Poly Coatings

What Poly Coatings does

Poly Coatings is an industrial metal plating service shop headquartered in Sarasota, Florida, founded in 1980 as Poly Coatings of the South, Inc. by Bernard Zapatha. The company applies mid-phosphorous electroless nickel coatings and its flagship proprietary coating, Poly-Ond® — an electroless nickel (nickel phosphorus) layer uniformly impregnated with Teflon throughout the coating thickness — to precision manufactured parts. Poly Coatings is one of only two service providers worldwide offering the Poly-Ond chemistry. Coatings are delivered as all-over plating (2-3 business day turnaround) or selective/isolated plating (4-5 business days), with thickness ranging from 0.000050 to 0.005 inch per surface, hardness up to RC 68-70 (1000 VHN) after heat treatment, coefficient of friction below 0.06 under 200 lb kinetic load, 300+ hours salt spray resistance per ASTM-B-17, and continuous service from -65°F to +550°F. The single Sarasota facility handles parts up to 4,000 lbs and is described among the cleanest in the industry, with EPA-compliant environmental systems.

The company serves precision parts manufacturers across six primary verticals: aerospace & defense, medical & biomedical, plastic injection molding, automotive, marine, and general industrial manufacturing. Aerospace, medical, and plastic injection molding are positioned as lead segments, with the latter focused on solving mold-release, wear, edge build-up, and galling problems in injection molds, unscrewing cores, and rotary/compression molds. Pricing is quote-based and determined by part size, material, coating type, and specification; revenue mechanics are pure one-time project service revenue. Customer acquisition runs through direct-to-customer industrial sales, including a website-driven "Send a Sample — Try It For Free" funnel, with post-sale engagement via a 1-10 customer satisfaction survey covering performance, quality, and timeliness. Customer relationships are described as 30+ year repeat engagements protected by NDA-covered IP handling.

Ownership transitioned from founder Bernard Zapatha to his three children in 2010, making Poly Coatings a second-generation family business: Wayne Zapatha as Production Manager, Donna Quick in Customer Service, and Glenn Zapatha as Quality Manager (who led a 1990s production-line reengineering that drove a major business expansion). The company holds ISO 9001:2015 certification, the Poly-Ond® registered trademark, and reports no external institutional investors, private equity ownership, or parent company.

Name

Poly Coatings

Legal name

Poly Coatings Inc

Website

https://polycoatings.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Poly Coatings is a Sarasota, Florida-based industrial metal plating shop founded in 1980 that applies proprietary electroless nickel and Poly-Ond® (Teflon-impregnated) coatings to precision parts for aerospace, medical, automotive, marine, and plastic injection molding manufacturers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Metal Finishing and Plating Services

NAICS

Electroplating, Plating, Polishing, Anodizing, and Coloring (332813), Coating, Engraving, Heat Treating, and Allied Activities (33281)

SIC

Coating, Engraving & Allied Services (3470)

akta.pro primary industry

Electroplating & Metal Finishing (Anodizing/Galvanizing/Passivation) (IMAIAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Industrial Protective Coatings (IMAEAHAB), Industrial & Protective Coatings (IMAEAGAB)

Keywords

• Electroless nickel plating
• Teflon impregnated coatings
• Metal finishing services
• Injection mold coatings
• Precision plating services

Headquarters

HQ city

Sarasota

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Metal Plating Services: Custom metal plating services for industrial parts. Services include all-over plating (2-3 business days) and selective plating (4-5 business days). Pricing is quote-based, determined by part size, material, coating type, and specifications.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Poly Coatings is a contract metal plating service provider that applies proprietary and standard electroless nickel coatings to precision industrial parts. Its flagship Poly-Ond® process impregnates mid-phosphorous electroless nickel with Teflon throughout the entire coating thickness, delivering superior lubricity, wear resistance, corrosion protection, and release properties. The company also offers standard Electroless Nickel plating for uniform corrosion and wear protection. Parts are processed at the Sarasota, Florida facility with turnaround times of 2-5 business days, serving aerospace, medical, automotive, plastic injection molding, marine, and general industrial manufacturers.

