Toxic chromates now replaced in new aircraft exterior systems

May 14, 2013
Aircraft Painting gets more environmental and health friendly and is approved according to the AMS 3095A specification for Refurbishment of mostly all commercial aircraft

Chrome used in paints, surface preparations and treatments help paint to adhere to the aircraft and, most importantly, prevents corrosion. For decades no chrome free system was able to achieve comparable results in this important security matter. Now, a chrome free paint pre-treatment developed by French company SOCOMORE along with the BaseCoat/ClearCoat system of coatings manufacturer MANKIEWICZ fulfils all requirements of the AMS 3095A.

Chrome performed perfectly for corrosion protection over decades but future requirements e.g. by REACH in regards to health and environment made it necessary to think one step ahead. Socomore spent years of de-velopmental and testing work on this issue and finally got the results from an independent test lab proving that the system fulfils all requirements of the AMS3095 A. This specification is accepted by almost all OEMs for refurbishment of their commercial aircraft. This means that the toxic properties and health hazards re-leased during the application and removal process can now be fully avoided while offering equivalent corro-sion protection properties at the same time. This also means that wash primer or chromated primer should see their life expectancy shortened. One chrome free paint system can now satisfy most of the customer needs.

The AMS3095 has been successfully passed with two SOCOMORE products based on sol-gel technology in conjunction with the Basecoat/Clearcoat system of German coatings specialist Mankiewicz: SOCOGEL B0202 which is already Boeing and Dassault approved and SOCOGEL A0203 Blue which is Airbus approved in all their civil aircraft programs (see press release May 2012). Sol-gel is a chrome free surface preparation applied before the paint system. They promote paint adhesion. They also do not require water to be applied ie no water waste to retreat. SOCOMORE has also specifically developed a Chrome- and Fluor free deoxi-diser to be applied before SOCOGEL: SOCOSURF A1855. It not only clearly strengthens the anticorrosion performances of the whole paint system but also is more user-friendly.

www.socomore.com

SOCOMORE SAS

About Socomore Since 1972, SOCOMORE has been creating, manufacturing and distributing worldwide high added-value speciality chemicals used in critical surface preparation processing, protection, and control operation. Its activities mainly concern the aerospace market through a wide product range: CICs (Corrosion Inhibiting Compounds), Paint strippers, Degreas-ers, Cleaners, Deoxidizers, Engine line, Pre-saturated and technical wipes, solvent, sol gel...These solutions are adapted for manufacturing or maintenance in the transport industry (aerospace, automotive, railway, nautism and any industry linked to metals). For further information please visit www.socomore.com

About Mankiewicz Mankiewicz Gebr. & Co. (GmbH & Co. KG), one of Germany's traditional paint manufacturers (established in 1895 and based in Hamburg), leads the field in the production of both solvent-based and water-dilutable high-tech coating sys-tems for industrial series production. Today, Mankiewicz supplies its high-quality paint products to various different mar-kets such as machine construction, capital goods, automotive, aviation, railway, medical technology and yachts. The in-house R&D department permits the development of all paint systems in all colour shades, gloss grades and textures, tailor-made to suit each customer’s requirements. Worldwide more than 1,000 staff members are committed to the reali-sation of “Coating Concepts of the Future”. The high quality of the products and processes is guaranteed by a quality management system which was established years ago. Mankiewicz is certified in accordance with ISO 9001, ISO/TS 16949, VDA 6.3, EN 9100 and ISO 14001. For further information please visit www.mankiewicz.com