When to Use Machined Surface Treatment for Parts?+ View more
When to Use Machined Surface Treatment for Parts?
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Date：2024-12-30 09:38
In mechanical manufacturing, the surface treatment of parts is of the utmost importance. In certain situations, practical machined surface treatments may not be appropriate. Yet, during prototyping, they've proven time and again to be just the right choice. Take the example of a new mechanical device. When an organization sets out to develop a prototype of such a device, they most often use a machined surface treatment to get the product to the point where it can be tested, and for all intents and purposes, the prototype functions similarly to the intended end product. What the organization doesn't do, during this early stage, is labor over the surface finish. That would be taking the part too far down the production line, too soon. And what is the edge going from surface to surface worth if, after all, you're focused on the performance of the prototype rather than its aesthetic appeal?In situations where parts are not seen or serve no aesthetic purpose, such as load-bearing mechanical components, the appropriate choice may be to use performance-driven machined surfaces. In furniture making, for instance, internal components that aren’t seen serve no aesthetic purpose. For those components, if using a performance-driven machined surface is acceptable, that, too, can reduce costs while providing the necessary strength and support over the long haul. A machined surface can also be better for bonding and ensuring a solid connection. Using glue on internal components in furniture that serves as a load-bearing part may perform better and provide a more enduring bond if the surface is a little bit rougher and therefore has more surface area and more opportunity for the adhesive to work. Machined surfaces are better for all of that as well.When parts are to be powder-coated, one efficient method to promote adhesion and eliminate the need for superfluous treatments is to machine the part with a finishing process called tumbling. This method of surface treatment produces a kind of “rounded-over” effect that very closely resembles the kind of finish you would get from taking that same part and using it in a blow-up competition. It is a relatively low-cost method and, across some machining shop sectors, it is a secret weapon for maintaining the cost advantage in low-bid competitions. Whether for function or for appearance, the insistence with which a powder coat is applied to the machined surface is a low-cost alternative that accomplishes both aims.The appearance of parts is vitally important in areas such as consumer products and decorative items. For instance, in the production of mobile phone cases and jewelry, for which appearance is critical, a machined surface would be unacceptable. These products require highly polished or fine surface treatments to meet aesthetic demands. Likewise, in applications requiring very low friction or where exacting tolerances are needed—like the sliding parts of precision instruments—surface roughness is too often a performance liability. A surface with a high appearance of roughness will almost certainly have a poor friction performance. Hence, the use of additional grinding and polishing processes must be seriously considered as trouble (and cost) factors in the field of precision machining.The food processing and pharmaceutical manufacturing sectors are all about hygiene and cleanliness. In those industries, any rough surfaces are potential sites for the accumulation of dirt and microbes. Routine cleaning is hard enough without trying to scrub particles out of any surface that can trap them. The optimum configuration for anything that might carry food or pharmaceutical products is one that is smooth enough to allow easy cleaning and just to Avoid contamination altogether.We put these same principles of good engineering design to work in the making of visual imaging instruments for those same reasons. Any configuration that might trap dirt or germs is an imperfect configuration. A configuration that reduces surface tension and the valve should coral contaminants also reduces the surface tension and cleanliness problems of any high-precision visual imaging system.In order to prevent the rubber used in seals and gaskets from being damaged, it is essential for the surfaces in contact with them to be extremely smooth. A rough surface on the element under the gasket can seriously degrade the performance and reliability of the seal. Consequently, the surfaces of components used in critical applications—such as those found in automotive and aerospace technologies—that must be sealed with gaskets deserve very special attention during manufacture and require very smooth surface finishes. A gapped seal or gasket condition can lead to engine failure or, in the case of an aircraft, an event that could compromise safety. That is why an extremely smooth surface finish, practically dead flat, is required for the sealing surface of a gasket or the surface of a component that will be mated to a seal.In conclusion, when choosing the surface treatment method for parts, comprehensive consideration needs to be given according to the specific application scenario and requirements. Machined surface treatment is an economical and effective choice in some cases, but in occasions with strict requirements for appearance, precision, friction, hygiene, etc., careful consideration or the selection of other more suitable surface treatment methods is required.
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