There are many styles of picnic tables on the market, but what kind of material is best for durability and safety? Powder coating has been an accepted coated finish for years and there are several reasons why. The coating look great, you can have most any color you want, they are friendly to the environment and efficient to produce. The powder is applied in liquid form so it goes on similar to painting. If you need to have flexibility and strength against impacts, this type of finish would no.