Seen and Solved by Hubbard-Hall

Inconsistent coating performance, plating defects, and costly rework often start long before parts ever reach the plating bath. In this episode of Seen & Solved, experts from Hubbard-Hall and Pavco discuss the upstream causes of rejects in metal finishing operations — and how manufacturers can improve quality and consistency without sacrificing throughput. Many shops struggle with process drif...

When parts aren’t coming out clean, the first instinct is to change the chemistry. In many cases, that’s not where the problem starts. In this episode of Seen & Solved , Tim Pennington talks with Mike Valenti about what actually drives cleaning performance in a metal finishing operation. It’s a practical look at a common issue across shops – trying to solve systemic problems with chemistry, wh...

Choosing the right aqueous cleaner isn’t always straightforward. Metal type, soil load, equipment, temperature, and wastewater considerations all influence performance—and small missteps in cleaning can lead to bigger problems downstream. In this episode of Seen and Solved , Dave Govoni, Senior Chemist at Hubbard-Hall, shares practical insight from years of hands-on experience in metal finishing....

Paraffin-based rust preventatives are some of the most stubborn soils in metal finishing. When they’re not removed properly, shops pay the price — in labor, solvent cost, safety concerns, and poor adhesion. In this episode of Seen and Solved, a finishing facility was forced to wipe every single part with acetone before cleaning just to remove a tenacious paraffin-based oil. The manual step slowed...

In this episode of Seen and Solved , Travis Hilton, Operations Manager at Hubbard-Hall, discusses one of the most critical controls in electronics and specialty metal finishing: achieving and maintaining the proper tin-lead plating ratio. Tin-lead electroplating is still widely used in aerospace, medical, military, and electronics applications where solderability, ductility, and corrosion resistan...

Wastewater compliance can feel overwhelming for metal finishers, but it doesn’t have to be. In this episode of Seen & Solved, the conversation focuses on what wastewater inspections really involve, what regulators are looking for, and how facilities can stay prepared year-round. The discussion covers how inspections are conducted, common issues that lead to notices of violation, and why housek...

Pretreatment isn’t guesswork—it’s a discipline built on decisions made long before parts reach the finish line. In this episode of Seen & Solved, Gary Raihl, Business Development Manager at Hubbard-Hall, shares how pretreatment systems should be evaluated from the ground up—looking beyond individual products to the full process. Drawing on decades of experience in powder coating and chemical p...

As the year winds down, we’re taking a look back at the moments and stories that brought real wins on the shop floor!  From wastewater breakthroughs… to black oxide consistency… and semiconductor purity, we’ll revisit the ‘best of 2025’… with all our guests who delivered practical takeaways you can use right away!  It’s the best of the year 2025 – on Seen & Solved by Hubbard-Hall!

In this episode of Seen & Solved , Tim Pennington talks with Bukola Adeyemi about why effective cleaning and pretreatment determine whether a finish succeeds or fails. Bukola brings practical insight from the field—what she sees in shops every week, what causes adhesion breakdown, and why most plating problems start long before metal meets metal.   They get into what really matters: controllin...

In this episode of Seen and Solved, host Tim Pennington talks with Travis Hilton, Operations Manager and former Application Specialist at Hubbard-Hall, about one of the most overlooked steps in electroless nickel plating—tank preparation. From cleaning and stripping to passivation and verification, they break down the exact process that ensures a stable, high-performing EN bath. Learn why nitric c...

In this episode of Seen and Solved , host Tim Pennington welcomes Bill Blanchet and Tyler Thomas from Seacole and Connor Callais from Hubbard-Hall to address the technical challenges of achieving consistent black oxide finishes in the firearms and tooling industries. The discussion highlights how reject rates as high as 40% can be reduced to near zero by properly engineering black oxide lines, pai...

In this special, out-of-studio episode of Seen and Solved, we join Jeff Davis – SVP of Business Development and Distribution - and Shelley Lusas – Director of Marketing - at D’Amelio’s Restaurant in Waterbury, Connecticut for a conversation that is as much about celebration as it is reflection. Designed to be a fun, relaxed setting, this episode captures the spirit of what Jeff himself coined as “...

Part 2 of the series on Cleaning, Coating, Compliance in Seen & Solved takes a deeper look at immersion applications, focusing on chemical control and post-treatment in conversion coatings. Host Tim Pennington continues his discussion with Connor Callais, Product Manager at Hubbard-Hall, shifting the focus to why monitoring time, temperature, and concentration is essential for proper bath cont...

