The partnership focuses on applying laser technology for curing powder coatings
The groundbreaking method involves calibrating the enterprise’s Interpon powder coating formulations for most suitable outcomes with laser curing solutions from IPG. This will provide a quicker and more energy efficient option to conventional curing strategies. The two enterprises have signed an agreement for the partnership to exclusively serve clients in the EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) region.
The method involves lasers selectively heating the implemented powder coating in a “cold oven”. It means no heat escapes onto the manufacturing facility ground and no energy is wasted heating the atmosphere or the curing enclosure. High intensity laser heating also allows curing times to be decreased to only a few minutes, as compared with the 15 to 20 minutes that’s presently needed the use of traditional curing strategies. The IPG Photonics method also enables curing to arise in much less than half the space needed a traditional oven.
“This is a highly thrilling partnership which has the potential to provide clients game-changing advantages in terms of process speed, efficiency and energy savings,” stated Jorrit van Rijn, Global Marketing Director of AkzoNobel’s Powder Coatings business. “It’s yet another example of ways our dedication to portray the future is driving our innovation so we will assist make the powder coatings industry even more sustainable.”
Adds Trevor Ness, Senior Vice-President, Global Sales and Strategic Business Development at IPG Photonics: “We’re extremely joyful to partnership with the EMEA powder coatings leaders to accelerate marketplace recognition of our game-changing modular laser curing solutions. By aligning our laser developed with AkzoNobel’s Interpon powder coatings capacities, we expect a shorter time to market and brought value for our customers. Together, our enterprise will realize a new level of efficiency and value for the powder coatings industry.”
Laser curing gives a number of benefits, consisting of the ability to preferentially heat the actual coating, rather than the underlying substrate. It’s appropriate for temperature-sensitive substrates and removes the long cool-down waiting times evident in typical production lines. In a high-volume production environment, clients could realize reductions of more than 50% in each funding and operational fees, at the same time as drastically reducing their carbon footprint and energy intake.
