CHEMICAL ETCHING EQUIPMENT FOR INDUSTRY

Masteretch are a manufacturer of chemical etching equipment. 

We serve a wide range of industries including 

• Signs, Labels and Nameplates
• Chemical Milling
• Electronics
• Printing

Chemical etching machines harnesses the corrosive reaction between the chemical and the metal and amplify the effect by heating the solution and spraying at high pressure.

Chemical etching is a multistage photo-lithographic process.  The metal is first cleaned and then laminated with a UV sensitive photoresist film. A photo tool containing the desired artwork is placed on top of the laminated material. It is then exposed to UV light.  

The UV light passes through the clear areas of the photo tool hardening the laminated film. The sheet is then chemically developed to wash away the unexposed photoresist leaving a very precise mask of hardened photoresist behind.  

The material is placed in the etching machine where is it sprayed with a high pressure temperature regulated chemical  spray (most commonly Ferric Chloride).  The solution etches away the unprotected portions of the material to reproduce the desired image. 

The chemical spray dissolves the material atom by atom for a smooth burr free finish. In the final stage the photoresist is stripped away leaving the material ready for any post etching processes required.

Other resist methods commonly used in metal etching include screen printed resists (particularly in high volume nameplate production) Laser engravable resist, Vinyl resist, laser direct imaging and more recently direct inkjet printed resists. 

Chemical milling is a high precision process used to produce complex parts and components out of sheet metal. In the chemical milling process the artwork is applied on both sides of the material and is etched from both sides to cut all the way through the material. 

It is a versatile manufacturing technique that retains hardness, temper, magnetic permeability, and other qualities without causing excessive stress on the material. Tooling costs are very low and design changes can easily be incorporated.

As an alternative to "conventional" methods, such as  laser, water jet, stamping of wire EDM, chemical milling provides an accurate and economical solution for many precision metal applications.

Most metals can be etched when paired with the correct etchant. Our customers use our equipment to etch a wide variety of materials including:

• Stainless steel
• Brass
• Copper
• Bronze
• Aluminium
• Titanium
• Nitinol
• Molybdenum
• Zinc
• Nickel

Contact us to discuss your etching requirements.

Masteretch manufacture a wide range of chemical etching equipment ranging from benchtop etching machines for research and development through to fully automated high volume photochemical milling lines. Standard models include:

• Masteretch Model 360
• Masteretch Model 635
• Masteretch 650 Series
• Masteretch 750 Series

We also able to design and build custom chemical etching equipment to help our customers overcome some of the toughest challenges in the etching industy. Custom machine built by Masteretch include:

• Wide format etching machines
• Titanium etching machines
• cabinet etching machines
• high volume phtochemical milling lines
• lathe etching machines