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Understanding electroplating in laymen terms

We are a company developing a line of recessed and surface mount lighting fixtures for the trade. We have run into a problem with our supplier in Taiwan. One series of our fixtures has a steel trim that will be plated at our distributors facility. Our distributor wants the trims "copper flashed" so that they canplate them to order. Our supplier is telling us there is no copper treatment necessary before plating. We are in the middle and have reached a stalemate. I need information that will help me understand the process so that I can communicate with both parties and maybe come to a resolution here. Any help you can provide is greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

Marta Meyer
Importer - Palos Park, IL, USA
2004

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Sorry, the situation isn't quite clear to me Ms. Meyer. Apparently a sheet metal stamper in Taiwan, stamps these steel plates and then ships them to your distributor (you didn't say where they are). Then your distributor plates these fixtures with gold, brass, zinc, or nickel-chrome? Or maybe whatever the end customer needs?

Your problem is that it is expensive to copper flash these items and your stamper in Taiwan probably doesn't have the in-house capability either, so he doesn't want to do it. But if the raw, untreated steel is shipped across the ocean, by the time your distributor gets it, it will not only be rusty but probably pitted, and thus unplateable without a lot of mechanical rework; and the longer he stores them, the worse it will get.

Basically, and from my limited understanding of your situation, I feel that your distributor is probably right that you can't expect him to store raw corroded (and corroding) metal. It's hard to say exactly what should be done, but a copper flash on the metal seems to be a pretty minimal treatment. Alternatives would include applying a corrosion resistant oiled finish at the factory, or perhaps nickel-chroming them all at the factory, and having the distributor strip the chrome and apply brass (or whatever) for whatever portion will not be chrome.

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2004