January 2015 MAINE COASTAL NEWS Page 15. Maine Co. Builds World Class Paint Booth
Aquest Corporation of Saco recently completed a state-of-the-art, world class industrial paint booth for C&L Aerospace, Bangor. With the support of several Maine based craftsmen, the Aquest team created a strip and paint facility measuring 200’ wide x 200’ deep x 40’ high to support the prepping and painting of commercial air- craft. The booth components were provided through Rohner Paint Finishing, Vancouver, WA.
The hanger, built in the 1950s to house C-130 tankers, had been moth-balled for many years. Aquest was called in to take a look at the potential for using this existing structure, creating a cost effective paint shop operation and designing a system that would be energy effi cient. The client wished to have the fl exibility to strip/sand/prep aircraft in one side of the hanger while painting an aircraft on the opposite side of the hanger. This production fl exibility allowed the client to speed up operations and to utilize the fa- cility for a wide range of plane models and sizes. This design offered signifi cant benefi t to the clients customers and, in utilizing the existing structure, signifi cant cost savings were achie ved. Two 60’ x 20,’ 3 stage, NESHAP fi lter plenums were installed with independent controls. A unique, push-pull, modifi ed, cross fl ow air pattern provided proper air- fl ow throughout all levels of the hanger. The proprietary duct design was built and installed by Hahnel Brothers, Bangor. A 40’ heavy duty, curtain system designed by Aquest and manufactured at Bangor Can- vas, was installed to allow for partitioning the hanger in support of various production requirements. This curtain system supported
Passion Craft
no greater for the
rockportmarine.com Photo by Alison Langley.
rack mounted small parts to full plane con- fi gurations.
The design challenge was to allow for the capture and removal of paint overspray from 100% of all surfaces. In that over 50% of an airplane surface is “under” the airplane, the challenge required using the unique shape of the aircraft wing (Bernoulli Effect) to move air and remove paint over- spray in these critical areas. Prepping and painted a boat does not require this highly critical airfl ow design pattern although a boat hull offers unique challenges. Aquest included an LEL (VOC) moni- toring system that allowed for optimization of total airfl ow. In conjunction with vari- able frequency drives (VFD’s), the system utilized 80% return air with 20% outdoor make-up air to insure worker safety while providing a signifi cant
natural gas cost
avoidance during harsh winter heating seasons. This feature qualifi ed for approxi- mately $200,000 in Effi ciency Maine energy and greenhouse gas initiatives. Did you know, a paint booth should be designed for airfl ow requirements as “emp- ty”. When a large boat is placed within this booth, less air is required (volume reduction) due to the booth being “fi lled up” by the boat. The critical control of air fl ow and air volume contributes to both improved paint quality and energy cost reductions. Higher air speed can also cause a hull static charge that can decrease the quality of the fi nished paint surface. VFD control is an important design consideration that improves fi nished product quality, reduces energy consump- tion and provides Effi ciency Maine energy
Continued on Page 18.
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