Before there was powder coating, things like cars and carriages were hand painted to produce the desired upscale shiny finish people wanted at the turn of the century to signify their wealth and indulgent lifestyle. This process would have to be touched up as frequently as once a year because of the way the paint would fade and chip away so fast. Seeing the need for more efficiency and durability, automotive makers upgraded to using the same varnishes that were commonly found on wagons at the time. Although it was a step up in durability, it wasn't the record breaking change they needed when it came to efficiency. These varnishes would take well over a month to finish layering on daily before you could properly sand and finish them.
It wasn't until the roaring twenties that the process advanced due to the creation of the paint spray gun. Alongside this, it is only fitting that during such a exuberant and vivacious time period, the world would also be introduced to chrome plating. Casting a glimmer over what was otherwise seen as an obscure and secretive time period due to prohibition, the flash of chrome excited people at the time almost as much as the alluring underground speakeasies.
Over the next few decades there were few improvements here and there but it wasn't until the 1940's and 1950's that the true concept of powder coating came to life. By the 1940's the process of flame spraying thermoplastics existed and looked pretty similar to today's concept of powder coating. In the 1950's, a German doctor named Erwin Gemmer contributed to the advancement of modern day powder coating through his fluid-bed application technique. This technique helped with improving mar resistance and added to the advancements in chemical resistance and corrosion prevention.
Today we use a much more environmentally friendly technique called electrostatic spraying. Unlike flame spraying, the powdered paint is electrically charged within the powder coating gun and then sprayed on to clean grounded surfaces allowing it to gather in even desired layers. After this it is cured in an oven where the particles bond culminating into the powder coat finish we know and love today. Like most things in life, the carousel of time has progressively changed the process of powder coating for the better and will continue to do so with more advancements and better techniques that lie in the future.