Nickel plating is another popular plating method used in industries such as aerospace, defense, RF and microwave communications sector as well as the medical field. Unlike EN plating, nickel plating is an electrolytical process which requires and electrical charge in the deposition of the metal onto the substrate.
Nickel is valuable for it’s hardness, durability, and it’s magnetic properties. It can be used alone or as an under plate for other metals. Using nickel as an under plate is beneficial as it creates a barrier that prevents the base metal from interfering or entering the subsequent finish layers of the part. Nickel plating has a wide variety of uses as it is also practical and possess decorative properties.
Nickel Plating Options
Nickel plating offers numerous finish types to achieve your desired affect
- Bright Nickel: Primary choice if you are looking for a decorative finish but also highly desirable in many other applications due to it’s high resistance to corrosion and protection from wear and degradation of parts.
- Semi-Bright Nickel: While still a good choice for a decorative finish as it produces a somewhat shiny finish, semi-bright nickel has an advantage over bright nickel in that it retains its ductile quality and remains flexible whereas bright nickel becomes rigid making bending or manipulating an object extremely difficult.
- Nickel Chloride: A very dull finish and therefore is usually used as an under coating. Nickel chloride works extremely well as a barrier to subsequent applications to the same piece preventing other finishes from leaking through to the final plate
The two biggest benefits to using nickel plating for your projects are:
- Corrosion Resistance – nickel forms an exceptional barrier on substrates that prevents anything from getting under it that might ruin the underlying material.
- Durability. This property makes nickel plating and excellent choice for equipment that have parts that touch one another or are constantly rubbing up against one another. It is also good for equipment that sees alot of usage as it extends the life of your equipment.
Mid-Atlantic Finishing Corp. is located in Capitol Heights Maryland and services the North East, East Coast and the entire United States. MAF offers the following metal plating services nationwide:
Gold Plating Services, Silver Plating Services, Tin Plating Services, Tin-Lead Plating Services, Electroless Nickel Plating Services, Bright Nickel Plating Services, Sulfamate Nickel Plating, Copper Plating Services, Chemical Film Plating Services, and Precision Masking Services.
MAF is committed to the delivery of quality products to every segment of our customer base, a fundamental element of our Company’s Purpose and Mission.
MAF is committed to full compliance with all the requirements of NADCAP AC 7004; AC 7108.