Can You Meet This Spec? Well, technically…

One of the main drivers of RFQ’s from potential customers is when they reach out and ask us if we can meet a certain coating OEM specification listed on a print. If the specification calls out a coating that we can apply, we say “yes.”

However, that “yes” is not without some caveats.

The DECC Company is a coating applicator, we are not a manufacturer or distributor of coating. As with most coating applicators, we are essentially service providers: we take a customer’s components and a designated manufacturer’s coating and provide the service of marrying the two.

Because an applicator is not the manufacturer of the coatings that are approved on specifications, they must rely on the supplier of the coating to essentially provide them a recipe of how to apply the coating.

This is where the caveats come in.

Coating manufacturers go to great lengths to have their products approved on OEM specifications. They are the ones that invest great amounts of time, money and development to make sure their products meet the stringent testing methods that OEMs require coated components to pass.

Essentially, the coating manufacturer does all the leg work up front validating their products…and once this is done, they are formally approved on a specification. So, in short, a certain coating now “meets the spec” and a process recipe is developed that instructs coating applicators of how to apply the coating.

So if we apply said coating, does that now mean that DECC can meet the spec?

Yes…kind of.

DECC does not conduct all of the testing that a specification calls out because this was, as described above, already done by the manufacturer to get the coating approved on a specification.

What DECC will certify is that “the coating was applied in accordance to the manufacturer’s recommendation to meet *insert OEM specification*.” We follow the manufacturer’s process recipe and verify this process by checking thickness, adhesion and cure.

If we apply the coating correctly, it should pass all the testing requirements as laid out in the specification. If the customer wants to verify this by putting samples thru salt spray or any other test as called out on the specification, it is perfectly acceptable. However, DECC does not provide those services and we relinquish that responsibility to the customer for them to coordinate and fund (we will definitely assist in any way we can, such as finding a certified lab or speaking with the manufacturer of the coating to see if we can get some testing done free of charge).