Palmetto Plating was established in 1964 to service an industry that has largely evaporated in the Upstate since the 1990s.
It offers metal-plating services, a process that coats a product in any number of different metals to aid in corrosion resistance, aesthetics, durability or conductivity.
The company‘s president and founder, John Cutchin, wanted to provide metal-finishing services to textile companies in the area. As the economy in the Upstate changed, however, the mission of Palmetto Plating evolved with it. The company now works with hundreds of different companies across the country.
Started as a hobby
Cutchin’s life work started as a science project.
He began bronzing baby shoes at home when he was a sophomore and junior at Easley High School. Soon after, he started Palmetto Plating with his football coach Bill Carr. Several months later, he bought out Carr’s part of the company and has been the owner ever since.
“I enjoyed the chemistry part of it and seeing the results,” Cutchin said.
He ended up going to college for only one year before he dedicated himself entirely to his business. Before long, he was seeking customers outside textiles, though he nearly became a supplier of textile machines himself.
When the company moved on from textile parts, it found a number of customers in disparate industries:
- Automotive
- Aerospace
- Industrial
- Electronics
- Large vessels
- Health care
The company exists without any advertising or selling to private individuals. Everything is business to business, and Palmetto Plating has built a strong reputation over its nearly 60 years.
The company metal-plates brake calipers for a number of manufacturers, including some of those producing cutting-edge electric vehicles. And many of the components could already be in many consumers’ possession. It worked on every brake caliper on the 2004-2021 Chrysler 300. It’s also done work for the Chevy Corvette.
Company is a mystery to some
It’s also done metal plating on huge vats to manufacture and store products. For many of the companies it works for, it’s signed non-disclosure agreements. Still, the company’s purpose is a mystery to some in the neighborhood.
“People, they don’t even know what we do here,” said Hunter Cutchin, John’s son and vice president. He couldn’t discuss sales figures, but he said the company has about 400-500 clients, some of which he can’t mention.
The company is poised to work with a number of different needs, and it’s willing to change even the building to accommodate those needs. For instance, it built an entire room for a medical-service-device supplier.
Hunter Cutchin said the products they plate would not be effective without the metal coatings. They offer a number of different finishes, and they continue to research more.
“Our ultimate goal is to keep doing what we’re doing and becoming more efficient with it,” Hunter Cutchin said.
Available finishes at Palmetto Plating
- Anodizing
- Black oxide
- Bright nickel
- Chromate conversion
- Decorative chrome
- Electroless nickel
- Electropolishing
- Palmetto shield
- Hard chrome
- Pickling/passivation
