What Color Was The First Spray Paint
AMT conducted a analysis in December gluttonous advice on the use of paints and coatings to apperceive what articles you use and why.
Of the respondents, 41 percent said they acrylic aircraft, while 33 percent said they acrylic aircraft genitalia and components. Breaking it into industry segments, accepted aerodynamics was 42 percent; business jets 18 percent, helicopters 18 percent, aggressive 11 percent, and bartering aerodynamics 11 percent. And the bigger class of aircraft corrective annually was beneath 25 at 67 percent, followed by amid 26 to 50 at 12 percent, none at 12 percent, amid 51 to 100 at 5 percent, and added than 100 at 4 percent.
The alternative belief went like this: aboriginal durability, followed by blush match, chump support, repairability, quick delivery, custom blush analogous capabilities, price, locally accessible (within 50 miles), productivity/fast drying, OEM qualifications, ecology benefits, and training.
Comments from technicians as to what the best important cast appropriate is included: “durability and bell-ringer access,” “reliable and repeatable blush match;” “ease of application;” “quality, performance, and warranty;” “one covering covering;” “quality and chump service;” “good adherence so it doesn’t chip;” “holds up to all-encompassing washing;” “buying acrylic in the States and not accepting to pay chancy aircraft fees from Europe;” “easy to use and aqueous attrition and abundant gloss;” and “long-lasting shine.”
The backbone appropriate additionally came up best generally back asked about the primary aircraft blanket arrangement used. Other comments included affluence of use, price, matchability, availability, repeatable achievement in capricious conditions, blush selection, fast drying, safe to environment, quality, and UV resistant.
The majority of the respondents said faster dry times (36 percent). Other characteristics were bigger affection (20 percent), added blanket choices (22 percent), and added blush options (20 percent). In agreement of account options, the best requested was added hands-on abetment (30 percent), bigger training (26 percent), and faster commitment (23 percent).
Comments from technicians as to what their accepted cast could do bigger included: “longer shelf life,” “cost is still an issue,” “quicker cure time and bigger adhesion,” “color analogous from adjustment to order,” “better tips on aerosol cans acclimated for touchups,” “faster dehydration times,” “wish the mixing/prep was beneath complicated,” “could be added UV aggressive or achromatize resistant,” and “nothing, because the benefactor is actual abreast on the artefact they are affairs and in allowance break problems back spraying.”
The analysis additionally asked what your present coatings cast could action in agreement of artefact line. The majority requested faster dry times (36 percent), bigger affection (20 percent), added coatings choices (16 percent), and added blush options (15 percent).
As for account options, added hands-on abstruse abetment ranked aboriginal (30 percent), followed by bigger training (26 percent), faster commitment (23 percent), and added common rep face time (11 percent).
Painting an aircraft is allotment of the aliment required; it prevents corrosion. A archetypal acrylic job protects an aircraft for about six years for jets and six to eight years for turboprops. AMT talked to a few companies that specialize in business aircraft coatings; apprehend what they accept to say about trends in the industry and what barter are demanding.
Elliott Aerodynamics is a adapted aerodynamics casework aggregation with three Midwest locations in Minneapolis, MN; Des Moines, IA; and Moline, IL. Known as a world-class provider of absolute and customer-focused solutions for business aviation, it is a second-generation, family-owned business. It has been accouterment aircraft sales, aerodynamics services, and avant-garde solutions back 1936.
According to its mission statement,” Whether you are a chump or employee, back you assignment with Elliott Aviation, you are allotment of our ancestors and we will amusement you with bluntness and integrity. We affiance to bear arete to our customers, amusement your aircraft as if it were our own, and strive to do the appropriate affair every time.”
Part of Elliott’s chump account is utilizing EnVision technology to accord audience a examination of the accomplished artefact through 3-D modeling. The arrangement has bags of options for autogenous face-lifting and acrylic applications, acceptance barter to see the exoteric acrylic arrangement with cartoon and logos in place.
“While in the past, business aerodynamics has been accepted Matterhorn White with two brownish stripes,” says Roy Block, Elliott Aerodynamics acrylic boutique manager, “we accept been seeing added different acrylic jobs lately. Barter are gluttonous out high-quality acrylic jobs with fast turns. We are additionally seeing barter attractive for best acrylic warranties.”
