FOODSERVICE
AND HEALTHCARE
COATINGS

Polyurea and Polyurethane Coatings for Healthier Operating Environments

CLEANER, SAFER, AND MORE FUNCTIONAL SURFACES

The foodservice and healthcare industries are intertwined and inseparable. What you put into your body reflects what you get out of your body, and most of us could benefit from learning to strike a better balance between health and indulgence. Moreover, their shared relationship to health and wellness extends to how these industries operate safely and efficiently. Both require hygienic and sanitary conditions to remain compliant, and more importantly, to deliver life-sustaining nourishment and life-saving medical care without harming consumers in the process. However, there’s a bit of a catch-22 here; kitchens and medical facilities are teeming with dirt and bacteria by virtue of what they do and how they do it, yet these spaces must remain spick and span or they’ll be of more harm than help. So the only solution is to take every measure to ensure that both environments are designed for maximum cleanliness, and to frequently disinfect between dishes or procedures. To help make this job easier, surfaces can be coated in an antibacterial layer of materials technologies like polyurea and polyurethane, which also serve to provide high-performance all-purpose protection.

FOODSERVICE COATINGS

Foodservice coatings refer to those used to help ensure a clean environment in restaurant kitchens, industrial food processing, or even private homes. An effective foodservice coating must meet several minimum requirements, with the first and most important being its hygiene profile. Foodservice coatings should serve to make surfaces easier to clean and more resilient to contamination, or they’re unsuited to fulfill their fundamental purpose. Secondly, foodservice coatings should be chemically resistant, which includes food acids like tomato sauce and cleaning agents like bleach or peroxide. Separate but not entirely distinct, the third key requirement is lasting durability; if coatings can only enhance the cleanliness of a space for a limited period of time, they’re too impractical for use. Beyond these basic requirements, foodservice coatings can offer myriad additional benefits depending on the chosen technology, such as abrasion resistance and corrosion protection using polyurea or polyurethane.

HEALTHCARE COATINGS

Just like foodservice coatings, healthcare coatings are fundamentally employed to create cleaner environments, but instead of being found in culinary spaces they’re applied in medical facilities like hospitals, clinics, and schools. In this case, their requirements are similar but with several key differences to that of foodservice coatings, namely in terms of their antimicrobial properties. Even a small contamination of a single type of bacteria can turn a routine procedure into sudden and life-threatening complications, so it’s paramount that bacteria are unable to survive and proliferate on medical surfaces. Healthcare coatings thus should serve as antimicrobial coatings, killing bacteria that finds its way onto sensitive surfaces or stopping its growth before the next sanitation cycle. And don’t get us wrong, antimicrobial properties are certainly beneficial for foodservice coatings as well, but the threat posed by bacteria in medical environments is far greater and therefore mitigating the risk of microbes is priority number one.

ARMORTHANE’S POLYUREA AND POLYURETHANE
FOR HEALTHCARE AND FOODSERVICE

While there are indeed several key differences between foodservice coatings and healthcare coatings, you’ll be pleased to hear there’s a single solution that’s perfect for both applications: spray elastomer technology, or more specifically, ArmorThane’s polyurea and polyurethane. Both material technologies have been used for decades to improve the performance and appeal of surfaces across industries and applications, from the military to the agricultural and beyond. That’s because they offer robust full-surface protection from just about anything and everything that might compromise the integrity of countless different structures. They insulate surfaces from mechanical wear like harsh abrasion and forceful impacts, chemical degradation such as corrosion, and even radiation-based hazards like UV light. At the same time, our coatings can also make surfaces more functional or visually appealing; they can be formulated in customizable colors and finishes and multi-purpose additives can be incorporated to further tailor its aesthetic and performance properties. Best of all, our coatings are, well, our coatings! ArmorThane is the world’s one-stop shop for everything polyurea and polyurethane and we’ve made it easier and more cost-effective than ever to employ the perfect solution for your specific project. No hidden costs, shoddy workmanship, or frustrating customer service or technical support; just some of the most knowledgeable professionals in the field powered by full-suite capabilities.

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Is Polyurea Food-Safe?

Some polyurea formulations are safe for use with potable water and food-handling services, although this may require speciality formulations. Most polyureas are used in environments where the sanitary standards lie far below that of the foodservice industry, but companies like ArmorThane manufacture innovative products that are designed with food safety as a key feature.

What’s The Difference Between Healthcare And Medical Coatings?

Healthcare coatings refer to those that are used to help create and maintain proper hygiene and sanitation in clinics, hospitals, and other medical contexts. Medical coatings are used more directly, applied to devices like catheters or medical implants to make them safer and longer-lasting. So while they’re both used in healthcare, they’re two distinct technologies with two separate roles.

Is Polyurea Antibacterial?

Remarkably, polyurea’s notorious strength and flexibility can be paired with robust antimicrobial properties that make it well-suited for use in industries like healthcare or food services. For example, ArmorThane’s antimicrobial polyurea coatings incorporate silver ions that preserve everything traditionally loved about polyurea while making it a means of inhibiting bacterial growth.

PROTECT OUR WORLD WITH CLEANER SPACES

Both the healthcare and foodservice industries rely on tools and technologies to maintain safe operating environments for patients and patrons, not to mention teams of dedicated staff that deserve the same protection. Polyurea and polyurethane are as good as it gets when it comes to creating safer surfaces, and there’s likewise no better partner than ArmorThane. With over 35 years in business we’ve grown with the technology to stay at the forefront of innovation and are proud to see our technology applied to keep people safe. So if you’re interested in employing our coatings for your food or medical facility, contact us today, and discover why we’ve become the world’s one-stop shop for everything polyurea and polyurethane.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

TYLER GLECKLER

I am a chemist with a specialization in nanotechnology and applied materials chemistry. My work has focused on the characterization of optoelectronic materials, namely including semiconductor nanocrystals.

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