Manual versus automatic painting: which one is better?

Powder coating is used in various large and small industries more actively. It often starts with manual painting. But all companies, sooner or later approach the question: is it worth installing an automatic line. The answer is in this article.

For powder coating, the production must have a washing chamber, preliminary preparation baths (for metal products), a drying chamber, a spraying chamber and a polymerization oven.

The part to be painted must go through all the stages of painting. And for this you need a person who will do everything. Or an automatic painting line that will independently perform all the necessary actions.

Hand painting

Powder paint is environmentally friendly and harmless. Therefore, it is  very convenient to work with, pleasant and safer than with liquid paint.

But the manual line of powder coating still requires skillful care of the operator.

The operator should clean the part completely with sandblasting or shot blasting. If necessary, phosphating, chromating or passivation must be performed.

Then the product is dried and the stage of powder application begins. The painter should spray the powder onto the part in the spray booth with a special gun. It is very important that the operator controls the paint layer, the distance between the gun and the product and the amount of powder that passes through the recovery system and back into the gun.

The fact is that if he applies Metallic or Antique types to the product, then these factors have a huge impact on the final result.

After applying the powder to the item, it is sent to the polymerization oven. The painter sets the time and temperature required for baking. Then the products must be unloaded. This should be done carefully because of the high temperature in the oven.

Also take care of coveralls. It must protect the eyes, hands and feet of the operator.

Automatic painting

The automatic powder coating line is equipped with all the necessary equipment for applying paint. It is designed in the way that the part goes through all the stages: preliminary preparation, powder application and baking in a polymerization oven. 

Painting on such a line requires no physical work of the operator. His responsibility is to monitor and to adjust the processes.

Designing an automatic line, the dimensions of the powder painting shop, the sizes of the processed parts and the requirements for preliminary preparation must be taken into account.

The equipment of an automatic line often takes up less space than the individual elements required for painting.

Which is better: manual or automatic?

A manual line is much cheaper than an automatic one. If you choose the right spray gun and other equipment, the coating will be of high quality and uniformed. This is a good solution for small companies that cannot afford expensive equipment.

But remember – the entire responsibility for the painting lies on the person. The coating may be defective due to human factors. It means spoiled powder and wasted time. Of course, with small volumes, this does not really matter for production. But big companies cannot afford such expenses. Their best solution is the automatic line. First, it can handle large volumes. And much faster than a human. Secondly, it completely eliminates the human factor. This means that there will be less or none products with defects.

Automated lines easily apply the perfect layer to the complex products. A painter can cope with such a task only if he is skilled enough.

In addition, automatic lines constantly monitor the coating layer and paint consumption. You can buy our equipment for powder painting. However, before making a choice, we advise you to consult with our specialists. They will help you with the right solution based on the specifics of your production.