Written by:Tracy Beach
Plant Manager at Standard Tools & Equipment Co.
On a recent shopping trip to buy name brand jeans, I found that almost all of them were made in China, Mexico, Egypt, Lesotho and Haiti. We live in a global market. It’s often easier for a consumer to purchase a product from a foreign country than down the street from where they live. Let’s face it, it is just cheaper for the company in material and labor costs! But sometimes the initial savings do not necessarily mean that you save money. Spray booths are a great example, let me explain.
A spray booth is not a pair of jeans. There are costs beyond the initial purchase that may make a booth end up costing you more than a domestic booth. There are installation costs, ducting, fire suppression, permits and obtaining insurance.
There are numerous codes that define the requirements of a spray booth. (Read more about these codes.) A spray booth imported from a foreign source with a lesser perceived value and no third-party certification will be harder to permit than one made with quality materials, from a proven source and with (Optional) third-party certification (like ETL).
The ETL Mark is the fastest growing product safety certification mark in North America. A product bearing the ETL listed mark is determined to have met the minimum requirements of prescribed product safety standards from an independently tested organization. Moreover, the mark indicates that the manufacturer’s production site conforms to a range of compliance measures and is subject to periodic follow-up inspections to verify continued conformance.
Standard Tools is a company proud to be manufacturing American products from their plant in Greensboro, NC. Our paint booths and spray booths are designed for code approval with materials that comply with OSHA guidelines as well as the National Board of Fire Underwriters, as recommended by the 2011 National Fire Protection Association (NFPA33) requirements. Factors that make a spray booth from Standard Tools a better product include:
Rapid design and manufacturing capabilities, typically less than a week
Complete flexibility in designing and manufacturing custom spray booths
Quick response time from our customer service team to questions and address any problems
Single-point transit – Your booth can ship from our plant to your shop without lengthy overwater freighting
In-house experts at code compliance, booth design, assembly experience and application assistance
Consistent quality with proven materials and manufacturing processes
Optional Third-party ETL labels on many spray booth and mixing room styles
Better design for installation – Many imported designs use panels too large to handle without forklifts.
Stability – Standard Tools is an industry-leader with a solid history and promising future. We have been there for our Customers since 1979 and foresee a future of continued success. If you plan to expand in several years, we will be there to provide products that will match your current Standard Tools items or are improved due to efficiency improvements or code changes.
If you are looking at an imported spray booth, we ask that you give us a chance to provide pricing and lead-time information for a comparable spray booth. Please contact our booth sales department at 1-800-451-2425, Ext 125.