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Customer Feedback

In response to new materials, processes and requirements, Standard Tools & Equipment is constantly working on new products including: spray booths, frame machines, dust collectors, and all types of accessories. We are a lean, direct supplier with the ability to respond quickly to new demands and we always welcome any type of input from our product users.

At Standard Tools & Equipment our business is based on fulfilling the needs of our customers. Our customers work hands-on in the world of collision repair, painting, powder coating, and other industries. They are some of the most creative and knowledgeable people in their fields. Everyday they experience new materials, processes, and challenges.

If you are in need of a special product or have any suggestions, please contact our sales or engineering staff. Standard Tools & Equipment greatly appreciates your input and we look forward to exceeding your expectations.

Standard Tools & Equipment
800-451-2425

Dust Collection Safety

A recent posting by the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) stated that the 2006 Combustible Dust Hazard Safety publication reported 281 major dust explosions with a total of 119 deaths and 718 injuries from 1980 to 2003. These incidents were due to the combustion of accumulated dust, unsafe dust mixtures, and other similar causes. Following this report there have been at least two explosions involving casualties. One explosion occurred at the Imperial Sugar refinery in Port Wentworth, Georgia, and another at a plastic molding plant in Kinston, North Carolina. To help prevent such industrial disasters, the NFPA is currently revising their combustible dust safety standards including NFPA-654 and NFPA-664. The United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires that combustibility information on all dusts encountered in a workplace be accessible to employees.

It is the employer’s responsibility to determine and apply the best methods to ensure safety in the workplace. These methods should include informing employees of the different types of dust materials present and how they are controlled. Standard Tools & Equipment provides products to aid in the management of powder coating, sanding/prepping, and woodworking. Our spray booths can be used for collecting sanding/prepping wastes and powder coat overspray. We also manufacture cyclone dust collectors that can be used to control dust, chips, and shavings created in woodworking operations. The cyclone dust collectors are best suited for small-to-medium shops, or for a limited number of machines in a larger shop. Using small collectors in a large shop reduces noise and energy consumption, as well as allowing more flexibility in shop layout.

For more information regarding combustible dust and workplace requirements contact OSHA.
Please contact Standard Tools & Equipment Co. at 1-800-451-2425 for pricing or product information.

Going Green in 2010

Today there is an increased awareness of protecting our environment from hazardous emissions and waste. Everyone is ‘Going Green’ to reduce these environmental pollutants. All types of companies are expected to address this matter, including firms operating spray booths. Spray booth operations can reduce waste in one of two manners: a dramatic overhaul of the entire process or incremental improvements.

Dramatic overhauls are expensive because they typically require intensive planning and resources. By focusing on the materials and equipment companies also bypass an opportunity to improve their employees and business processes. Production is almost always impacted during a change of this type and often afterwards. Even with an overhaul companies should not assume that all wastes will be eliminated.

Incremental improvements can be made in a manner that does not upset the production of a shop. These improvements can be started immediately and scheduled with available resources, government incentives, and production requirements taken into account. This is the process recommended by the Tools USA specialists.

Example of an Incremental Plan:

Benchmark current operations: material types and volumes used, liquid and solid hazardous waste recorded, gaseous emissions calculated, hazardous operations noted, and level of operator knowledge
Identify materials used to eliminate the most hazardous; many paint and solvent manufacturers now offer low-VOC options
Evaluate solid and liquid waste by identifying waste source, retraining employees, mixing precise materials for jobs, and eliminating storage of excess material
Understand gaseous wastes and new filter options
Evaluate storage and spray guns

These steps require only a small investment and create a good foundation for future conversion to powder coating or waterborne paints and equipment. A shop that understands and addresses existing issues with incremental improvements will recover investments for major changes more quickly than a shop that makes only a dramatic change.

Please contact Kelly Goudy or the technical staff at Tools USA if you have questions about ‘Going Green’ with your spray booth operation.

