Every powder coating operation has a rework problem and a fixtures problem. Both are stripping jobs, and both are currently solved with burn-off ovens, chemical dip or blasting.
Laser ablation gives a powder coating shop a controlled way to remove coating from metallic components without introducing blast media, chemical dip tanks or oven cycles, and crucially it can be applied to one area of a part rather than the whole part.
Selective removal is the capability that does not exist in the conventional options. A dip tank and a burn-off oven are all-or-nothing. Blasting is directional but coarse. A laser can take coating off a specific face, a specific edge, or a masking error, and leave the rest of the finish intact.
The jigs and hooks case is the one that most often justifies a machine on its own, because it is continuous, unavoidable and currently either a burn-off cycle or a blast booth slot that could be used for production.
Powder coatings are engineered to be tough and well adhered, which is exactly what makes them harder to ablate than a thin decorative paint. Thick, light-coloured and heavily filled powders take more energy and more passes. On large flat panels, blasting is usually faster over area. The laser wins on selectivity, on fixtures, and where media contamination in the shop is a problem.
Applications
Where shops most often deploy a machine.
Which machine
Production volumes point to the 500W. Fine selective work on smaller components is often better served by the control of the 300W.
Machine finance is available to UK businesses through an FCA-regulated broker. Limited companies can be funded on any machine; sole traders only above £25,000. Check whether you qualify → LaserStrip is not a lender. See also the Business Launch package.
Further reading
Standards and guidance
A pulsed fibre laser is a Class 4 device. These are the primary UK sources, linked so you can read them rather than take our word for it.
Common questions
For a full batch of parts, usually not. For one part, one face, or a set of hooks, it is available immediately with no cycle time, no cool-down and no oven slot. That is a different kind of saving and often the more useful one.
Aluminium is more reflective and thermally conductive than steel, which changes the parameters required. It is worked on successfully, with settings established for the alloy and section thickness. Thin sections need particular care and should be tested first.
Most production enquiries land on the 500W. If a large proportion of your work is fine selective removal on small components, ask us about the 300W before assuming more power is better.
Application enquiry
Tell us what you are trying to remove and what is underneath it. We will tell you honestly whether a laser is the right tool, where it would sit in your existing process, and which machine would suit. If conventional preparation is the better answer for your job, we will say so.
We reply within one business day. Your details are never shared.