In many industries, distinguishing between various components is crucial for efficiency, safety, and organization. One effective method to achieve this is through anodising different parts in distinct colours. Anodising, an electrochemical process that enhances the surface of metals, offers a range of benefits for this purpose. This blog post explores how having different parts anodised in different colours can be a valuable practice in various fields.

1. Enhanced Visual Identification

Anodising provides a durable and vibrant colour coating to the surface of metal parts. This makes it easy to visually differentiate between components, even from a distance. Whether in manufacturing, construction, or automotive applications, being able to quickly identify parts helps streamline processes and reduce the risk of errors.

2. Streamlined Inventory Management

Colour coding parts simplifies inventory management. You can assign specific colours to different categories of components, making it easier to track, store, and retrieve them. This is particularly useful in warehouses, where efficient organization is essential for optimal operations.

3. Preventing Cross-Contamination

In industries like healthcare or food processing, cross-contamination can have serious consequences. Anodising parts in different colours helps ensure that they are used only for their intended purpose, reducing the risk of contamination and improving safety.

4. Error Reduction

When working with complex machinery or equipment, using anodised parts in different colours reduces the chances of assembly or installation errors. This can save time and resources while avoiding costly mistakes.

5. Design and Aesthetic Benefits

Anodised parts don’t just serve a functional purpose; they can enhance the aesthetics of products or equipment. Different colours can be used to create visually appealing designs, adding an extra layer of customization and branding to your products.

6. Durability and Corrosion Resistance

Anodised coatings not only provide colour but also enhance the durability and corrosion resistance of parts. This ensures that colour-coding remains intact, even in harsh environments.

7. Sustainable Choice

Anodising is an environmentally friendly process that doesn’t involve the use of heavy metals or hazardous materials. Choosing anodising for colour coding aligns with sustainable practices, which is increasingly important in today’s business landscape.

Conclusion

Colour coding parts through anodising is a versatile and practical solution in various industries. It simplifies identification, improves organization, and reduces the risk of errors, all while adding a touch of aesthetics to your products. Whether in manufacturing, healthcare, construction, or any other field, this approach can lead to increased efficiency and better outcomes. Embrace the power of anodising to bring colour and clarity to your operations.

We are pleased to announce that we are now ISO9001:2015 certified, we hope this reassures our customers of our continued commitment to quality and improvement. You can find our certificate on the datasheet section of our website here – https://www.moss-metal-finishing.co.uk/datasheets/

We have now gone hexavalent chromium free at Moss Metal Finishing Ltd, with regulation changes it seemed like the best time to improve our way of working and given there are now viable alternatives available to historic hexavalent chromium products we have made the change to play our part in a safer way of working.

We are now offering the following finishes as replacements;

Zinc Plating and Yellow Trivalent Passivate (RoHS Compliant) has replaced the old Hexavalent Passivate – this new passivate still meets all standard zinc plating specifications and from recent tests we have undertaken should well exceed 150 hours to white rust in the NSS Salt Spray test to ISO 9227. The colour is still iridescent and most customers wouldn’t notice a difference in appearance from the hexavalent yellow passivate.

Iridite NCP and SurTec 650 both RoHS compliant have replaced Alochrom 1000 Clear conversion coating. Both these coatings are clear in appearance and meet spec MIL-DTL-5541 Type II class 3.

SurTec 650V (RoHS Compliant) has replaced Alochrom 1200 Gold Conversion coating, this finish has a blue colour to it to show a visible coating has been applied. This coating meets spec MIL-DTL-5541 Type II class 3.

We are happy to send out samples of these new finishes please let us know on the contact us page above.

This is another step forward for Moss Metal Finishing Ltd as we look to improve our finishes and offer our customers the highest quality finish and service they require.

Ever wondered how much thickness anodising puts on to your parts or how the anodising process affects dimensional tolerances?

Anodising is a bit different to other finishes in that it actual grows out the oxide layer out of the metal rather than adhering a plating onto the surface of the metal. The amount of anodising put on differs depending on the finish required but as a guide

Clear Anodising – 12um

Light Colours (Red/Blue/Purple/Gold) – 15um

Dark Colours (Black/Green) – 20um

Hard Anodising Clear 25um

Hard Anodising Black – 50um

There can be confusion about how this affects dimensional tolerances as 50% of the anodising goes into the metal and 50% on the surface of the metal therefore for a bore the size will decrease by the thickness stated rather than double the thickness stated as half of the thickness is internal. The attached data sheet shows this more clearly.

the thicknesses stated above are the general guide for those finishes but we are able to put on whatever thickness a customer requires as we calibrate our thickness gauge against each job and measure the thickness during the process.