Metal Coating Services
Vanguard applies functional coatings to metal parts. You ship us machined or fabricated parts, we sandblast, coat, inspect, and ship them back on schedule.
Match the Problem to the Coating
Most coating failures start with the wrong coating for the job:
| The Problem | Coating | Typical Parts |
|---|---|---|
|
Residue and sticking |
Teflon™ |
Textile steam and dryer cans, rollers, waffle irons, griddles, baking surfaces |
|
Corrosion from salt or chemicals |
Xylan® |
Marine hardware, offshore oil and gas fasteners, valve components |
|
Abrasion wearing through parts |
Nylon |
Machine parts, rollers, injection molds, tooling, racking |
|
Chemicals attacking metal in process and wash-down environments |
Teflon™, Nylon, Xylan® |
Process equipment, tanks, fittings, material handling |
|
High temperatures hurting performance and nearby components |
Ceramic |
Exhaust manifolds, headers, automotive components |
|
Water corroding wet-service and buried piping |
Fusion Bonded Epoxy (NSF 61 Approved) |
Pipe, valves, fittings, irrigation and pump stations |
|
Pieces too long for most coaters, color that lasts |
Powder Coating |
Docks, gangways, walkways, racking, frames (up to 45 ft) |
Not sure which applies?
Decades of coating selection experience is part of the service. Send us the part and the problem, and we’ll recommend from 100+ coating systems.
Non-stick release for industrial applications
When product sticks to a metal surface, for example on a textile roller, you pay for it in scrap, cleaning labor, and line downtime. Teflon™ industrial coatings give metal a low-friction, non-stick release surface that performs at high operating temperatures, including FDA-compliant food-contact coating systems.
Vanguard is the premier Teflon™ coating facility on the east coast and an approved industrial applicator, coating parts for manufacturers since 1967 when we started coating textile rollers with liquid Teflon™.
- Releases product, resin, and residue from rollers, cutting cleanup and downtime.
- Performs at high operating temperatures, up to each system’s rated limit.
- Reduces friction for smooth-running rollers and contact surfaces.
- Resists chemicals, with the strongest resistance in the FEP and PFA systems.
- Cleans up easily between production runs.
- PTFE: the classic Teflon™ system. The highest temperature rating in the family and the lowest coefficient of friction, the benchmark for pure release.
- FEP: melts and flows during baking to form a non-porous film. Excellent release plus strong chemical resistance.
- PFA: the non-porous film of FEP with a higher service temperature and greater toughness, can be applied in thicker builds.
- Teflon-S: a one-coat system with binder resins that produce a harder, more abrasion-resistant surface with dry lubrication.
- Textile: steam cans, dryer cans, slasher cans, dry feed rollers
- Food production: waffle irons, griddles, baking sheets, spatulas, cutting blades, packaging equipment
- Industrial: injection molds, chutes, hoppers, low-friction contact surfaces
Where heavy abrasion or salt exposure is the bigger threat, Xylan® or Nylon may outlast Teflon™, and we’ll tell you when that’s the case.
Got a question about Teflon™ for your project? Get in touch.
Corrosion and friction control
Salt spray and chemical exposure destroy unprotected metal and seize threaded hardware. Xylan® dry-film lubricant coatings put a thin, tough, low-friction barrier on the part: corrosion protection plus smooth assembly and operation, without the bulk of thicker systems.
Spec calls for a specific Xylan® series? We apply them all.
- Resists corrosion in salt, seawater, and chemical environments.
- Acts as a dry-film lubricant, so fasteners make up consistently and don’t seize.
- Resists marine growth, keeping barnacles and fouling off submerged equipment.
- Applies as a thin film, protecting parts without changing critical dimensions.
- Marine hardware, piping
- Offshore oil and gas fasteners
- Valve components and threaded assemblies
Got a question about Xylan® for your project? Get in touch.
The heavy-duty coating for wear and chemicals
Some parts don’t need release, they need armor. Nylon coatings stand up to abrasion and chemical attack that strip thinner coatings. Nylon also does something most coating shops can’t offer: it can be built up to over 30 mils thick, then milled back to a precise finished dimension, so a worn part gets protection and a restored tolerance in one operation.
- Stands up to heavy abrasion and impact.
