Fishing for Compliments
For a plating shop specializing in bumpers, relationship is everything. Southwest Plating, Inc., a family-owned business in Duncan, Oklahoma, has a 25-year history of plating high-quality automotive aftermarket bumpers. So, when the company began experiencing leveling problems in their plating line, they immediately started looking for an answer.
“Our thickness issues are solved and the appearance of the bumpers is fantastic. Haviland chemistry is high quality, stable, and consistently runs good. The leveling properties are great,” Fish explained.
As a bonus, Fish adds, “We are saving 20 percent on the cost of chemicals, using less and getting better results.” According to Fish, “It’s like the good old days again.”
The transition to Haviland’s chemistry was “seamless,” in Fish’s words. “Haviland sent two technical support people down here; it was beneficial to have a new set of eyes in the shop,” he said. “Mixing chemicals and electricity can be like black magic, but it went very smoothly.”
From Fish’s perspective, the successful transition is a continuation of the American “rags to riches” story of Southwest Plating, which his father began by hand-plating motorcycle parts in a garage in 1983. The company is now in a multi-million dollar, ISO-9001 approved facility with 40 employees, and is a major plater for the bumper industry.
“The switch to Haviland processes allowed us to carry on our reputation without missing a beat,” Fish concluded.