Quality

Quality is the cornerstone of our business and underpins everything we do.  We consider the best customer to be a repeat customer, and thus do everything in our power to ensure that our customers are satisfied with both the quality of the product and customer service that they receive.  A member of our upper management is only a short phone call away.

Plating Quality

We pride ourselves on delivering plating of the highest quality at reasonable prices.  Achieving high quality plating  starts with careful control of bath chemistry throughout our plating systems.   Daily monitoring of tank chemistry is undertaken to ensure that any potential imbalances are caught early, avoiding costly problems down the road.  We strive for continual improvement and are consistently self-auditing our processes to improve our system.

Thickness Testing:

Achieving the desired thickness of plating begins with careful planning and design.  Each part must be evaluated to determine the correct method of plating (see barrel vs. rack) as well the amount of time and current to be applied.  Post-plating our work is thoroughly evaluated by our quality team, utilizing equipment specifically designed to test the thickness of metal deposited.   We employ two general methods for determining the thickness of metal plated:

  • Coulombmetric: With this method the plating process is essentially run in reverse, stripping a small area of the part of plating.  The amount of current required to ‘deplate’ the part back to the base metal is tabulated and converted to thickness.  This process is very precise, accurate, and repeatable, however it is a destructive test and is not applicable to all parts.
  • X-Ray Fluorescence: X-Ray Fluorescence or XRF involves monitoring the deflection of a x-ray beam traveling through the part of interest.  Different metals behave uniquely under an x-ray beam and deflect radiation to varying degrees.  Thus, the thickness and type of metal plated can be determined through XRF analysis.  This test in non-destructive and does not damage the part in any way.  However, specific standards must be developed for each base metal, plate metal, and thickness combination.

Environmental Quality

In the past, the metal finishing industry has been viewed as an environmental polluter.  In many cases this label was well-deserved.  At A Square, however, we recognize the need to protect and sustain the quality of our environment.  We enjoy the peace, beauty and serenity of the natural world and are devoted to allowing future generations to appreciate nature in the same manner.  Thus, we are committed to making sure that any waste stream that leaves our plant is dealt with in an environmentally friendly manner.  The first step in this process is to pretreat all waste before it leaves our facility to make it as environmentally benign as possible.  We consistently check our waste stream and discharge waste water with levels of contaminants significantly below the amount allowable on our permit.  In fact, for the last 10 years we have received a gold award from the metropolitan sewer district (MSD) recognizing our pretreatment practices.  In addition we utilize a metal recycling program to prevent any unnecessary metallic wastes from ending up in landfills.