1) Procurement of materials
The main materials used for manufacturing rain chains are copper and stainless steel, and we only purchase strictly selected, highest quality material for our production. SUS304 or SUS303 stainless steel are used with both having standardized formulas for finest quality. In addition, because carefully selected copper plates with high level of purity are used for our copper products, beautiful patina appears on the surface of the rain chain over time to enjoy the beauty of natural aging process.
2) Pressing
Many of our rain chains are made by integrating press processing technology. Pressing is a method for manufacturing products by attaching a mold that produces the final product to a machined that applies high pressure to cut or bend metal plates. The main benefit of pressing is its precision and the ability to produce many pieces at consistent quality standard. At SEO Inc., we build our own molds, which largely affects the product quality, and we are equipped with an integrated system that produces the finest products.
3) Polishing/Finishing
After pressing the parts, many marks will appear from friction against the tooling. By erasing the mark one by one, fine rain chains are born. It is a process called polishing, and a process that eliminates marks on parts by polishing the surface little by little from pressing a rotating wheel made of layered sandpaper. The technique may vary depending on the shape or the targeted surface type, but at our factory, we use robotics for applying hairline finishes. By integrating robots into the polishing process, we produce consistent hairline surface and create breathtaking products. Hairline finish is applied to mainly Toh, Ta-ke and Tama products. On the contrary, we also have parts polished by hand, piece by piece. Migumo L and Migumo are first colored black on copper and we will polish a part of the piece to bring out the copper base. By creating depth between the copper base and the added color, it enhances the feel and the splendor of our rain chains.
4) Coating
In order to maintain the elegance of rain chains as long as possible, we coat our products with clear coating. The clear coat that we use are special coating with high durability, so it protects the surface longer than conventional coatings. However, we purposely do not use any coating on our copper products for you to enjoy the beauty of natural aging process and witness elegant patina being born.
5) Assembly
Because the sizes and height of buildings vary, we carefully assemble each order to the necessary length. We customize in units of 1 foot, but we could customize it even in smaller units by the inches. If you require particularly long length on your rain chains, please contact us by the inquiry sheet.
