Speakers used by professionals are subject to very harsh handling: shipments are loaded in trucks, stacked in a warehouse or backstage, subjected to rain or other weather conditions, and moved around between venues. As a result of repeated use, a standard painted cabinet will chip, crack, or absorb water.
Thus, there has been a greater need for manufacturers to use polyurea in their production of speaker cabinets. Polyurea speaker manufacturing is a highly durable spray-on coating that protects the speaker cabinet’s exterior from damage through impacts, as well as from moisture. For professional audio producers, using polyurea is an effective option for providing their clients with an all-weather sound solution.
What Is Polyurea Speaker Manufacturing?
The cabinet of a speaker, otherwise known as an enclosure is the box containing the speaker’s components. In building speakers using polyurea speaker manufacturing, a tough protective coating is applied to the outside of the cabinet.
The coating is sprayed directly onto the wooden surface that was previously prepared. The coating cures, or hardens, in a matter of seconds and forms an on-going bond with the cabinet wood surface.
Think of the polyuria coating function as being similar to the protective liner that one finds inside the bed of the truck; its purpose is to protect from scratches, water, and other damaging impacts, as well as handle normal wear and tear.
Unlike a conventional paint surface, once the speaker enclosure is placed in its desired location, the polyethylene coating will not peel or crack when moved. The coating also provides additional protection for the corners/edges, which tend to be the first areas damaged on any cabinet surface.
Why Polyurea-Coated Cabinets Matter
Protection against moisture is a major advantage of polyurea coatings. A waterproof speaker cabinet manufacturer coats its cabinets with a polyurea coating to form a waterproof seal on the cabinet.
The polyurea coating prevents rain, humidity, and accidental spills from damaging the wood enclosure, which would normally, over time, cause untreated wood to swell, twist, or deteriorate.
In addition to providing moisture protection, polyurea speaker manufacturing is resistant to scratching and impacts. They have a number of cabinets (touring cabinets and rental cabinets) that regularly go through loading, unloading, stacking, and transportation processes, and it is impossible for them to avoid all dings, no matter how cautiously they are treated.
The polyurea coating also prevents the cabinet from looking as good for the longest possible amount of time. Standard paint may fade, chip, or peel; however, with the polyurea finish, the cabinet usually holds up better than standard paint through extensive use and abuse.
Colour choice is another advantage of polyurea-coated speaker cabinets. Ezcom currently offers three polyurea finish options, shiny black, matte black, and white. This allows brands to select a finish that matches their product design, brand identity, and target market.
For customers, this can mean fewer repairs, replacements, and increased overall value for their purchases.
Built for Outdoor and Touring Use
Because outdoor events typically create additional challenges for audio gear, you might find yourself with a speaker that has been sitting near a stage in the hot sun, suddenly rained on, and then put into an over-crowded truck overnight.
This is why having a quality manufacturer of speaker cabinets with experience in making products for Outdoor speaker enclosure manufacturer use is critical. Not only do they have to know how your cabinets will be used, but also how your cabinets should look after they are manufactured.
Polyurea coated cabinets are ideal for festival/concert use, stadiums, rental fleets, touring systems, and fixed location applications. These cabinets are designed to withstand changing weather, repeated transport and ongoing set-ups.
While coating is important, it’s not enough by itself. The cabinet still needs to be made from quality wood. Built with strong joints, have quality fittings, and be properly constructed internally. Polyurea coatings will help protect a cabinet built to exacting standards, but they cannot improve the structural integrity of one that has been poorly manufactured.
Why Brands Choose an OEM Partner
OEM stands for Original Equipment Manufacturer, which describes a company that manufactures a product to sell under someone else’s brand name. By using a custom manufacturer of speaker cabinets as an OEM, audio brands can save the costs associated with starting and managing a factory while benefiting from having a partner manufacturer to handle all aspects of the manufacturing process and allow the audio brand to concentrate on planning, selling, marketing, and supporting customers.
A custom OEM speaker cabinet manufacturer will be able to produce speaker cabinets according to the buyer’s drawings, dimensions, materials, finishes, and logos; as well as potentially producing the cabinet, applying polyurea coatings, assembling woofers and crossover circuits, integrating amplifiers into cabinets, performing testing, and packaging products for export.
Ezcom Electronics provides a full range of services and solutions for professional audio brands and distributors who require private label speaker products for sale in both the United States and Europe. As a result, clients can manage many of the stages of production through a single manufacturing partner, reducing the number of different parties involved in the communication process and ensuring improved consistency between production runs.
What Buyers Should Check
Quality of a coated cabinet will depend on the surface preparation, coating thickness, coating application quality, and inspection.
Ask the manufacturer how they prepare the wood, apply the coating, and how they protect edges, handles, grilles, and connection panels.
Always confirm that the manufacturer is able to supply the following: custom sizes; branding; color; texture; packaging; quantity.
Buyers should also confirm the available cabinet sizes, branding options, colours, textures, packaging, and order quantities. Ezcom currently provides shiny black, matte black, and white polyurea finishes.
Accurate woodworking and controlled coating are both critical to quality polyurea speaker manufacturing; each step is as important as the other.
Talk to Ezcom About Polyurea-Coated Cabinets
Ezcom Electronics provides assistance to international clients searching for waterproof speaker cabinet manufacturers as well as the production of speakers under a private label; protection from the elements and water through polyurea speaker manufacturing coating or other coatings may assist them in locating a supplier.
Ezcom maintains a full range of services for speaker cabinets including developing custom products, coating, assembly, creating sample products, and establishing the production of products.
An informal conversation with you regarding your product requirements will give you a good idea if polyurea is an appropriate choice for your touring, outdoor, installation, and rental speaker requirements.
FAQ:
What is polyurea coating, in simple terms?
Polyurea is a spray applied coating (only at the external portion) on a speaker cabinet that provides an outer protection (hard coat) for the speaker cabinet itself by adhering tightly to the wood underneath and quickly hardening.
Are polyurea-coated speaker cabinets really waterproof?
Sure are, and with proper application, the coating makes a barrier that helps seal the wood from rain, humidity and spills.
Is polyurea coating only useful for outdoor or touring speakers?
No, while the biggest benefit of a polyurea coating will go to speakers used outdoors/touring/rental; you still have the benefits of added protection to speakers that frequently get moved/stacked/transported.
Can a brand order custom polyurea-coated cabinets under its own label?
Yes, OEM partners such as Ezcom, will build cabinets to the manufacturer’s specifications for the design, finish, dimensions and labelling.
