Wearing – Scratch/Dent Resistance

It is a myth that some metals will not be scratched. Any metal can be scratched and dented. The specifier should therefore avoid decorated metals, plain or laminates, for any horizontal application such as desk or bar tops. Wear and vandalism are a fact of life; many modern textures and small incremental design patterns will effectively hide ordinary wear and light intentional scratching. Some grinding finishes were actually designed to absorb heavy wear and vandalism. Other finishes such as Long Grain Satin, Polished, and Non Directional Satin can actually be reconditioned and repaired on site, if a repair intervention can be justified economically. In many countries, metal maintenance teams are trained to recondition such surfaces. If the metal is severely dented, it cannot be repaired and must be replaced.

Although our PVD finishes demonstrate very good scratch resistance, please remember that nothing is “bullet proof”, and literally all finishes can be scratched. If the scratch is deep enough to go through the applied finish, then the underlying substrate will be revealed.

Scratch resistance testing can be done if required.