Chris Vickery - Powder Coating Experience
I have had nearly 30 years experience in the Powder Coating Industry.
Most of that time has been with equipment manufacturers either as an employee or as a Distributor here in the UK.
I started as a Service and Commissioning Engineer and as which I learnt about applying the powder coatings to components, and some of the difficulties associated with the process. During this period I started to gain knowledge of the powder itself and the processes either side of the application, these are pre-treatment and curing of the powder.
My understanding of powder increased when I worked for one of the major multi-national powder coating manufacturers, for whom I was a Technical Service representative throughout Europe.
After my employment with the powder manufacturer I moved back to a UK equipment manufacturer as was involved in all aspects of the business from planning future new products to export sales and support.
In regard to Powder Coating of MDF, I helped pioneer this market in the UK starting in the late 1990's.
I specified sold and installed the first powder coating system in the world specifically for MDF at a company here in the UK called Acre Products Limited.
The initial problems were huge and I learnt a lot about the importance of atmospheric and board conditions to the success of this process. The need for customers to be very well trained and looked after during this first period of production was very important to the success of the application. This reinforced my belief in the training of operators and supervisors. It is very important to the smooth running of the system.
I am now self-employed as a consultant in the powder coating industry and can help you to overcome some of the problems associated with your powder coating process, by using my, I feel, unique background in the industry.
