Posts from — April 2008

Waterborne Conversions

In the life of a busy sales representative this week, it has been nothing but go-go-go. I have successfully completed another waterborne conversion using PPG’s Envirobase waterborne paint. This paint system is awesome to use in any body shop today. We set up G.S.L Chev City in one day and we were spraying paint the next day first thing in the morning. The feature I like the most about PPG’s water system is the fact that there is no more mixing machine to agitate the paint. Gone are those big bulky mixing machines that are noisy and take fifteen minutes to stir the paint before you are ready to use the product. As they say “out with the old and in with the new”.

PPG’s new waterborne paint system consists of two cabinets stacked side by side and the motor unit is used for primers and sealers; this acts as the base of the new system. Your hand now becomes your paint shaker and no more waiting fifteen minutes for your base to properly stir. You now just shake with your hand and go mix. Remember all those times when you run out of a toner and had to wait fifteen minutes to stir the new one, not any more. I was a flat rate painter when I sprayed and if I counted all the times I waited fifteen minutes for a toner to stir, I would be thousands of dollars richer.

This is only one of the great new features PPG’s Envirobase waterborne system has to offer you. The cabinets are white which seems to brighten up even the darkest mixing rooms. I like to see what I am doing so this is a plus in my books. The paint itself is environmentally friendly, which is the reason we folks in Canada have to switch to this not so new product. The government of Canada has lowered VOC emissions and placed tighter regulations on automotive paint. The majority of solvent was being used in the base coat with most paint systems being a 1:1 reduction, one part base coat and one part solvent. This is why all solvent base coats are being replaced by water basecoats. This is where the most solvent is used in most paint systems, the base coat.

This new water system is very simple to use for any painter. Even the newest painter will pick this simple system up with ease in two days. What you need to dry the base is air movement. This is provided in two different ways. One is the shop will retro fit the paint booth/s with air jets which are mounted to the four corners of the paint booth. The other is with tree stands and hand held air blowers. These blowers are set up near the vehicle and directed to blow at the vehicle being painted. These tree stands and blowers are provided by PPG to assist the drying process of the base coat between the first and second coats of paint. The last coat of base requires no air from the blowers to dry and will sit for fifteen minutes. This severely increases the speed of the over all paint process. What used to take an hour to two hours will now take you only half that time. The shops will double the amount of vehicles being put through their booth daily. If you were spraying five cars a day you will now be able to spray eight to ten cars a day.

This is good news for the body shops and the painter as well. More profitability for everyone involved in the repair process! So what are you waiting for, switch over to PPG’s new Envirobase and convert with confidence today.

Waterborne Paint and the Future

In my opening post I would like to discuss new technology that is moving in and taking over old technology. What I speak of is new waterborne technology that all body shops will need to convert to by the proposed date of January 1 2009. The move to waterborne will require careful planning to ensure that the quality and productivity of the paint repair operation is maintained with minimal interruption. This new technology is not really so new in fact it has been around a lot longer than you might think it has. The PPG water based paint has been used at the factory level since 1992 and is the very first water based paint. I know you have heard many stories that other paints were the first to invent this product but this is just not the case.

Over the past decade manufactures have come to see this waterborne technology as the way of the future and have made critical strides in the color match pigmentation. Any paint company can offer a multitude of products and services alike, but when it really comes down to it, color matching is the most critical issue to every refinish painter anywhere in the world. Let’s face it, if the color does not match we tint and tint until we get the color perfect. This is time consuming and frustrating as well. PPG has set the benchmark in refinish color match technology with the Envirobase HP waterborne paint system.

Why is this you may ask? PPG achieved its cutting-edge level of color matching by drawing on many of its world resources and research centers in Milan, Italy where it is made, Stowmarket, UK, Whittier California, Allison Park Pennsylvania, and Cleveland Ohio. PPG’s global waterborne platform team shared a primary focus, advancing color match to meet or exceed is most discerning customers. Color experts in our PPG labs in Europe and the U.S. worked in close contact with car manufactures and pigment suppliers to create precise OEM matches of some 19,000 prime color formulas dating as far back as 1986 as well as variant formulas from 1996.

So as you can see this is not new to some and new to others. PPG has in my opinion the best waterborne paint system on the market today and will lead all others in this field. I have personally sprayed the new Envirobase from PPG and it is not only faster than solvent but has a better color match since approximately 70% of OEM colors are waterborne. This is why trying to match solvent to existing factory waterborne paint can be a nightmare. We now can match waterborne with waterborne and leave the stress and headaches behind us forever. One last thing I need to mention is all PPG color decks are manually sprayed by a human and what you see on the color chips is what you get on a spray out card. You will no longer need to do a spray out card to see if your manually sprayed card matches those dyed color chips those other paint companies supply you. With PPG’s Envirobase you just look at the color chip, if it matches the vehicle you go ahead and spray the vehicle, no wasted time and material.

To sum it all up, waterborne may be new to our customers but it is not new to us!! Stay tuned to the next article where I will discuss the equipment necessary to convert with confidence.

Sterling St. Thomas begins using PPG paints

Daimler Trucks North America has selected PPG Industries, Inc. for OEM and aftermarket paint needs for heavy-duty truck production at the Sterling St. Thomas Plant. In January 2004, Daimler Trucks North America corporate management recognized PPG as a Total Source Supplier awarding PPG all of the paint business at the Portland Truck Manufacturing Plant. Daimler Trucks North America has now extended the partnership to include all production at the Sterling Truck Plant in St. Thomas.

