How to Choose a Conformal Coating Company

coating, you may be looking at several options and wondering how to choose a conformal coating provider. This decision requires a great deal of consideration because it can have a significant impact on the product’s quality and your company’s profits and reputation. But what exactly should you be looking for when choosing a conformal coating company?

Below is an overview of the factors that make a coating company stand out that will help you figure out how to choose the conformal coating company that best fits your needs.

What to Look for in a Conformal Coating Company

As with any partner company that helps a business do what it does best, you want to make sure that your conformal coating provider is trustworthy and can deliver quality results. Some factors to look for in a coating provider are:

• Flexibility: Even if you only work with one type of conformal coating now, having a partner that supports different types of coatings can be a significant advantage in the future. Look for a company that can conduct a range of conformal coatings with different processes, such as brushing, spraying and dipping. The more they offer, the higher the chances are of finding one that best suits your product.
• Repair and rework capabilities: A conformal coating service provider should have the ability to rework any parts that are improperly coated, ensuring that they can fix errors and provide a quality coating. These capabilities can also help you fix problems outside of the initial coating, should they arise.
• Knowledgeable, unbiased support: Your provider’s understanding of the coating is a strong indicator of the skills their service will entail. Make sure they are familiar with, at a minimum, the five primary types of conformal coatings — Parylene, acrylic resin, epoxy, urethane and silicone. These types and the application processes can result in differing quality, consistency, moisture protection, corrosion and electrical properties. Understanding these coatings is key to offering informed service to clients and creating the appropriate coating processes.
• Speed: Turnaround time is a valuable part of any production partnership, and conformal coatings are no different. Ensure that your provider offers a reasonably quick turnaround and expedite options.
• Solid track record: Your provider should have a strong history of providing exceptional quality. You can often see indicators of this success through many years of business and third-party certifications.
• Modern technologies: Choosing a conformal coating service provider that employs modern technologies can help you find a partner focused on innovation. You want to ensure that whoever you are working with is invested in staying up to date and adopting the benefits of new developments in the conformal coating industry. Otherwise, they could quickly become outdated or cause you to miss out on valuable advantages for speed and part cost.
• Strong quality assurance practices: Look for thorough quality assurance practices such as inspections, documentation, serialization and tracking.

What to Ask Conformal Coating Providers

 When you are trying to assess your conformal coating partner’s performance and capabilities, here are a few questions to ask that should get you the information you need:

• What do you do to ensure the quality of your coatings? The provider should provide examples of quality assurance strategies. Some methods might include incorporating quality assurance training or a well-documented inspection process. A long track record of success will also let you know how well they achieve quality results.
• What properties will the coating have? Make sure your coating is right for the job and that the provider is knowledgeable on how it works. It is important to understand how long the coating will last and what coating provider will do to affect its properties. For instance, many coatings are treated specially to avoid cracks or bubbles forming in the future.
• What standards does your process meet? Another way to assess quality is to ask what third-party standards your provider can meet. Many organizations, like the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), have set standards and requirements regarding conformal coatings. A good conformal coating partner should meet these requirements, along with any others required for your industry, such as military specifications or medical device standards.
• How are you continuously improving? You want to know that your partner is keeping up with new technologies and always working toward better processes. Ask about the kinds of technologies your partner is using and whether they’re following industry best practices, such as static reduction and proper storage, to support your parts.

Asking the right questions is a key component of choosing a conformal coating service provider. In addition to collecting pertinent information, these questions can also help you gauge your partner’s transparency and understanding of the coating process.

Partner With SCS

Choosing a conformal coating service provider can be a tough decision. SCS has over 50 years of experience in conformal coating engineering and applications, and we leverage that expertise on every project – from initial planning to process application. As worldwide industry requirements and directives continue to evolve, SCS is at the forefront, ensuring our facilities, products and services comply with relevant regulatory and environmental standards. To learn more about SCS and our coating services, contact us.