What makes or breaks a successful immersion application? In this episode of Seen & Solved, host Tim Pennington sits down with Connor Callais, Product Manager at Hubbard-Hall, to walk through the keys to achieving consistent, high-quality conversion coatings. In Part 1 of this conversation, Connor shares insights on: • Common mistakes in immersion processes and how to avoid them • Why racking a...

On this episode of Seen & Solved , host Tim Pennington is joined by Jason Potts — better known as the Finishing Fixer — to break down a real-world challenge inside a powder coating operation. The customer was running a line at twice the normal speed, stuck with a cleaner that only worked with constant boosters, and dealing with lead times that dragged on for months. Jason explains how he and t...

PFAS continues to be one of the most pressing issues for the finishing industry, and the pressure is not going away. In this episode of Seen and Solved, host Tim Pennington speaks with Robin Deal of Hubbard-Hall about what finishers need to know now. They examine how the EPA’s current priorities place metal finishing squarely in the spotlight, why the industry’s decades-long history with PFAS matt...

In this episode of Seen and Solved , host Tim Pennington talks with Erik Sarlund, Hubbard-Hall’s pretreatment expert, about why Phos & Clean is showing up in more tanks and earning a reputation for performance. Phos & Clean isn’t just a single product—it’s a complete line of one-step cleaner coaters built to save time, reduce waste, and keep quality high. Erik shares where it’s being used...

What does modern marketing look like inside a 175-year-old chemical company? In this episode of Beyond the Brand, Shelley Lusas, Marketing Director at Hubbard-Hall, shares how a lean team is making a big impact – blending bold creative ideas, consistent strategy, and the smart use of AI to stay ahead. Shelley walks through how every campaign is built around three clear goals: brand awareness, lead...

In this episode of Seen & Solved, host Tim Pennington sits down with Scott Papst, Senior Vice President of Specialty Sales and Business Development at Hubbard-Hall, to tackle an issue that's hitting finishing shops across the country: the decline in supplier support. As consolidation reshapes the metal finishing and surface treatment industry, many shops are feeling the strain of reduced s...

What does Lean really mean—and how can it create measurable value for you as the customer? In this episode of Seen and Solved , host Tim Pennington sits down with Hubbard-Hall's COO Aaron Mambrino and Lean consultant Bill Greider to go behind the chemistry and explore how Lean thinking is reshaping operations at every level of the company. Lean isn’t about doing more with less or checking boxes—it...

In this episode of Seen & Solved , host Tim Pennington sits down with the Customer Experience Team at Hubbard-Hall to explore the core values and everyday practices that drive their exceptional customer experience. From coordinating across four different locations to maintaining transparent communication and building long-term relationships, the team shares how consistency, empathy, and empowe...

In this episode of Seen & Solved , we dive into aphosphate showdown between two industry-leading surface treatment solutions:the Z-1500 and TCJ-50. Host Tim Pennington is joined by Hubbard-Hall veteransKevin O’Brien and Erik Surland for a head-to-head comparison of theselow-sludge, high-performance phosphates. Kevin and Erik break down the chemistry, coating weights,and cost-saving impacts the...

In this episode of Seen and Solved, host Tim Pennington talks with two of the people who help keep things moving behind the scenes: Tim Large, Plant Manager in South Carolina, and Mike Kohlberg, Warehouse Supervisor in Connecticut. Together, they bring more than 30 years of experience managing inventory, quality, and delivery with consistency and care. Hear how they approach planning, communicatio...

In this episode of Seen & Solved, host Tim Pennington is joined by Hubbard-Hall’s Robin Deal and Jeremy Morgan to break down a high-stakes wastewater treatment challenge faced by a major automotive manufacturer. The facility was struggling to manage a heavily chelated spent acid pickle bath that was costing $30,000 a month to treat and taking 30 days per cycle. With corporate pushing for more...

In this episode of Seen & Solved , host Tim Pennington sits down with Rob Augello, Hubbard-Hall’s high-purity expert, to explore the critical role of ultra-clean chemistry in semiconductor manufacturing. Rob breaks down the complexities of high-purity solvents, acids, and photoresists - products refined to parts-per-billion and even parts-per trillion purity levels. They discuss the rigorous q...