can be found here.

If you are interested in applying for this post then please send an email with subject line ‘Powdertech Surface Science Coating Engineer’ and a CV to john.m@acqui-tal.com

Powdertech Surface Science, Bicester.

INTRICOAT powder coating for premium cycling indoor trainer

Powdertech’s specialist INTRICOAT powder coating service is used on the superlative Muov TiltBike from Muoverti; a lightweight immersive cycling indoor trainer. This bike tilts with you as you bank around corners, accelerates and brakes and lets you ‘shift’ between gears approaching gradients. Our services provided not only precision INTRICOAT coating for exceptional aesthetic quality on machined aluminium but we also advised on the powder coating colour choice and facilitated the fast turnaround of five demonstrator units.

See our INTRICOAT page for more detail.

Our longest serving team member,Stuart Corstorphine,retires.

We have said a very heartfelt ‘thank you’ to Stuart Corstorphine for 35 years of unstinting hard work and dedication to Powdertech Surface Science.

Stuart has retired, and this week in the main office we can’t believe that he will no longer be in that desk by the window. Stuart has always been here! With a degree in Biochemistry from Leeds University, Stuart joined Powdertech in 1987. Founder, Martyn Green, said that he could immediately see the potential in the twenty-something graduate. Stuart oversaw the installation of the UK’s first chrome-free metal treatment line in 2003, which resulted in commercial deals with the Jaguar Land Rover supply chain and other OEMs, which are still in place to date. He was appointed a Director of Powdertech Surface Science in 2007. Stuart will not have free rein for golf every day of the week though; for two days a month his expertise will be assisting us with one of our major collaborative research projects.

Instron testing equipment for TiZr coating

At Powdertech we are clear that our role goes further than providing exemplary aluminium surface treatments. We want to be certain that the passivation process  we provide is 100% fit for any intended purpose, most especially when it comes to TiZr coating for bonding. This includes ensuring that the bonds achieved following our TiZr conversion coating consistently meet and exceed our customers’ requirements.

Analysing passivation process on aluminium alloys

We now have world leading Instron equipment as part of our testing suite. This is an electromechanical universal testing machine, able to perform a wide range of mechanical tests including tensile, compression, bend, peel, tear, friction, and shear testing. Tests are performed on all the aluminium alloys we work with, from 3xxx series up to 7xxx series, and in all formats, cast, extruded and sheet.

The results of our Instron testing enable us to work with our clients to help them to understand the optimal surface finishing pre-treatment process they need to take their bonding strategies to the next level, and to achieve repeatability going forwards.

The Instron 34TM-50 tests materials, components, and products in accordance with ASTM, ISO and other industry standards. It has a 50kN load cell and 100kN 80mm wide grips, with a thermal chamber capable of reaching 350C.

New website for PowderBond

PowderBond has a brand new website www.powderbond.co.uk. For bonding metal to polypropylene, PowderBond is more than three times stronger than structural adhesives, and quicker and cleaner. Our new PowderBond website explains all, provides technical test results and case study examples. Take a look and call us if you’d like to know more  on 01869 248 218.

PowderBond used in the construction of the PACES platform. Image courtesy WattEV

New promotions to strengthen our team

We are delighted to announce the following promotions within Powdertech Surface Science.

Stuart Hutt is promoted to Manufacturing Engineer. He will be running key improvement projects to increase efficiency and capacity and will also play a key role in developing procedures for our exciting new customer products.

Robert Lyszczarz is promoted to Shift Team Leader. Rob will be supporting and leading the manufacturing team in driving the all-important production output plan.

These are exciting milestone within our business as we move forward with enhancements to safety, quality and customer experience.

Bring on the intricate

What all services in every walk of life should provide - a good deal of thought, planning, care and attention. We certainly understand that assignment with our ‘Intricoat’ service, providing masking and powder coating for exquisitely machined intricate products. The dedicated new facility is up and running and receiving compliments from customers and staff alike. Employ our expertise early in the design process and many potential challenges can be avoided entirely. The more intricate the better! We relish a challenge.

Proud to be involved with the new Range Rover Sport

We have secured TiZr passivation work on Landrover’s new Range Rover Sport. This electric hybrid model is the epitome of sporting luxury and is designed to deliver exceptional performance and efficiency in a hybrid vehicle.