Hardfacing is a metalworking process where harder or tougher material is applied to a base metal. It is welded to the base material, and generally takes the form of specialized electrodes for arc welding or filler rod for oxyacetylene and TIG welding. Powder metal alloys are used in (PTA) also called Powder plasma welding system and Thermal spray processes like HVOF, Plasma spray, Fuse and spray etc.

Hardfacing may be applied to a new part during production to increase its wear resistance, or it may be used to restore a worn-down surface. Hardfacing by arc welding is a surfacing operation to extend the service life of industrial components, pre-emptively on new components, or as part of a maintenance program. The result of significant savings in machine down time and production costs has meant that this process has been adopted across many industries such as Steel, Cement, Mining, Petrochemical, Power, Sugar cane and Food. According to the results of an experimental study, the SMAW (Shielded Metal Arc Welding) and the GMAW (Gas Metal Arc Welding) hardfacing processes were effective in reducing the wear on the mouldboard ploughshare. With the SMAW and GMAW hardfacing processes, the life span of the ploughshare was increased approximately 2 times.