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Quality Starts Here!
Using Quality Materials
Steel for Structural Integrity
OCC uses only steel due its strength and ability to absorb shock without breaking. Using steel eliminates the need for spare parts, such as end legs or spare rails, which would be required with other materials. If our products sustain an impact that bends the steel, the unit can usually be repaired.
About Our Steel
OCC uses hot rolled steel that has been pickled and oiled (HRP&O) or, in some applications, Galvaneal steel is used (see below for details). OCC believes the advantages of these two materials outweigh their higher cost. HRP&O and HRP&O Galvaneal-coated steel are clean and smooth, only requiring them to be iron phosphatized before painting. OCC’s products have a smoother high gloss finish.
Often standard benches are constructed of hot rolled steel (HRS), used primarily due to its low cost. HRS has rough scale on its outer surface requiring removal prior to painting -- usually through sand blasting. Even after the scale is removed, the surface finish has an undesirable rough surface texture.
Galvaneal is used on many of our products, such as the slats in our trash receptacles and benches. Galvaneal has built-in corrosion resistance even without being painted. Galvaneal also has a property that allows the material to migrate into small scratches, reducing the potential for rust forming.
OCC also uses rolled edge material, so that the edges have a smoother rounded edge, rather than sharp corners typically found on HRS.
Welding Makes a Difference
All OCC products are either spot (resistance) welded or hand welded. When a product, such as a trash receptacle, has overlapping steel bands, they are spot (resistance) welded. Other products, such as benches, are MIG or TIG welded by hand. The strength and durability of our products are equal too or better than the majority of products in this industry.
More than Painting
Since OCC starts with superior steel, there is no need to sand blast – the steel has already been cleaned, pickled and oiled at the mill. It is then iron phosphatized for cleaning and heated and sprayed with a polyester paint -- referred to as powder painting. The powder paint application, adhesion, and retention are superior to conventional methods of painting, with the exception of “acts of God”, vandalism, or accidents.
It should be noted, OCC is working with paint and coating companies to produce a coating that can withstand winter storms, such as wind-carried sand, hail and other damaging events.
Brief Facts about Galvanealed steel
· Zinc coating fully alloyed with steel base
· Non-spangled (matt finish) surface
· Surface not bonderized, but has excellent paint-ability for many paint systems
· Priced the same as regular galvanized sheet
· More weldable than phosphatized or regular galvanized sheet
· Available with extra extra-smooth finish for critical exposed parts
· Where bending is involved, zinc coating may powder at compression angle of bend
Application
· Useful where corrosion resistance is important and paint must be applied without pre-treatment
· Typical end uses: air conditioning and refrigeration parts, switch boxes, signs, vending machines, etc.
Remember that Galvaneal has become the chosen product for the automotive industry –
preventing the rusted auto bodies we used to see years ago!
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