Interpon's partnership with Meshtec
Meshtec: securing its future with Interpon D
Tough products that protect loved ones in their homes from unwanted intrusion need tough coating solutions, those that can stand up to the most challenging conditions for the longest period. It’s why Meshtec chooses Interpon D powder coatings from AkzoNobel for its range of physical security screens, and why as an Interpon Approved Applicator, Meshtec can give its customers the assurance of a near lifetime guarantee for its products.
Originally launched in Australia more than 20 years ago, Meshtec, a Thai company, has grown to become a world class designer and manufacturer of security screen systems for doors and windows, barrier screens, and balustrade fencing systems. It exports to 25 countries worldwide, differentiating its products by their design-led superior quality and performance, supported by the consistency of the Interpon finish.
Meshtec started by using an Interpon D1036 standard durable powder coating for its high-tensile stainless steel woven mesh screens with a warranty of up to 15 years. More recently, it began using Interpon D2525, a superdurable powder coatings which warranties the integrity of the coated surface for up to 25-years and often longer. “This gives our products a competitive advantage,” says Managing Director Nopporn Khunyotying.
Production volumes within its manufacturing facility in Chiang Mai, Thailand are significant: as well as more than one million square metres of stainless-steel mesh it also manufactures a similar volume of perforated aluminum sheets and more than 200,000 completed doors and windows. The use of robots and further automation will increase this figure to nearer 500,000 over the next few years.
Every product Meshtec manufactures is finished with Interpon on one of two powder coating lines. The mesh and panels are typically coated black; the finished doors and windows can be coated in a range of different colors, depending on customer requirements.
In choosing Interpon, Nopporn says they were looking to address three challenges: “First, we wanted to accelerate the production process to match an increase in demand. Second, we needed to better control our costs. And third, we wanted a product that supported our commitment to sustainability by reducing waste and using smaller quantities of powder.”
Interpon, he believes, is giving Meshtec all these benefits and more: “With the single coat application of the Interpon D powder coating we have been able to significantly increase our line efficiency while at the same time enhancing our sustainability, doing more with less,” he explains. “Sustainability is very important to us as a business, and we are constantly looking at how even small improvements in our operations can have a larger positive impact on our environment and our society.”
Sustainability is the engine that is driving future innovation within AkzoNobel, in the products it develops and the services it delivers. To that end, Nopporn welcomes the support he receives from the Interpon Technical Services team. He has started using a Chrome Free pretreatment and is exploring how some of Interpon’s latest low energy (Low-E) powder coatings may be to his advantage.
Having early insight into new products and innovations, alongside additional technical training and support, are among the principal benefits Meshtec enjoys from being an Interpon Approved Applicator. The business is regularly audited to AkzoNobel’s own stringent quality criteria which in turn helps ensure it continues to meet global architectural standards to support new business growth. It means Meshtec can offer customers of its products an enhanced warranty and an assured quality second-to-none.
“The collaboration of the AkzoNobel team, the quality of the Interpon powder coatings, and the consistency of their performance, are what enable us to compete on a global scale, and why our customers trust us to deliver,” he concludes.
