Powder coating our controlled drugs cabinet is a process which results in a tough, hard wearing and hygienic finish.
This is how we do it.
Powder Coating Cntrolled Drugs Cabinets
Powder coating is the final process in the manufacturing of our controlled drugs cabinets before they are assembled and packed. The process coats the cabinets in a polyester powder giving a hard wearing and wipe clean surface finish.
There are two main types of powder coating that can be used. Epoxy polyester powder and polyester powder. We use polyester powder as this does not break down over time in sunlight with is the case with epoxy polyester powder coating.
The process starts with the raw steel cabinet being taken into our paint shop where it is thoroughly cleaned and any swarf or dust is removed from the inside of the cabinet.
The controlled drugs cabinet parts are then degreased to remove any remaining oil and grease which, if left on the surface may result in the powder not bonding correctly.
Operator applying powder coating to a Controlled Drugs Cabinet door.
The cabinet parts are then suspended from the conveyor on hooks and are run through the oven at 210 deg to burn off any remaining oil. When cooled, the cabinets are allowed to run round the conveyor again and this time they have the powder coating applied.
The Powder coating is applied using a specialist application gun which has the powder blown through it using compressed air. As the powder passes through the gun it flows over an electrode where it receives a positive charge of 50,000 volts static electrical charge. The controlled drugs cabinet parts suspended on the conveyor acts as a negative electrode .This attracts the positively charged powder where the powder coating sticks to all the surfaces while it travels around the track and then enters the tunnel oven.
CDC103 Controlled drugs cabinets after removal from powder coating conveyor.
The tunnel oven runs at 200deg C and the cabinet parts pass through the oven on the conveyor. The track speed is regulated to allow the powder coated component parts to achieve a metal temperature of 200deg C for a minimum of ten minutes so the powder coating can cure properly.
When the controlled drugs cabinet parts exit the oven they are allowed to cool as they pass along the track. They are then removed and placed on pallets prior to going to be assembled and packed prior to final inspection and packaging.
You can see all our controlled drugs cabinets by clicking here.
