US – The $3m liquid coatings facility in Wisconsin features advanced equipment to simulate customer production lines, providing both research and training opportunities. The centre will help PPG to ensure that its products are applied correctly and consistently in industrial manufacturing environments.
The facility houses curing ovens, robotic paint applicators and spray booths with temperature and humidity controls to mimic a range of application conditions. PPG says these capabilities will improve the product launch process and application validation.
“It’s important to our customers to have liquid coatings products that work well in specific climates and environments,” commented Steve Wirtz, PPG liquid application manager, Industrial Coatings. “If they’re applying liquid coatings in the searing heat of summer with high humidity, or in cold-weather environments, we can simulate those conditions in our climate-controlled coating rooms to ensure that PPG products will perform as desired.
“The abilities to mimic actual production conditions and to test coatings applications on large and complex shapes and parts will enable our technical experts to work more closely with customers during development, offering new opportunities for identifying and addressing potential problems and for coatings application training.”
PPG offers a wide range of powder, electrocoat, pretreatment and liquid products for metal finishing to manufacturers across multiple industries, with operations in more than 70 countries and a workforce of over 46,000 individuals. Oak Creek is the company’s largest plant in the US, employing 550 of its 18,000 workers nationwide; customers include Harley Davidson, John Deere and most US-based automotive manufacturers.