Hardide Coatings installs third large reactor in UK in response to growing demand

Hardide Coatings, provider of advanced surface coating technology, has invested a six-figure sum in its UK manufacturing facility - increasing its installed capacity by nearly 50% to cope with growing demand for its range of nanostructured tungsten carbide coatings.

The installation of a third large capacity reactor is part of an investment programme which will also recruit up to three additional operations staff to meet increasing demand from existing and new customers at its plant in Bicester, Oxfordshire.

Hardide coatings provide a unique combination of features; they are extremely abrasion, erosion, corrosion and chemical resistant while at the same time being tough, ductile and impact resistant. Applied by low temperature chemical vapour deposition (CVD), they can coat internal surfaces and complex shapes and are ideal for highly toleranced parts.

Philip Kirkham, CEO of Hardide Coatings said: ‘The installation of a third large capacity reactor at our plant in Bicester will enable us to increase production volumes while continuing with the development of new coating technologies and applications.

As industries move in to more challenging and harsher environments, there is an increasing need for technologies which protect and extend the life of equipment and our coatings are proven to solve difficult problems while delivering dramatic improvements in component life.’

Hardide coatings are also an excellent alternative to hard-chrome plating (HCP), which is under increasing restrictions due to its use of hexavalent chromium salts with a REACH ‘sunset date’ on their use of September 2017. This has seen the company involved in discussions with various OEMS within the aerospace industry to replace HCP and consider its use on other potential problem applications.

Hardide Coatings recently undertook its first application for a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) on behalf of Seatronics. Since using the coating on a critical part of the thruster system, the Predator ROV manufactured by Seatronics has increased in performance and power, with critical wear issues vastly reduced.

Hardide Coatings
Tel: 01869 353830
Email: info@hardide.com

Published: 25th February 2015