Low Shear BPR Saves Colour, Satisfies Top Management

CUSTOMER: Automotive manufacturer

GRACO EQUIPMENT: Low Shear Back Pressure Regulator (BPR)

Automotive companies have rigorous standards for colour and finish quality. Meeting those standards can be difficult with paint that is constantly circulating. Excess circulation causes paint shearing, changing the colour and dulling sheen in metallic and high viscosity paints.

CHALLENGE: One automotive manufacturer struggled with a high viscosity, dark metallic paint. Constant circulation over multiple shifts made paint shearing unavoidable. They could not match the intended colour or keep paint shades consistent over time.

Instead, the paint line engineer resorted to deliberately shearing the paint to control for a consistent colour. This imperfect solution took up to four days of circulation to control for the paint shade.

Senior management was not happy. They were dead set on a certain level of quality. The engineer needed a solution quickly.

SOLUTION: A Graco account representative mentioned that a new low shear back pressure regulator (BPR) could help.

• Traditional BPRs do a great job of managing pressure on the circulation line, but their sharp cornered geometry can cause faster shear in metallic paint.
• The gentler design of the Graco low shear BPR slows shearing effects to maintain the sheen of the paint longer.  

RESULTS: After installing a Graco low shear BPR, they were finally able to attain the right colour and finish quality. No more deliberately shearing paint to match a colour saved time, money and tension from senior management.

Graco’s low shear BPR has become a company standard. With the success of the field unit, they immediately ordered enough to outfit the entire plant with plans to equip another facility.

This automotive manufacturer understood that sometimes the smallest problems could affect finish quality. Now they know that Graco is there to provide the solution.