Pass-Thru Side-Down Draft Spray Booth

At Tools USA we routinely get requests for spray booths to be used on a conveyor line. Usually we will offer two opposed open-face booths or one of our designs with cutouts in the side walls. We have even made a spray booth to run lengthwise in order for the operator to stop/start the line when getting parts in and out of the DTD booth. Tools USA now offers a new booth style that mimics a larger-scale pass-thru booth using our SDD-1000 ETL and pressurized intake.

Pass-Thru Side-Down Draft Spray Booth (PTSDD-1000)

(shown with conveyer and parts simulated)

Designed to be used with conveyer paint line
Standard size suited to industrial parts: cabinets, furniture, housings, control boxes, carts, signs
Wide enough for two spray operators for combined coverage
Pressurized openings to prevent dirt/dust from entering spray area
Uses air from exterior of shop (also works with heated air make-up unit)
4.8 air exchanges per minute (4.0 minimum required by OSHA and NFPA)
Two personnel doors
Eight Class 2/Div II lights
Unobstructed ceiling allows exterior support of conveyer line if necessary
Popular custom features: size of openings, size of booth, # of lights, Class 1/Div II lights, powder coated booth
Can be set up as powdercoat booth with HEPA filters to recycle in-shop air

For further information contact Kelly Goudy at Tools USA
Phone: 1-800-451-2425
Email: KellyG@standardtool.com

Tools USA In-House Financing!

Tools USA has a new in-house leasing program for spray booths, frame machines, or multiple item purchases. To qualify, a prospect must meet the following criteria:

Acceptable personal credit.
Minimum 40% down payment.
Located in eastern or central time zones.
Agree to ACH monthly payment drafts.

Customers will be able to choose 24, 36, or 48 month lease options. Tools USA rates will run between 10 and 14%. All leases will be $1 buy-out financing leases.

The minimum financed after down payment is $3,000 (original price of item or items will be $5000).

An application can be requested by calling 1-800-451-2425.

Shop Tools USA.

Shop Paint-Booths.com.

When Should Spray Booth Filters be Changed?

Filters are often overlooked when evaluating the performance of a spray booth. A filter is a relatively inexpensive component of a spray booth and should be changed when necessary. Changing filters will help in avoiding poor finish jobs and unsafe conditions caused by inhibited air flow which can build toxic and combustible fumes.

Intake – Change filters when they fill with dust and dirt. Many auto body shops will change filters every two to four weeks if the booth is used daily.

Exhaust – Paint arrestor filters need to be changed under the following conditions:

When the material being sprayed may react with something that has already been sprayed with these filters so as to create a toxic or spontaneous event.
The static pressure differential is 0.5” or greater. This differential is measured on the manometer and is based on an empty booth with clean filters. Once the static pressure is above the basis line (0.5”), the exhaust filters need to be changed.
Powder coat filters can be vacuumed many times and usually last 500-1000 hours.

Please contact Tools USA for information on spray booth filters or to order replacement filters.

The Joys of a Used Spray Booth

In today’s economy, there seems to be an excess of used spray booths available due to the number of shops that have closed. We have all seen these used spray booths on E-Bay and web-based clearing houses. It seems like buying a used spray booth would be a smart and conservative decision. A spray booth purchase and installation is likely an infrequent occurrence for most companies.

Standard Tools lives in this industry every day and offers the following thoughts:
• The owner of the spray booth likely went out of business, possibly due in part to having a wrong or bad spray booth that was poorly designed and/or improperly installed. This costs the owner significant money in delayed production and poor quality every day that it is used.
• A used spray booth may not be complete with installation and maintenance manuals or other items that were omitted during the installation.
• Many spray booth manufacturers have either gone out of business or have significantly changed their designs over the years. Obtaining replacement parts or information on the spray booth may be difficult, if not impossible.
• Older paint booths may be obsolete and may not meet current building and fire codes.
• A used spray booth may have been altered or repaired by an owner that was not experienced in spray booth design and codes.
• Electrical items may not meet your available power.
• Taking a spray booth down and re-installing it is more than twice the effort required to install a new booth. This is due to tracking of parts, repackaging for transport, and replacing/repairing damaged or missing parts.
• There is no warranty. Buying a used spray booth is a gamble; buying new provides a guarantee from the manufacturer.

