C & K MASTERS COLLISION INC.
DOWNDRAFT PAINT BOOTH FEASIBLILTY STUDY
August 3, 2009
Researcher
A WSU Student
Internal Technical Report
Read and Approved:
______
District Manager Date
Executive Summary
C&K Masters Collision Inc. has recently purchased a new collision facility in the Metro Detroit Area. I am one of several paint technicians employed at C&K’s Metro-Detroit location and I have been asked by the shop manager to take a closer look into the efficiency of our current paint system. At present, C&K’s Metro-Detroit location is using a severely outdated paint system that lacks proper ventilation as well as a clean area for paint processes to occur. Also, the current paint system doesn’t allow other shop functions to occur and lacks the proper heating treatments to reduce paint cure times. The new facility has shown flashes of productivity; however I feel that updating its current paint system will increase the efficiency of this new facility.
During the past three weeks I have conducted research on the practicality of adding a downdraft paint booth to our current paint system. This research includes reviews and testimonials of semi-downdraft paint booth owners, features and options offered by paint booth manufacturers, as well as interviews and surveys from certified paint technicians.
The purpose of this report is to show the feasibility of adding a downdraft paint booth to C&K’s Metro-Detroit location
Adding a downdraft paint booth will be a feasible update to C&K’s paint efficiency issues for the following reasons:
- A downdraft booth will be properly ventilated, and filtered providing a dust and particle free paint environment.
- A downdraft booth will be properly sealed and accessible. This allows other shop functions to occur without disrupting the paint process.
- A downdraft booth will be equipped with radiant heaters to “bake” painted materials appropriately.
As a result of the research conducted, I recommend adding a downdraft paint booth to the collision facility at C&K’s Metro-Detroit Location.
Introduction
C&K Masters Collision Inc. has recently purchased a new collision facility in the Metro Detroit Area. At present, C&K’s Metro-Detroit location is using a severely outdated paint system that lacks proper ventilation as well as a clean area for paint processes to occur. Also, the current paint system doesn’t allow other shop functions to occur and lacks the proper heating treatments to reduce paint cure times. The new facility has shown flashes of productivity; however I feel that updating its current paint system will increase the efficiency of this new facility.
During the past three weeks I have conducted research on the practicality of adding a downdraft paint booth to our current paint system. This research includes reviews and testimonials of downdraft paint booth owners, features and options offered by downdraft paint booth manufactures, as well as interviews and surveys from certified paint technicians.
This report will give detailed information on the practicality of adding a downdraft paint booth to C&K’s Metro-Detroit location.
C&K has been experiencing many difficulties with their current paint system. The addition of a downdraft paint booth will improve C&K’s paint efficiency issues for the following reasons.
To start, a downdraft booth will be properly ventilated and filtered providing a dust and particle free paint environment. This feature will provide ideal painting situations for the paint technician, thus increasing the quality of the paint assignment.
In addition, there is nothing separating the paint area from the rest of the shop. This is a problem because other shop functions, such as sanding, welding, cleaning, and framework, cannot be done while the technician is painting. The downdraft booth will be properly sealed and accessible; allowing the paint area to be isolated and other shop functions to occur without disrupting the paint process.
Finally, the downdraft booth will be equipped with an attached drying room that is used to “bake” painted materials. This drying room is equipped with infrared curing systems to quicken paint cure times. This feature will increase the number of assignments that can be completed during a standard workday.
As a result of the research conducted, the addition of a downdraft paint booth to C&K’s collision facility will vastly improve their paint efficiency as well as their overall shop productivity.
Method
This report was written using personal knowledge as well as Information collected via World Wide Web. I visited numerous websites of paint booth manufacturers, viewing the features offered with downdraft paint booths. I also interviewed two paint technicians personally and noted there comments. Their comments will be included in this report.
Results and Discussion
Wisegeek.com gives the definition of a paint booth as follows:
“A paint booth is a structure which is designed to keep dust and other contaminants out of a painting area. Contaminants can have a major impact on the quality of a paint job... Using a paint booth ensures that paint jobs are done quickly and in a clean environment, saving money and time in the long term f or the company doing the job.” (Smith, 2009)
I. Properly filtered and ventilated paint area.
Dust and other fine particles found in the air can ruin a paint assignment if these particles attach themselves to a freshly painted object. A small amount of dirt in a paint assignment is no need for alarm, but if a paint assignment contains large amounts of dust and dirt it could cause considerable problems for the paint technician. The fresh paint that was just applied to the object will need to be completely taken off and redone. This can be time consuming and costly because of the use of extra paint materials. C&K’s primary problem is that they have no method of removing dust and dirt particles from their paint area.
If a downdraft paint booth was installed in C&K’s paint area, dust and dirt particles will not be a problem for the paint technician. In a downdraft paint booth air enters the booth from the ceiling and goes through a set of filters. The filters remove all dirt and debris from the incoming air. The filtered air enters the booth and is sucked around the sides of the paint object (usually a car or car parts). An exhaust fan, located in a pit beneath the floor of the booth, sucks the air from the booth. This air is also filtered and ejected out of the facility through an exhaust stack.
