? Where is your part right now?

Not made yetWe machine the part and paint it in one order — a machined substrate takes paint better than a handled one.Machine + paint from one order →Already madeSend us your finished parts. Painting is the process where a good cosmetic finish is actually available.Check if your part qualifies →Still comparing processesPainting against powder coating is the usual decision. They differ in how the layer is applied and cured, not just in colour.Paint or powder coating? →

SURFACE FINISHING

Painting Service

RAL colour matching Satin or gloss Cosmetic finish available Metal or plastic

A painted layer that protects a part from corrosion and environmental forces, and gives it a colour you specify. Unlike most finishing processes, cosmetic finish is available here — the surface is meant to be looked at.

Get a quote Painting or powder coating?

RAL or PantoneGive us the code and we match the colour

Satin or glossyUniform painting strokes across the part

Cosmetic finish availableThe surface is meant to be seen

Layer thicknessTo confirm — depends on paint and number of coats

Steel part being painted with a uniform satin colour coating — Painting gives a satin or glossy colour finish with uniform strokes — used where the part is visible and the colour is part of the specification.

Sequence

Painting is the last step — preparation decides how it looks

Paint does not hide a bad substrate; it amplifies it. Grease, machining marks and sharp edges all show through the layer.

STEP 1MachineMill, turn or fabricate to drawing

STEP 2Clean and degreaseStandard surface finish, cleaned and degreased — this is the specified preparation

STEP 3Any welding or heat treatmentDo it now — paint will not survive either

STEP 4PaintYou are here — satin or glossy, matched to your colour code

STEP 5InspectColour match, stroke uniformity, coverage

The specified preparation for this process is a standard surface finish, cleaned and degreased. If your part has been oiled, handled or has heavy machining marks, tell us — the appearance of the finished part depends on it. See design constraints.

Fit check

Can we paint your part? Three things decide it

Material, colour and masking. The third one is where most orders go wrong.

Material

Metals — prepared to a standard surface finish, cleaned and degreased
Plastics — also painted, with the same cleaning requirement
Full list and alternatives: see materials

If the substrate is not one we paint, the materials table points you to the process that fits.

Colour & appearance

Colour matched to a RAL code or Pantone number — bring the code, not a description
Satin or glossy finish — say which
Cosmetic finish is available on this process, unlike metallic coating

Send a physical sample or a RAL/Pantone reference if the match is critical.

Masking

Masking is available as per requirement
Indicate masked areas in the design — unmarked threads and bores get painted
Layer thickness per coat: To confirm

Threads, bearing seats and electrical contact faces are the usual masking candidates. See drawing notes.

Specifications

Painting: colour matched to RAL or Pantone, satin or glossy finish

Every figure below is taken from our published specification for this process.

Part material

Metals and plasticBoth painted, both cleaned and degreased first.

Surface preparation

Cleaned and degreasedStandard surface finish — the specified baseline for this process.

Surface finish

Satin or glossyUniform painting strokes across the part.

Colour

RAL or PantoneMatched to your code. Send the reference with the drawing.

Cosmetic finish

<b>Available</b>This is the process for parts that will be looked at.

Layer thickness · tolerances

To confirmLayer depends on the paint and the number of coats. A 20 mm dimension grows — see below.

The distinguishing point: cosmetic finish is available on painting and not available on metallic coating. If the part is visible and the surface has to be clean, that single line is the reason to choose painting.

What changes

What a painted layer does to your dimensions and your masking

Paint adds material on every coated surface. The exact layer is not published yet, but the direction of the change is fixed — and masking is the tool that controls it.

Where the paint goes	Layer	Effect	What to do
Exterior faces	To confirm	Every coated face grows outward by the layer thickness.	Nothing to do — unless it sets a stack height.
Bores and internal diameters	To confirm	A coated bore shrinks by the layer on each side.	Mask any bore a shaft or pin has to pass through.
Threads	To confirm	Painted threads will not accept a nut reliably.	Mask all tapped holes, or specify re-tapping after painting.
Sealing and mating faces	To confirm	A painted seal face will not seal to the designed preload.	Mask o-ring grooves, gasket faces and press fits.