“When we congenital our acrylic ability in 2007, we led the industry as one of the alone climate-controlled, down-draft accessories in the country,” Block says. “That architecture was so far advanced of its time, that back again the alone advance we accept bare to accomplish was to add electrostatic acrylic guns, which we did in January of this year.
“The about-face to electrostatic acrylic accoutrements has been a abundant change for our team,” he continues. “They booty a little accepting acclimated to but already you accept been application them afterwards aloof a few hours, you alpha to see how big a aberration they make.”
Depending on the sizes of aircraft that go through the facility, Elliott Aerodynamics can handle about 60 slots per year.
“There are a lot of newer technologies arising centered about painting aircraft,” Block says. “One that we are seeing is the move against the use of electrostatic guns. Although they are decidedly added big-ticket than acceptable acrylic guns, they advice annihilate aerial and low spots to ensure an alike comminute thickness. They additionally decidedly abate overspray.”
It is additionally seeing an access in appeal for Mica paints, which are basically alternating versions of brownish paints and acclimated in abounding applications breadth acceptable brownish finishes are not an option,
Elliott Aerodynamics is advance in added chrome-free and low chrome coatings. These coatings are abundant bigger for the environment, easier for disposal, and accord to a bigger air affection aural the facility.
Currently Elliott has about 25 acrylic technicians, and abounding accept over 20 years of experience. Block has 23 years of aircraft painting experience, starting with his father’s aircraft painting business in east axial Iowa breadth he formed for 10 years painting ablaze aircraft. He will anon be adulatory his 13th year with Elliott Aerodynamics breadth he began as a second-shift acrylic technician, advancing to aggregation leader, supervisor, and now acrylic boutique manager.
AMT talked to Randy Johnson, administrator of accumulated aircraft casework and acrylic boutique administrator at King Aerospace in Ardmore, OK. For over 20 years, King Aerospace has been accouterment aerodynamics casework on a all-around base to operators of VVIP aircraft, accumulated aircraft and government aircraft. Headquartered in Addison, TX, it employs 75 and 40 of those are in the acrylic shop, according to Johnson.
“Customers are allurement for VVIP akin affection and from what we apprehend no one is alms it,” Johnson says. “We’re a quality-based aggregation and are attractive to specialize in this area. It takes a little added and costs a little added but it is what the industry is allurement for.”
King Aerospace mandates that all of its advisers allotment in the company’s attempt and values. Its mission: “Make a absolute aberration in the lives of those we employ, we serve and appointment and acquire a fair profit.”
King Aerospace defines its ability of admittance as including alternate respect; bluntness and trust; non-political environment; aggregation oriented; approved performance; proactive, analytic attitudes; affection in everything, (no excuses); and acquire a fair profit.
“And we alive them,” Johnson says, “it’s a acceptable assignment environment.” And to prove the point he’s been at King Aerospace for 21 years.
Last June the aggregation upgraded its ability and confused the acrylic berth into the facility. “That’s formed out absolute nice,” says Johnson. “The new ability can handle a 757 or a BBJ.” The 757 takes 55 canicule to complete a acrylic job while a accumulated jet takes 45 days, he says.
“Customers are aptitude on us,” he says. “We’re talking about abacus a additional berth so we could fit two ample aircraft at the aforementioned time. We can’t board all the bodies that appetite the assignment done.”
Currently the aggregation is able of administration as abounding as 50 accumulated jets annually.
“Customers are allurement for chrome-free primers as they are added environmentally friendly,” Johnson says. ”And it cuts the metal analysis process. We’ve acclimated Sherwin-Williams on our aftermost two ample aircraft. We use Graco Pro X electrostatic spraying equipment.”
The change to electrostatic spraying accessories has been benign to the all-embracing affection over the antecedent HVLP equipment, Johnson claims.
The boilerplate cardinal of years of acquaintance for technicians is 15 to 16 years, according to Johnson. “We accept some with up to 30 years experience. Three years is the minimum and they’re alive their way up.”
Like abounding aliment accessories there are accessible positions; a recruit would charge bristles years minimum to be hired, Johnson says. There is on the job training for specific airframes, although the processes are the aforementioned for VVIP and accumulated aircraft.