II. Properly sealed and accessible paint area.
The ability to separate the paint area from the collision repair area is a key component to the success of any collision repair facility. In the collision area many shop functions such as sanding, welding, and framework occur. During the sanding process a great amount of dust is created from the sanding of body-fillers, such as Bondo, and old paint. In addition to the dust created from sanding, other particles such as rust, leaves, and other forms of debris found naturally can be carried to the paint area through the air. Since the processes relative to collision repair can cause significant problems for the paint process, C&K must stop most collision processes in order to provide the best paint situation for the paint technician. This halt in production causes a lack of efficiency and reduces the productivity of the facility.
Also, given that the paint area is not properly sealed from the rest of the facility, drafts occur causing more overspray. Overspray is unused paint that was unable to attach itself to the paint object. Small amounts of overspray can drift into other areas of the facility. Since overspray is a form of paint fume, it should be contained and properly disposed of.
A downdraft paint booth will be isolated from the rest of the facility because it is a sealed enclosure. A paint technician can place vehicles or vehicle parts inside the booth and close the booth doors. The doors of the booth are also sealed. Airtight windows are positioned on both side-by-side bay doors and the personal entry door. The positioning of windows allows the paint technician to be aware of anything occurring outside of the booth. The side-by-side bay doors are located in the front and rear of the booth allowing vehicles to be driven through the booth if necessary. The personal entry door is located on the side of the booth allowing the technician to easily enter and exit the booth. C&K’s paint area can easily sustain the largest downdraft paint booths produced by manufacturers. Since the booth is sealed, C&K will not need to suspend shop functions, such as sanding, during any paint assignments. Trace amounts of paint fumes and overspray will not leak into other areas of the facility because they will be contained inside the booth and will be properly ventilated through various exhaust ports.
III. Proper paint curing system.
The automotive paint process used at C&K locations is a 2 or 3 stage system using basecoat and clear-coat applications. All paint assignments are stripped of any features that are not to be painted. For example, if a door is being painted on a car, the window, window channel, door handle, and body moldings, must be removed prior to painting. If an assignment is reassembled before the paint cures you could potentially damage the paint. Also any paint imperfections such as runs and orange peel cannot be corrected until the paint cures. It takes most paint applications about 24 hrs to cure, depending on temperature conditions. Therefore, paint efficiency can be improved by speeding paint cure times.
A downdraft paint booth comes equipped with an attached drying room. The drying room is also sealed, filtered, and ventilated so that dust and other particles do not enter the drying chamber. The drying room is equipped with an infrared curing system to help bake painted materials. This infrared system uses radiant heaters to heat whatever is inside of the drying chamber. A digital thermostat allows you to control the temperature and humidity inside of the drying chamber allowing the paint technician to create ideal paint curing conditions. This feature allows paint assignments to cure at an average time of 30-60 minutes. With the use of the drying room, more paint assignments can be completed and returned to the collision technicians for reassembly.
IV. Additional downdraft paint booth features.
A downdraft paint booth utilizes a nut and bolt construction. This allows the booth to be assembled and disassembled easily. This is a useful feature because the booth becomes transportable, allowing the booth to be disassembled and taken to a new area or facility.
A downdraft paint booth is made using G-90 18 gauge galvanized steel for panel construction. Since the booth uses galvanized steel, the booth has greater protection against corrosion and provides a stronger structure.
A downdraft paint booth uses high quality energy saving fluorescent lights. These lights can be purchased at most hardware stores and are easy to install and replace. Also, the inside walls of the booth are powder zinc coated which reduces glare and increases brightness the area inside the booth. Proper lighting is needed in all paint process. The paint technician needs appropriate lighting to see if the paint object is fully covered and is consistent in color and texture.
A downdraft paint booth exceeds all city, state, and federal regulations, as well as all environmental standards. The installation of a downdraft paint booth will ensure that all C&K’s paint system is up to code.
A downdraft paint booth will save money on paint and disposal costs. The use of a downdraft paint booth lessens the amount of overspray produced; in return, more paint is applied to the paint object. Therefore, a smaller amount waste is generated and a reduced amount of paint and solvent is used.
V. Technician comments.
Name: Person One Employer: C&K Masters Collision (Metro-Detroit location)
Job Title: Paint Technician
Notes:
· Does not currently use a paint booth.
· 7 yrs of paint experience
Comments on current painting conditions:
“My main concern with the current paint system is that I have a hard time producing dirt free paint jobs. I have to wet-sand and wheel every assignment to get sufficient results. Sometimes I spend more time polishing a car then I actually spend painting it. Also, I have to adjust my painting techniques depending on the temperature inside the shop. In the winter I tend to have more runs in my paint jobs because it’s just not hot enough inside the shop. In the summer I tend to have dry spots on different panels of the vehicle especially when painting a large vehicle like a Chevy Caprice.” (P. One, personal communication, July 30, 2009)
Name: Person Two Employer: C&K Masters Collision (Rochester location)
Job Title: Paint Technician
Notes:
· Uses a semi downdraft booth for painting applications
· 20+ yrs of collision/paint experience
Comments on current painting conditions:
“My paint jobs usually come out the booth ready for reassembly. I rarely need to polish a vehicle but on occasion I may have to put a wheel to it usually because of an error I made in painting it. Other than that it is a state of the art booth I have no complaints.” (P. Two, personal communication, July 31, 2009)
Name: Person Three Employer: New Century Collision Center
Job Title: President
Notes:
· Been in collision industry for 46+ yrs
Three’s company uses a 65 foot long downdraft paint booth for its paint assignments. Harlow has this to say about the efficiency of his shop.