For jewelry production, the last step - finishing, which means decorative finishing - is the most important step, not neglecting quality of casting, using proper flat stock, soldering, etc. But at the end of production, an excellent finish is the best sales force. In the jewelry industry, finishing means buffing, a manual finish. With the rising labor costs in the last decades, technical developments have been used to reduce these labor costs. The most important and successful method has been the multiple application of "mass finishing" based on better technology. Mass finishing was not unknown in the jewelry industry; for over 100 years barrel tumbling has been used for polishing or shining small parts such as findings and chains. The modernized technology of mass finishing, starting in the fifties and sixties, introduced new ideas that the jewelry industry can use. There are certain new steps, which are based on both mechanical systems and processing supplies: 1) Better knowledge of tumbling, which created the so-called tumbling process; 2) Vibratory finishing methods; and 3) Centrifugal Barrel Finishing (CBF Technology). This means that with the combination of different mechanical systems, including processing methods and supplies, a higher productivity can be reached, which matches the growth of jewelry production in this period.

Author: Dr. Manfred Dreher