What Zinc Nickel Plating Costs and What Affects It

The Costs of Zinc Nickel Plating and What Influences the Price.

The cost of zinc nickel plating can vary greatly and it is better to know how to price a job before ordering it.

Part Size and Surface Area

As mentioned previously, platers price their work on an area basis. This means that the bigger the part, the more expensive it will be. However, the cost of plating a part with complex geometry is greater than the cost of plating a simple part of the same size. This is because of the increased time and cost for the racking and the jigs required to plate such a part evenly.

Batch Volume

By processing larger batches of parts within a single processing run, the fixed processing charges for racking, handling, etc. are spread across a larger number of parts, thus lowering the cost per part. Many platers also have a minimum order charge (eg. $20 for small parts), so to keep costs down, it is advisable to try to order in larger quantities than required.

Substrate Condition and Pre-Treatment

Steel parts that have a large amount of rust, scale, or contamination on them require additional cleaning and surface preparation prior to plating. This additional work is normally charged separately and must be done before processing can begin. Ensure parts are delivered in good condition, clean and degreased to keep costs for pre-treatment down.

Coating Thickness and Nickel Content

The Zinc Nickel Coating with the highest level of corrosion resistance contains 12-15% nickel. These specifications require the zinc nickel plating solution to be controlled very tightly and require longer plating times to deposit the coating. By specifying a coating with only the level of corrosion resistance required by your application, you can avoid paying for performance that is not needed.

A useful reference for Zinc Nickel Coating is www.poeton.co.uk/surface-treatments/plating/zinc-nickel-plating.

Passivate and Topcoat Choices

A trivalent chromate passivate is a standard treatment and usually included in the base price of the plating process. An additional seal or wax topcoat is often an extra charge.

Testing and Certification Requirements

Add on any required testing and certification: Salt-spray testing, hydrogen embrittlement relief bakes for high-strength steel and third-party certification to relevant standards (for example international standards for electrodeposited coatings for corrosion testing) – all of these increase cost. 500 hours of salt-spray testing for example requires physical test panels and time. Make sure that for non-aerospace applications the plater is quoting for the required amount of testing. A lighter test regime may be appropriate and would significantly reduce cost. Discuss with plater at quoting stage.

Knowing which of these items you can control to get the price you need is half the battle to get a good price for your zinc nickel plated parts.