Most auto body shops charge $100-$200 per hour for painting, and many industrial shops charge more. The initial savings made by buying a used spray booth can quickly vanish if days or weeks are required to solve any of the problems listed above. Worse yet, there are instances in our experience where the buyer ended up throwing out the used booth and purchasing a new one.

Standard Tools recommendation is to buy a new spray booth built to your specifications and current codes. Installing an auto shop sized spray booth usually takes 2-3 men a few days to install, plus electrical and ducting work. Installing a new booth is the best way to ensure quality and throughput in your shop.

Call Standard Tools at 800-451-2425 for more information on spray booths, powder coating, and auto body equipment.

Visit us at www.toolsusa.com

SPRAY BOOTH PERMITTING SIMPLIFIED

Your inspectors (building, electrical, fire, environmental, worker safety, etc.) are responsible for making sure that your spray booth and processes are up to code. They are generally very interested in seeing your company prosper, but they are charged with making sure that the spray booth does not negatively impact the chance of a fire, worker injury or environmental issues.

This can seem complex and overwhelming when building a new spray booth. Here are some notes to make this easier.

Know your building:
-Total volume of building (floor space X height of ceilings)
-Building and floor materials
-Distance to nearby walls (should be at least 36”)
-Distance to electrical wiring and controls
-Proximity to property lines and other buildings
-Distance to spark-producing processes, like welding or grinding
-Escape routes for fires and other emergencies (aka egress)

Know your project:
-Obtain drawings and specifications from the spray booth manufacturer
-Have contractor information for electrical/fire/ducting
-Be prepared to give information about building the spray booth and subcontracting specific processes

Know your process:
-Obtain MSDS sheets for materials to be sprayed
-Be prepared to provide a plan for storage/mixing/waste management/training.

Know your plan:
-talk to your local inspectors before buying the spray booth (Do you need ETL certification? Are your inspectors influenced by other local spray booth incidents)
-submit a simple site plan (This goes a long way with letting your inspectors feel that you are open with them and wish to meet all code requirements.)

Know your support:
-Standard Tools can help you by providing information about the product and general code information.
-More information is available on the Tools USA blog by searching ‘permit’ or by contacting us at 800-451-2425.

For more information on paint booths please visit us at www.toolsusa.com.

Free Freight Fallacy

The old saying, “There is no such thing as a free lunch”, supports the concept that you cannot get “something for nothing.” Many internet businesses advertise “free freight” so consumers will believe they are getting a great deal. Merchants are actually just hiding freight and shipping costs by marking up the price of the product. Freight and shipping providers expect to be paid for their services which include packing, palletizing, loading, documentation, transporting, unloading, and insurance. These services can account for up to 50% of a product’s cost and it is you, the consumer, who pays for this whether it is included in the product price or added separately.

Tools USA chooses to itemize these charges to be upfront with our customers. We will do everything we can to offer the best freight pricing without lowering our standards. Our shipping department makes every effort to ship your paint booth or frame machine in a manner that allows for easy offloading, which includes arranging a carrier and extending the discounts provided to us by our shipping partners. When possible, a flatbed is used to transport larger automotive body shop equipment.

At Tools USA our product knowledge is superior because we manufacture many of our products. This enables us to provide “great customer service” which includes accessibility, support, and innovation. So, when you are shopping for a spray booth, frame rack, powdercoat system, or other auto body tools and equipment, make sure you do your research. Free freight may seem like a bargain at first, but in the end products with free freight may not provide the value anticipated by consumers.

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Author: toolsusa