Surface finishing, ordered with the part.

Anodizing converts the surface of the aluminum itself into a hard oxide layer through an electrochemical process — thin, wear-resistant, and aluminum-only. Powder coating sprays and bakes on an added layer of colored polymer, works on steel and aluminum alike, and comes in any RAL in matte, satin, gloss or textured, at the cost of being less abrasion-resistant than anodizing. Anodizing if the part is aluminum and has to keep its tolerances; powder coat if it is another metal or needs a specific RAL.

They're electrolytic bath finishes, similar in process to chrome plating, that deposit a thin decorative metallic layer in a specific tone — old gold, brushed gold, gun metal, brushed copper, satin copper and other sector-standard options. They're specified like any other finish, against the part's drawing, at quoting.

Yes. Black oxide gives steel and copper alloys corrosion resistance and a dark matte look; chromate conversion (chem-film / Alodine) protects aluminum while keeping it electrically conductive and paint-ready; electroless nickel plating lays down a uniform, corrosion-resistant nickel layer that coats even complex internal geometry evenly, on steel, aluminum or stainless. Each is specified against the part's drawing at quoting, like any other finish.

Yes — laser marking engraves a permanent mark directly into the surface, unlike a printed label or a sticker. It's commonly specified alongside another finish (marking after anodizing or powder coating, for example) so the mark survives whatever the part goes through afterward.

No — anodizing is aluminum-only, since it converts the aluminum's own surface rather than adding a layer. PVD, chrome, powder coat, paint and sandblasting work across a broader range of metals and plastics. We flag the fit at quoting, not after the part's already been made.

A coating adds thickness, so it is planned with the part and not after it. Anodizing grows into the aluminum and keeps its tolerances; powder coat sits on top and adds its own layer. Mating faces and threads can be masked so the coat never touches a tolerance: mark them on the drawing.

Yes. Mating faces and threads are masked so the coat doesn't touch them. Mark them on the 2D drawing and we plan the masking and the allowance for the coat with the part.

Yes — that's the default, not an add-on. Specifying the finish with the part at quoting means masking, surface prep and dimensional allowance get planned into the drawing from the start, instead of discovered as a rework after the part already exists.

The 3D model as a STEP file and the 2D drawing as a PDF. The drawing carries what the model cannot say: the finish and color, the visible face, and the threads and mating faces to mask. You get a price per part in 24–48 hours.

Some of these finishes are only cost-effective on a production run rather than a one-off prototype — we say so at quoting and suggest the closest option that works at your quantity.