- Delivers among the best chemical resistance of any coating we apply, built for wash-down and process environments.
- Builds to over 30 mils.
- Provides long service life on high-wear surfaces.
- Machine parts, rollers, and material-handling surfaces
- Injection molds and tooling
- Racking and fixtures
- Worn parts needing protection plus dimensional restoration
- Assembly lines, conveyor line components
Got a question about Nylon coating for your project? Get in touch.
Heat management for parts that run hot
Exhaust heat robs performance and cooks nearby components. Ceramic coatings manage heat disbursement on manifolds, headers, and other high-temperature parts, lowering operating and under-hood temperatures and supporting combustion efficiency, while adding abrasion and corrosion resistance at temperatures other coatings can’t take.
- Disburses heat, lowering operating and under-hood temperatures.
- Supports combustion efficiency and engine performance.
- Resists abrasion and corrosion at high temperature.
- Holds its appearance under heat.
- Exhaust manifolds and headers
- Automotive and truck components, coated at production volumes for manufacturers
- High-heat industrial parts
Got a question about ceramic coating for your project? Get in touch.
Corrosion protection for metal in water
Wet-service and buried metal starts corroding the day it’s installed. Fusion bonded epoxy is applied as a powder to a heated part and cures into a continuous, tightly bonded barrier: the standard protection for pipe and water infrastructure.
Vanguard is certified to NSF/ANSI 61.
- Forms a continuous bonded barrier with no seams to fail.
- Protects against corrosion in wet, buried, and submerged service.
- Resists chemicals in water-treatment and process applications.
- NSF/ANSI 61 certified.
- Pipe, valves, and fittings
- Irrigation systems and pump stations
Got a question about FBE for your project? Get in touch.
Durable color and protection, on pieces up to 45 ft long
Powder coating delivers a tough, long-lasting finish with color that won’t fade, and it’s the environmentally friendly option. Vanguard can powder coat aluminum up to 45 ft long pieces, a size capability most coaters can’t match, on an automated line built for volume and fast color changes.
- Delivers a durable, even coat with color and finish that last.
- Uses no solvents, making it the environmentally friendly option.
- Corrosion protection and stands up to UV
- Takes pieces up to 45 ft long. Most coaters can’t touch that!
- Docks, walkways, catwalks, and gangways
- Playground equipment
- Racking, frames, and fabricated structures
- Electronics housing, cabinets, data center components
Got a question about powder coating for your project? Get in touch.
Why Manufacturers Partner with Vanguard
What you get beyond the coating itself:
Surface prep done right, by default.
Improper surface prep is the #1 reason coatings fail. Vanguard sandblasts parts as standard practice before coating, so adhesion is engineered in.
Freight handled.
We can book the freight, so shipping parts to a coater stops being your team’s problem.
You’ll know where your order is.
Proactive status on quotes and orders. No chasing a shop for answers.
Quick turnaround.
Redundant equipment means no single-machine bottleneck, rush service is available.
One shop, 100+ coating systems.
Teflon™, Xylan®, Nylon, Ceramic, FBE, and powder: one qualified supplier instead of three specialty shops.
Inspected by people.
Every job is human-inspected before it ships.
Capacity and Quality Control
The numbers, for your engineering and procurement team:
Curing Ovens
- 10’H x 12’W x 24’L batch oven
- 8’H x 10’W x 20’L batch oven
- 8’H x 10’W x 18’L batch oven
- 8’H x 8’W x 8’L batch oven
- Monorail oven for small parts
Surface Prep
- 10’W x 15’L blast room
- Blast cabinet for small parts
- 7.5 cu/ft tumble blaster
Testing (Destructive and Non-Destructive Testing Available)
- Micrometer film-thickness measurement
- Crosshatch adhesion testing
- MEK cure testing
- Bend testing
- Impact testing
Sample spray booth available for coating trials before you commit a production run.
Industries We Coat For
Textile
steam cans, dryer cans, slasher cans, rollers
Food Production Equipment
waffle irons, griddles, cutting blades, baking surfaces
Automotive Manufacturers
exhaust components, frames, production volumes
Marine and Dock Manufacturers
Industrial Equipment
machine parts, injection molds, tooling, racking