Business Profile
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Although now specialists in refurbishing edge protection barriers, Windridge Coatings started out in the 80s as a marine fabrication and coatings business. Based in East Kent, the founder, Dale Windridge, had a background of designing and building steel workboats for fishing and salvage operations. Learning to finish these vessels in an effective way through experimentation and research led to an extensive, wide-breadth knowledge of heavy-duty wet paints for hostile marine environments.
As the fishing industry diminished, so Windridge Coatings was established in 1986 to focus on and develop the specialist skills required for powder coating metals expected to last in marine environments. Achieving a good reputation for powder coating and wet painting large structures, and having built the largest box oven in the UK for powder coating, Windridge Coatings soon became an approved applicator for TML (Channel tunnel) and London Underground.
In pushing back barriers, Windridge Coatings was:
- the first to powder coat large structural steel,
- one of the first powdercoaters to use powdered zinc enriched primer,
- pioneer of the Tri-Resin Powder Coat System, and
- patentor of the first thermal insulating powder coat.
Windridge Coatings are approved powder coaters because:
- Windridge Coatings was established in 1986.
- Patent owners for warm to touch powder coating.
- Introduced powder coating large items to industry.
- First and currently largest box oven in country.
- Developed digital control system to ensure thick work pieces are cured with out burning thin sections.
- Developed approved Tri-Resin Powder Coat System incorporating technically advanced corrosion inhibitors and multi coat fusion bonded powder coating.
- Developed new application system to corrosion inhibit large work pieces.
- Full traceability for all jobs.
- Certificates of conformity and warranties.
- First to use zinc enriched primer.
- No CCJs
- Recommended and specified by architects.
What makes a good powder coater?
A desire to do the job well.
Quality will only be achieved if there is a will to do the job properly. Qualifications and certificates are of no value unless every member of the process shows an interest in the job.
Managing Director Dale Windridge
Dale Windridge started his working life in a car repair workshop, panel beating, welding and spraying Jaguars and Mercedes luxury cars.
He spent his twenties and early thirties building 11m steel workboats, during which time he acquired fabricating and general engineering skills. He also spent a lot of time at sea involved with salvage and survey work for major construction companies. Projects included removing obstructions in shipping lanes using explosives.
Dale started Windridge Coatings with his father in 1986 and by applying the marine wet-spraying techniques learnt earlier to powder coating, he achieved the exceptional finish that Windridge Coatings become renowned for.
In 1989 frustrated at the limitations of their equipment, he designed and they built the first and still England's largest general-purpose box oven. As a result, they became pioneers for powder coating heavy and large structural steelwork.
The large size of components bought new problems. The components were too large to pre-treat by zinc phosphating complying with BS6497. In 2005 Dale became a pioneer again by branding a new approach to powder coating directly onto steel. The Tri-Resin™ Powder Coating System.
In 2009 Dale was awarded a patent for improving the thermal insulation of powder coatings. This improvement allows powder coating to be used on handrails that need to comply with the building regulations 2004.