ST. THOMAS, Ontario, Canada – April 7, 2008 –

As a Total Source Supplier, PPG will provide a complete range of paint technologies enabling Daimler Trucks North America to meet its customer demands and compete in the heavy-duty truck market.

The line-up of products includes a full range of materials consisting of PPG’s industry leading Powercron® electrocoat and Delfleet® topcoats on cabs, as well as on all chassis.

Delfleet topcoats have been approved for Daimler Trucks North America applications and are utilized for their operations. Along with the award of the OEM topcoat business, PPG is recognized as an approved aftermarket supplier, meaning Delfleet is approved for use in the aftermarket for warranty and paint repairs on all Daimler Trucks North America, Sterling, and Western Star models. The approval encompasses all Daimler Trucks North America LLC businesses and repair centers worldwide.

With the aftermarket approval, the same quality paint system is extended from the OEM to the aftermarket creating a unified offering.

Delfleet is backed by service professionals specifically trained as application experts. These service representatives are working with Daimler Trucks North America dealerships to ensure customer satisfaction and performance of the products.

Delfleet has been rigorously tested and approved by Daimler Trucks North America corporate engineering. These products have passed all test requirements including corrosion resistance, adhesion, chip resistance, and UV durability.

The benefits of utilizing Delfleet® are easy to understand. In addition to providing durability and excellent appearance, the high quality urethane resin technology enables users to benefit from the positive attributes listed below:

High solids, two component urethane paint system providing superb performance are globally VOC compliant.
 

Low HAP’s formulations.

Lead free and chrome free options available for all color formulas.

Computer aided color manufacturing ensuring consistency.

Global network for technical support, warehousing, and distribution.

PPG service reps located near Daimler Trucks North America/Sterling/Western Star dealers in North America.

Proven paint technology approved by Daimler Trucks North America corporate engineering.

Whether the accident is your fault or the other driver’s, make sure you go to an appropriate repair shop and ask for what you require!

1. That fender bender will be a major expense. If the accident is your fault and you have the typical $500 deductible for a collision, kiss your money goodbye. A survey of repair shops in the Washington, D.C., area by Consumers’ Checkbook, a nonprofit consumer information group, shows that replacing a fender on a 1998 Buick LeSabre can cost as much as $982. A new front bumper on a 2006 Mercedes-Benz E-Class can go as high as $1,350.

2. Approved shops are beholden to tightfisted insurers. Auto insurers contract with providers to repair vehicles for a pre-negotiated rate (think of it as managed care for sick cars). And your car could be the victim of cost cutting. Some practices, such as requiring low hourly labor rates and making the shop pick up the rental car tab if a repair takes too long, could tempt shops to cut corners — by, say, neglecting to align the wheels or using plastic filler in a dent rather than replacing the sheet metal. “Insurers have wired the shops to give them so many discounts that, to stay alive, the shops often do the bare minimum,” says Erica Eversman, of Vehicle Information Services, which provides consulting and forensic experts for both insurers and consumers. For a list of independent shops that meet certain quality criteria, go to Assured Performance Collision Care.

3. Not all replacement parts are created equal. Original-equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts are designed to match precisely and may be safer. But insurers prefer that shops use generic or salvage replacement parts because they’re cheaper. If you cause an accident, you could be bound by wording in your policy to use aftermarket parts or pay the difference for OEM parts. But if someone hits you, tell the shop to use OEM parts.

4. The due date is most likely fiction. Mechanics routinely blame missed deadlines on delays in parts delivery. The truth is that many of them take on more business than they can handle. Before you commit your business to a shop, check the local Better Business Bureau and government consumer-affairs offices for complaints against it.

5. A rented car will cost you. Renting a car for three weeks could cost $1,000 or more. Even if you have optional rental-car insurance (which costs $1 or $2 a month), your daily reimbursement may be limited to the cost of a compact car. If you need a minivan while your car is in the shop, make sure you have minivan-size coverage.

6. Your car needs a shop that speaks its language. Many European cars use aluminum and ultrahard steel that require special equipment to repair. Plus, replacement parts for late-model European vehicles have to be fit with an especially high degree of precision. Shops should be certified by the manufacturer to do the work, meaning they must have specialized training and equipment — and charge higher rates. Insurers won’t necessarily recommend these shops, but they should be willing to pay the tab.

7. The insurer’s warranty isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Insurers sometimes dangle warranties on the parts (for as long as you own the vehicle) to entice you to go to shops in their network. But the body shop’s guarantee is the one that’s important. Nearly all shops will guarantee their work, and parts makers guarantee their parts, making the insurance warranty all but worthless.

This article was reported and written by Mark Solheim for Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Magazine.

This is a Blog dedicated to all those who love to work on cars. I have been an auto body technician now for 18 years and have enjoyed every step of the way. This Blog is designed to pass on my knowledge of this trade to all who want to learn and grow. Stay tuned for more info here on this website.

This is the very first post on the Auto Body Blog. Enjoy the future discussions.

Here is a test video post:
(not my video)

Auto Body Filler Application