Chrome Without Chrome: Why We Choose Powder Coat

It looks like chrome. It isn't — and that's on purpose.

Real chrome comes from electroplating  dipping metal in a chromic acid bath. That process uses hexavalent chromium, a known carcinogen, and leaves behind toxic waste that's hard on waterways and slow to break down.

We skip all of that.

Our finish is powder coat, applied over steel. Same mirror shine. No plating bath. No hazardous waste.

It's the same logic behind steel itself: built to last, easy to refurbish, fully recyclable. The finish just takes that one step further.

Construction By Design fitted out 20 Bridge St, Sydney, with our height-adjustable workstation in this finish - real chrome look, none of the process behind it.