Layer figures for painting are being confirmed with the shop and will be published as numbers. The masking rules above hold whatever the layer turns out to be.

Tell us which surfaces must not be painted and we will mask them — masking is available on request, and has to be marked on the drawing.

Get a quote

Paint or powder

Painting or powder coating — the decision before the colour

Both give a coloured protective layer. They differ in how the material is applied and cured, and that difference decides which one suits your part.

Operator spraying liquid paint onto steel frames in a spray booth

Painting (liquid coating)

Satin or glossy

Paint is applied as a liquid and carries the colour directly. A wide range of paints covers different environments and appearances, and cosmetic finish is available on this process.

Cosmetic finish available · RAL or Pantone colour matching

Not for: the hardest-wearing surfaces — a liquid layer is softer than a thermally cured powder layer.

Green powder coated steel sections hanging on a line after the curing oven

Powder coating

Thermally cured

Powder is sprayed on and baked, forming a continuous protective coloured layer that is usually harder and more uniform than a conventional painted layer.

Usually harder and more even than liquid paint

Not for: substrates that cannot take the curing oven temperature.

Pick or avoid

When painting is the right call — and when it is not

Pick painting when

The part is visible and the colour is part of the specification.
Cosmetic finish matters — this process offers it, unlike metallic coating.
You need a specific RAL or Pantone colour.
The part is metal or plastic and can be cleaned and degreased before coating.
You want a satin or glossy appearance rather than a metallic look.

Avoid painting when

You need a metallic, reflective appearance — see metallic coating.
You need sacrificial corrosion protection on steel at a scratch — see galvanizing.
The layer has to be harder and more abrasion-resistant than a liquid coating — consider powder coating.
Every thread and bore must stay at nominal size and you cannot mark them for masking.

Colour plus durability? Send the drawing with the RAL code and the environment the part sees — we will quote painting, powder coating, or both.

Get a quote

Design constraints

What decides how the painted part looks when it comes back

Three variables: the preparation, the masking you mark, and the colour reference you give.

Preparation

The specified baseline is a standard surface finish, cleaned and degreased. Machining marks, grease and oxide read through a painted layer more than through any other finish.

Masking

Masking is available as per requirement — but you have to indicate the masked areas in the design. Unmarked threads, bores and sealing faces get painted.

Colour reference

Give a RAL code or Pantone number. A colour described in words cannot be matched, and a rework on a colour mismatch costs a full strip and repaint.

Surface finish choice

Satin or glossy is specified up front, not decided in the shop. A satin part cannot be changed to glossy after the fact.

Substrate condition

A part that has been handled, oiled, or left in a workshop may need extra cleaning. Say so on the order — it affects both adhesion and appearance.

Welding and heat

Weld and heat-treat before painting. Neither operation is compatible with a finished painted surface; a post-assembly repair has to be spot-painted.

Drawing notes

What to write on the drawing so the colour and the masking come out right

Colour and masking are the two things that most often come back wrong. Put both on the drawing.

1.  PAINT ALL SURFACES UNLESS MASKED.    COLOUR: RAL / PANTONE ____________    FINISH: SATIN / GLOSSY  (delete one)2.  MASK THE FOLLOWING AREAS BEFORE PAINTING:    - TAPPED HOLES AND THREADED FEATURES    - BEARING SEATS AND PRESS FITS    - O-RING GROOVES, GASKET FACES AND SEALING SURFACES    - ELECTRICAL CONTACT AND EARTHING POINTS    (SEE VIEW A)3.  SURFACE PREPARATION: STANDARD FINISH, CLEANED AND    DEGREASED BEFORE PAINTING.4.  COSMETIC FINISH REQUIRED - NO RUNS, SAGS OR    UNIFORMITY DEFECTS ON VISIBLE FACES.5.  COLOR MATCH TO SUPPLIED SAMPLE / RAL SWATCH.

Examples only. If you leave the colour line blank, the part cannot be matched to a reference — and the masking list is the only thing keeping threads clean.

Materials

Which substrates we paint — and what to use if yours is not one of them

Painting runs on metals and plastics. What changes between them is the preparation, not the principle.

