What is the coating used on Adek?
Both Adek Comfort Grip and Adek Enhanced Grip are made of aluminium that has been coated with a decorative, polyester powder coating system called Interpon D that is manufactured by Akzo Nobel.
This powder coating is tested and certified as Qualicoat 1 with a Qualicoat endorsed “seaside” pre-treatment (see below).
Qualicoat is an internationally recognised specification for the production of high-quality aluminium decking coatings on aluminium products specifically for architectural applications.
This means that the coating on Adek will be of consistently high quality as it has been rigorously sampled and tested during the production process for its appearance, consistency, adhesion and reaction to weathering and pollutants.
In addition to the above coating application, Adek also has an extra Qualicoat certified “seaside” pre-treatment. This involves a degreasing and deeper acid etching (deeper than standard etching) of the raw aluminium before the coating is applied. This ensures the surface is clean and free of any oxidation, scale or soils, oil, grease, lubricants, hand sweat or any other contamination that may be detrimental to the final finish.
The tests cover...
- The visual appearance of the coating and the gloss quality
- The specific coating thicknesses.
- The adhesion of the coating under a series of demanding physical tests where the aluminium substrate is bent, dented and heated.
- The adhesion of the coating under accelerated weathering and industrial pollution conditions.
- How the coating reacts to mortar, boiling water, standing water and how well it reacts when being worked with cutting tools.
Qualicoat - explained
Qualicoat has established a globally-recognised set of specifications to produce powder coated finishes on aluminium. These define the minimum production requirements for plant and equipment, coating materials and finished products.
The aim of the Qualicoat specification is to ensure a high-quality of coated products for use in architectural applications.
All the requirements in the Qualicoat specification must be met before a manufacturer can be granted a quality label. The standard covers more than twenty different tests depending on the material being tested, most tests being conducted under ISO or EN standards.
In addition to the Qualicoat 1 testing regime, we carry out our own testing of the Adek surface to establish its slip resistant properties and its resistance to everyday wear and tear.