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News Release from: Hi-Tec Spray | Subject: Coatings plant for diesel engine
Edited by the Buildingtalk Editorial
Team on 21 November 2005
Hi-Tec Spray installs coatings plant
Hi-Tec Spray installs GBP850,000 coatings plant for diesel engine specialist Perkins-Shibaura Engines.
Having commissioned surface coatings specialists Hi-Tec Spray to design and install a complete paint plant, Perkins-Shibaura is now reporting an annual increase in production of more than 30%, and has also made significant energy and floor space savings at its engine assembly and finishing base in Peterborough The GBP850,000 contract is the largest job of its kind ever undertaken by Kent-based Hi-Tec Spray
This article was originally published on Buildingtalk on 21 May 2004 at 8.00am (UK)
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Perkins-Shibaura is part of Perkins Engines Company, which is wholly owned by Caterpillar Perkins Engines is recognised as a world leader in the design, manufacture and sale of industrial diesel engines.
The design of the new plant was based on a paint line installed at Perkins-Shibaura's new manufacturing facility in Griffin, Georgia, USA, in 2004.
A fully waterborne coating system is used comprising two coat colour or single coat lacquer finishes.
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Perkins-Shibaura's manufacturing engineering manager, Keith Loader, said: "Our decision to upgrade to a new plant was capacity driven.
We were producing 60,000 engines a year and were not able to expand our business.
The new plant now allows us to finish 80,000 engines annually".
As well as stripping out the existing plant, Hi-Tec Spray was tasked with the overall design responsibility and installing the complete system within the two-week summer shutdown period.
The new state-of-the-art plant includes a complex power and free conveyor, a two stage pre-treatment system, three spraybooths, two natural gas catalytic infrared forced drying ovens, plus paint kitchen and paint recirculation system.
The overhead chain conveyor is controlled using the latest touch-screen PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) technology with an inbuilt timer and calendar, which prepares the system so it is ready for production at the start of every shift, and allows users to select specific programmes for different production scenarios.
The conveyor's control panel is also fitted with a modem link to enable technical engineers, Caldan A/S, to carry out maintenance and software updates from its base in Denmark.
The two primer and topcoat ovens use the 'mirror-tech' drying procedure.
Once the engines are transported into the ovens by conveyor, infra-red radiation is projected at the polished stainless steel oven walls and reflected onto the engine's surface.
This dries the coating on the engines from the substrate outwards very evenly, ensuring a better finish and a higher gloss with minimum process time.
Hi-Tec Spray's Bob Wilson said: "The timescale we were given to work to and the size of the job itself made this contract very challenging.
As well as stripping out the current paint finishing plant, Hi-Tec Spray was commissioned to custom design, manufacture and fit the 800sqm plant within a two-week shutdown period.
Our team worked through weekends to ensure the plant would be ready by the time the staff returned.
As there was such a lot of work to do, we had to make sure as much as possible was done prior to installation.
The schedule was built around the fitting of the conveyor system, which was pre-bolted and all connections flanged off-site.
The scrubber chambers of the spraybooths were pre-assembled, the ovens were fully wired in the workshop and the control system was built and tested off-site.
An engineer remained on site during Perkin's first week of production and we supplied a training package to ensure the plant was used in the most effective way," added Bob.
Keith Loader said: "We're very proud the new plant has been able to affect our production levels so dramatically.
The painting process and manual spray application method are fundamentally the same, but the improved equipment means we can achieve a better finish together with a much higher output rate".
We previously used three separate gas fired ovens and the engines used to take about 50 minutes in the main oven alone.
Now the final drying process takes only eight minutes, which dramatically reduces work-in-progress and increases our productivity.
The quicker drying time has also meant we make an 80% energy saving and a reduction in the floor area required by a massive 83%".
Hi-Tec Spray is a leading distributor for other top international manufacturers, including Wagner, ITW DeVilbiss, ITW Binks, Kremlin, Sames, Iwata and Sagola.
The company has a network of depots covering Southampton, Manchester, Bristol, Stowmarket, Maidstone, Birmingham and Dartford.
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