One of the requirements we often deal with is the coating of cooking utensils, especially those pots and pans requiring non-stick surface treatments. This is a process we have looked at and one way to structure it is as follows, even though each customer may have specific needs. In that case, our 360° knowledge of surface enhancement technologies allows us to customise a line or a single piece of equipment to account for customer-specific parameters or objectives. Let’s imagine an integrated line offering high volumes of Teflon coating and water or solvent-based coatings.

Normally we would advise a U-shaped layout, the first linear section dedicated to Teflon coating performed on 5 in-line roller coaters such as Smartcoater Pro and relevant ovens, either hot air or using IR lamps.  Each Smartcoater Pro on the outward run will handle a coating (Teflon) volume of 10 g/sqm. After the U-turn, a battery of 5 more such roller coaters can be used to apply a further 10 g/sqm of water or solvent-based coating to the product (still in its flat panel form) followed by the relevant number of ovens. The coated panels would then exit the line via an oven running at 500°C.

Producers of cooking utensils will all have a specific distinctive need. Our process experts will therefore examine the requirement and advise on how to generate efficiency by implementing cost-saving strategies as well as suggesting tailored solutions to reach quality objectives or increased productivity.

Contact us and discuss your needs with a finishing expert.

3 axes: X, Y and Z.  3D objects including raised panels.  3 patent pending technologies.  Once upon a time excimer matting technology was restricted to flat panels, a simple X and Y axis process achieving a resistant matt finish with a soft touch effect. Just a single flat surface. Cefla Finishing knew the market was ready to go a step further, by improving the technology, but also by adding the third dimension, or if you prefer, the Z axis.

Today’s Exydry-Z oven, featuring non-stop processing, implements a superior level of excimer matting and is able to handle raised panels and all panel edges. This latest-generation oven delivers deep matt surfaces that are totally fingerprint-proof, wonderfully soft to the touch and which boast an exceptional surface resistance. Thanks to our technology, much less nitrogen is needed for the oven, making the process more sustainable and economically convenient.

Tomorrow Cefla envisages Exydry-Z ovens with an increased capacity in terms of panel size and thickness. There is also a strong probability special lacquers for excimers, even water-based, will become easier to source than today.

Contact us and discuss your needs with a finishing expert.

✓ Innate flexibility and a time-saver
One key advantage of this technology is the outstanding flexibility you benefit from in relation to changes in market trends and fashions. Even when running small batches that demand frequent set-up operations, time is saved thanks to fast line set-up, plus minimal stock of semi-finished goods.

✓ Durability as a determining factor
Foot traffic resistance is one of the critical factors due to surface deterioration, especially in areas such as hotel foyers, corridors, offices, showrooms, schools and retail environments where there is a constant flow of people. Flooring durability is these cases is regulated by the EN 15468 and EN 13329 standards governing laminate floor coverings. In each case, Cefla Finishing has accomplished the required tests reaching AC4 and AC5 (Abrasion Criteria) standards for its digitally printed laminates.

✓ Ink type determines the aesthetic qualities of a floor covering, sometimes also with regards to resistance over time. Flooring is mainly a market of products for interior use; there is nonetheless a specific kind of flooring especially for exterior use: decking. Whereas organic pigmented inks tend to fade, in the outside, in the first 2 years of exposure to natural lighting if no special UV-protection coatings are applied on top of the decoration layer, inorganic inks are also available with pigments made out of metal oxides, that are hardly affected by light for between 10 and 15 years. While organic pigmented inks, with their superior colour gamut (colour range), are perfect for interior use, as well as some exterior use when properly protected against UV weathering, the inorganic pigmented inks are an interesting choice for exterior use, as in the case of decking, reducing the need for a special UV-filtering top-coat.

J-Print industrial digital printers

The complete J-Print range of Cefla Finishing industrial digital printing integrate seamlessly into complete printing and texturing lines performing the entire process, from raw material preparation to the finished product. Expert process guidance together with the appropriate inks and correct techniques will respond to demands relating to durability, depth, naturalness and definition of the textured effect.

Reproducing wood grain designs with a tactile effect is also simple to achieve with the latest digital printing solutions. A high-resolution surface texturing technique provides a realistic 3D surface finish.

Want to know how quickly in the specific case of your company? Contact a Cefla expert and visit the Cefla Finishing Lab to experience, first-hand, all the solutions and technologies that help reduce energy consumption in your finishing processes.

Learn more about our Industrial Digital Printing solutions

There are so many objects that undergo a finishing process and at our LAB we regularly take a look at different cases. Some of these have one thing in common: the finished object is probably going to be part of your everyday life, in a home or an office, at school or at work. Domestic appliances, which have many plastic parts, are a great example: the frame around a TV set, the handle on your freezer, the washing machine door. Spray coating is the only way to decorate these parts and we have devised a procedure to generate efficiency (optimised transfer efficiency above all) and ensure consistent quality.

Mostly, these parts are coated on an iBotic or iGiotto App machine as an integrated part of the finishing line. In the case of washing machine doors where the section in question is the chrome-coloured round section surrounding the window, we feel happy with advising a metallic UV-curable finish applied at a rate of 65 g/sqm. Drying is performed with our Aquadry solution: 4 minutes at 40°C followed by a UV oven such as the UV-R M2 model.

Contact us and arrange a visit to the LAB.

Incorporating three patent pending technologies, Exydry-Z from Cefla Finishing pioneered the use of excimer matting technology to achieve a "soft touch" finish while featuring an extremely hard, durable surface.

The process yields a below 5 gloss finish, leaving behind no fingerprints, and consumes less than 1/3 nitrogen over competitive products.

Sustainable, cost-efficient and exclusive, Exydry-Z achieves a superb finish even for raised panels with shallow grooves. You can see this oven at work at our laboratory, the largest finishing lab in the world.

Contact us and arrange a visit to the LAB.

Two key issues in the automotive industry are productivity and flexibility. We have an answer which also delivers superior finishing quality. As the industry increases its use of plastics as a substrate for many components, the need to guarantee a high-quality finish is vital. Vertical spray coating lines offer flexibility for different parts, but gravity affects the coating quality as it leads to an uneven lacquer thickness especially on larger pieces.

Step by step to the best quality results

We have configured the most effective integrated solution to deliver consistent quality and a remarkable n increase in productivity. Prior to coating, we equipped our oscillating spray coater with dry CO2 snow-cleaning capability to prepare the surface. After deionisation, components move through a digital 3D reading barrier into our Cartesian spraying robot, which can work simultaneously on different pieces. Ensuring better isolation with flatbed solutions and subsequent drying equipment, coating quality improved as well as production efficiency. 

Learn more about our solutions for the automotive sector.