Aged Metal - Evolution™

The Evolution Collection uses polyester resin systems to achieve excellent exterior durability and gloss retention. Evolution architectural finishes can be applied to aluminium, mild steel, galvanized steel and most metal substrates. When used in combination with chrome-free pre-treatment Evolution gives a long-lasting & hard-wearing finish.

Using Evolution powder coatings on architectural metalwork. 

Powder coating approvals 

The Evolution range includes powders of different properties defined by one or more of the approvals below.

• Qualicoat: P-0301, P-0472, P-0560, P-0599.

• Meets Qualicoat architectural powder coating specifications. PRA analysis report, 77780-327b, November 2018.

• PRA World BS EN 12206-1 and Qualicoat specification test results available as a separate document.

• Reaction to fire category: A2-s1, d0. System Laboratories report Nr 342-B, September 2023

Properties of Evolution architectural finish

• Applied gloss @ 60 degrees: ISO2813. Tactile matt finish, 5% to 35% depending on finish chosen.

• Applied film thickness: > 80 microns. Process Pre-treatment: Aluminium. Titanium-Zirconium (TiZr) non-chrome 6-stage pre-treatment. Galvanized steel. Silane (Oxsilan) non-chrome 8-stage pre-treatment.

Powder application

• Pre-treatment: Aluminium. Titanium-Zirconium (TiZr) non-chrome 6-stage pre-treatment. Galvanized steel. Silane (Oxsilan) non-chrome 8-stage pre-treatment

• Corona discharge system. Applied under ISO 9001: 2015 Quality Management System. Approval Nr: LRQ 10267185

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Rust effect powder coating Aged Metal Evolution 'Sandstorm' at the Baltic Triangle, Liverpool

Powder coating finishes have significant advantages over Corten

A coating for aluminium and steel

They can be used on both aluminium and steel. The use of steel in any construction project can reduce static load and increase freedom for the designer. Corten is a steel based product only.

A rust-effect coating that is stable

This is a one-step finish with no need for sealing coatings to stop corrosion. Important there is no staining from water run-off and the finish itself can be cleaned with water and a mild detergent.

Corten relies on a protective oxide layer which is soluble. This layer can wash away or break down which will cause the base metal to keep rusting, leading to failure. In fact, Corten will have water run-off which causes staining on surrounding materials. The ‘Corten’ colour can even penetrate ground water. In order to reduce this as much as possible special accelerators can be added but these chemicals will contain VOCs.

A protective architectural coating with minimal environmental impact

As a consequence of these, and other properties, the use of Corten is restricted and is not recommended for use in areas less than a mile from the coast or where de-icing of roads is carried out.

We provide further details on the differences between Corten and rust-effect powder coatings on this page.