Top Shops: Metokote is No. 1 Top Shop Liquid/Powder for 2016

 

Jeff Oravitz says walk into any of MetoKote’s 30 operations around the globe and you’ll see the same core values.

The company president says the Lima, Ohio-based company is built on a passion for success, a commitment to service, employee empowerment with accountability, creativity with innovation, and ethics and integrity.

“It is our continuous customer focus that is an unwavering commitment,” Oravitz says. “It is the ability to direct a custom coating project from the initial opportunity stage throughout the entire project life cycle.”

That dedication to customers made MetoKote Corporation the No. 1 facility on the Products Finishing Top Shops Benchmarking Survey rankings for liquid and powder coatings in 2016, based on statistical analysis from more than 45 criteria.

MetoKote provides electrocoat, powder coat and liquid paint services for more than 800 customers in its Lima plant, plus an additional 29 facilities worldwide, focusing on industries such as agriculture, appliance, automotive, computer, construction equipment, electrical, furniture, industrial equipment, recreational, and truck and bus.

Oravitz says the company values define the cultural context in which they work.

“We set lofty standards for our employees and facilities as we endeavor to exceed our customers’ expectations,” he says.

That is an often difficult task to accomplish when considering MetoKote finishes about 355 million parts per year. But at a 99.6 first-pass quality yield based on the benchmarking survey, the staff is getting about as close to perfection as possible.

The company is nearing its half-century mark, founded in 1969 by the Blankemeyer brothers, who started MetoKote in a small garage in Mt. Cory, Ohio, by building a powder booth out of used components.

For the last several years, Platinum Equity owned MetoKote before its recent sale to PPG, a major supplier in the coatings industry.

“MetoKote is a leader in coatings services,” says Viktor Sekmakas, PPG executive vice president. “Its size, breadth of capabilities and geographic reach complement PPG’s technology and regional customer base.  With this acquisition, we will be able to deliver process efficiency and streamline coatings operations for our customers.”

The company also provides additional value-added services, such as aftermarket sheet metal labeling, packaging, logistics, light assembly services, data collection and analysis, masking development and use, and direct shipment of coated parts to the final point of assembly.

Another big reason for MetoKote’s success is its quality and testing operations. The company recently relocated its performance test laboratory to a larger space within its Lima facility. It offers customers the services of an in-house American Association for Laboratory Accreditation certified laboratory.

The laboratory is staffed by full-time employees and services such as salt spray testing, cyclical corrosion testing, humidity testing, QUV accelerated weathering, hardness tests, solvent rubs and others. MetoKote also performs biweekly panel corrosion tests for its 78 process lines located around the world.

“Moving to a larger space allows us to continue accommodating customer needs in a timely manner,” Oravitz says. “It saves our customers time and money by eliminating the need to utilize outside laboratory services, and our  A2LA accreditation offers customers confidence in the accuracy of our testing methods.”