Electroplating or electroforming is the term used to describe processes that use electrochemical processes to create metallic deposits on a self-conducting material. Today, they are mostly used to coat surfaces.
Electroplating, which was once used to create statues and monuments, is hardly used today. The technique of electroplating was made possible by the invention of batteries by Alessandro Volta around the year 1800. He invented this battery in connection with the research of Luigi Galvani, who also gave his name to today's galvanization.
During his experiments, Volta discovered, among other things, that copper was deposited on an iron rod that was connected to the negative pole of his battery and immersed in a copper sulphate bath. He also immersed a copper rod, which was connected to the positive terminal, in the solution. This simple procedure is still used today by hobbyists to enhance workpieces with copper luster.
Later, the first documented gilding was carried out by one of Volta's students in 1805, and the process was increasingly used industrially from 1840 onwards. From around 1850, life-size statues were produced comparatively cheaply using the process, and the triumph of electroplating had begun.
Over the centuries, electroplating has developed into a mature process with numerous possible applications. In addition to plastic electroplating and the application of metallic coatings, a distinction is made between decorative and functional applications. The enhancement of surfaces is characteristic of one use of the technique. Fashionable jewelry, for example, is often gold-plated, silver-plated or coated with other metals. Typical examples of objects enhanced by electroplating are chrome-plated components in motor vehicles, silver-plated cutlery or shiny metallic plastic parts.
However, electroplating is much more important in the field of functional applications. Because the thickness of the coating can be controlled very well and, if carried out professionally, is also uniform, workpieces can be coated in a variety of ways. Technically, it is also possible to make plastic components electrically conductive, which expands the field of application of electroplating immensely. For example, screws are galvanized for corrosion protection, machine parts are hard chrome-plated for longer durability and electrical contacts are gold-plated, silver-plated or copper-plated for better conductivity. The field of functional electroplating includes mold making for injection molding machines and lithographic electroplating molding technology, which was only invented around 1980.
In Germany alone, around 2100 registered companies in the sector currently generate annual sales of 8.3 billion euros and employ around 60,000 people. Training to become an electroplater, which today is more simply known as a surface coater, takes three years in Germany and four years in Switzerland. Further training as a technician is possible, and if you have a university entrance qualification, you can also study or train as a master craftsman.