Substrate	Painting	Notes	Use instead
Metals	Yes	Standard surface finish, cleaned and degreased. Cosmetic finish available.	—
Plastics	Yes	Painted on the same basis; cleaning and degreasing is the deciding step.	—
Ferrous parts in weather	Consider galvanizing	A painted layer protects until it is scratched. Zinc protects at the scratch itself.	Galvanizing
Metal-look appearance needed	Use metallic coating	Painting gives colour, not a metallic sheen.	Metallic coating
Harder, more abrasion-resistant layer	Use powder coating	Thermally cured powder is usually harder and more uniform than liquid paint.	Powder coating

Part in more than one material? Send the assembly and we will route each component to the process that fits it.

Get a quote

Applications

Where painted parts end up

Every application below is one where the part is visible, or where the colour carries a function.

Factory floor and yellow safety columns finished with an industrial epoxy coating

Industrial equipment and floors

Machine frames, guards and floor markings where a hard-wearing coloured layer protects and identifies the equipment.

Steel bridge structure painted in red and light grey as a corrosion protection system

Bridge and structural steel

Where the colour is part of a protective coating system and has to survive decades outdoors.

QA and documentation

What you get back with the parts

Purchasing usually needs paper as well as parts. Here is what we can issue today and what is still being confirmed.

Available

Colour match

Matched against the RAL code, Pantone number or supplied sample.

To confirm

Layer thickness

Measured dry film thickness per coat. Being confirmed with the shop.

To confirm

Adhesion test

Cross-hatch or tape adhesion check. Being confirmed with the shop.

To confirm

RoHS / REACH

Compliance statement for the paint chemistry.

Painting guides and comparisons

Longer answers on the questions this page only has room to state.

Powder coating vs paint

The two coloured finishes compared on durability, appearance and cost.

Electrostatic painting vs powder coating

How the application method changes the result, not just the material.

Zinc plating colours

What clear, blue, yellow and black chromate actually change.

Powder coating service

The thermally cured alternative, when the part can take the oven.

Metallic coating service

The metallic-look process — and why it has no cosmetic finish option.

All surface finishing options

Compare all 20 finishes by roughness, thickness, corrosion and cost.

FAQ

Painting FAQ: the questions engineers ask us

Is a cosmetic finish available?

Yes. Painting is one of the processes where cosmetic finish is available — the surface is meant to be looked at. Compare that with metallic coating, where cosmetic finish is not available.

Can you match a specific colour?

Yes, against a RAL code or a Pantone number. Give us the code with the drawing. A colour described in words cannot be matched, and a mismatch means stripping and repainting the batch.

Satin or glossy — which should I choose?

Either, but it has to be specified up front. Satin hides surface imperfections better; gloss shows them. A satin part cannot be converted to gloss after the fact.

How do I tell you which areas to mask?

Indicate the masked areas in the design. Threads, bearing seats, o-ring grooves and earthing points are the usual candidates. Anything you do not list will be painted — see the drawing notes.

Will painting change my part dimensions?

Yes — paint adds material on every coated surface, so bores close and outside dimensions grow. The exact layer is being confirmed; the masking rules in the what changes table hold either way.

What is the difference from powder coating?

Paint is applied as a liquid; powder is sprayed and baked. A thermally cured powder layer is usually harder and more uniform. Powder is the better choice unless the substrate cannot take the curing oven temperature.

Can you paint plastic parts?

Yes. Plastics are painted on the same basis as metals — the deciding step is cleaning and degreasing before the coat goes on.

Do you paint customer-supplied parts?

Yes. Run the three checks under fit check first — material, colour and masking.

Get your painting quote

Upload a STEP, IGES or PDF drawing. Tell us the substrate, the quantity, the RAL or Pantone colour, and which surfaces must stay unpainted.

Get a quote Machine it first

What to send us

Drawing — 2D and 3D files (STEP, IGES or PDF).
Quantity — number of units, including any spares.
Substrate — the metal or plastic, so we know what preparation is needed.
Colour — the RAL code or Pantone number. This is the line that most often goes missing.
Finish — satin or glossy.
Masking — which surfaces must stay unpainted: threads, bores, sealing faces, contact points.

All uploads are secure and confidential. Engineers review and reply with a quotation and lead time.