A US processor has discovered significant performance differences between several CO2 liquid cleaning systems for cleaning injection-molded part surfaces prior to metallization. Since switching to quattroClean technology from German company acp, Nanogate Jay Systems has been able to reduce the contamination-related reject rate of vehicle lighting components, which are cleaned before being coated, to almost zero.
Nanogate Jay Systems focuses on production of lighting components for leading auto and truck OEMs and many of this parts must be metallized. “Every day, among other parts, we produce around 25,000 reflectors for headlamps from bulk molding compounds (BMC), which are coated and metalized using PVD [plasma vapor deposition] processes,” says CEO Rick Taylor. The company also makes exterior panels, roof coverings and ABC pillars, as well as interior fittings ranging from center consoles to dashboards, loudspeaker covers and door components.