Product overview

Poly Coatings is a metal plating service provider offering two primary coating products: Poly-Ond® (their proprietary flagship process) and Electroless Nickel plating. Poly-Ond® is a unique coating that combines mid-phosphorous electroless nickel with Teflon impregnation throughout the coating thickness, providing superior lubricity and release properties distinct from standard electroless nickel. Both products serve industrial applications including plastic injection molding, aerospace, automotive, medical, and marine sectors, with thickness ranges from 0.000050 to 0.005 inch per surface.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Poly-Ond®: Proprietary electroless nickel (nickel phosphorous) process impregnated with Teflon throughout the entire coating. Offers superior wear resistance, corrosion protection, and lubricity. Standard thickness 0.0005 inch, hardness RC 58-60 (700 VHN), temperature range -65°F to +550°F continuous.

Products and services

• Poly-Ond® A proprietary coating service that impregnates mid-phosphorous electroless nickel with Teflon uniformly throughout the entire coating thickness, providing superior lubricity, wear resistance, corrosion protection, and release properties. Standard thickness 0.0005 inch (range 0.000050 to 0.005 inch), hardness RC 58-60 (700 VHN), heat treatable to RC 68-70 (1000 VHN), temperature range -65°F to +550°F continuous (intermittent to +700°F), coefficient of friction under 0.06 under 200 lb kinetic load, and salt spray resistance 300+ hours (ASTM-B-17). Used by precision parts manufacturers in plastic injection molding, aerospace, medical, automotive, marine, and industrial applications.
• Electroless Nickel Plating A mid-phosphorous electroless nickel plating service that chemically deposits a uniform coating of nickel and phosphorous onto metal substrates, providing superior corrosion protection and wear resistance. Thickness ranges from 0.000050 to 0.005 inch per surface. Normal hardness RC 50-52 (500 VHN), heat treatable to RC 68-70 (1000 VHN). Coatings are uniformly distributed over the entire surface including internal and external areas. Used for aerospace, medical, automotive, marine, and general industrial precision parts.

Quantifiable outcome

• Salt spray resistance 300+ hours (ASTM-B-17)
• +3 more outcomes

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Anoplate Corporation: Syracuse-based metal finishing shop offering electroless nickel plating, anodizing, and other surface treatments serving aerospace, medical, and industrial customers. Directly comparable as a specialty plating service provider with overlapping technical capabilities and customer segments.
• General Magnaplate: Specialty metal surface treatment company offering proprietary Teflon- and polymer-impregnated coatings (e.g., Nedox, Tufram) for industrial applications. Directly comparable to Poly Coatings as both firms combine electroless nickel with fluoropolymer impregnation to deliver lubricious, corrosion-resistant coatings.
• Precision Plating Company: Family-owned metal finishing shop in Chicago offering electroless nickel plating and related surface treatments. Comparable to Poly Coatings as another long-running, privately-held specialty plating service targeting industrial and precision manufacturing customers.
• Advanced Plating Technologies: Precision metal finishing house providing electroless nickel, tin, and decorative plating for aerospace, defense, and medical OEMs. Comparable as a similarly-sized specialty plating service serving the same high-reliability verticals.
• Techmetals: Ohio-based metal finishing company offering electroless nickel, chrome, and anodizing services to industrial and aerospace customers. Comparable as a similarly-positioned specialty plating service provider.
• Electro-Spec: Indiana-based metal finishing service offering electroless nickel, tin, and anodizing for industrial and aerospace applications. Comparable as a regional specialty plating service with overlapping capabilities and customer base.
• Surface Treatment Technologies: Specialty metal finishing and surface treatment provider serving aerospace, medical, and industrial customers. Comparable to Poly Coatings as a specialty plating service with overlapping capabilities and end markets.

Broad incumbents

• Uyemura International: Global supplier of electroless nickel, gold, and other plating chemistries, with strong North American presence serving industrial and electronics finishers. Comparable as a broad incumbent in the surface treatment chemistry space that supports shops like Poly Coatings.
• Pavco (CP Group): Major supplier of plating chemicals and processes to the metal finishing industry, including electroless nickel chemistry. Comparable as an industry incumbent supplying the chemistry and process know-how that Poly Coatings relies on, though operating in an upstream supply role rather than as a service competitor.

Emerging players

• Coatings and Surface Treatments LLC: Specialty coating and surface treatment firm applying advanced polymer-infused and electroless nickel coatings to precision parts. Comparable as an emerging player in the same niche surface treatment category, potentially representing a future competitive threat or complementary service.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/poly-coatings-of-the-south-inc

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Poly Coatings