Case Study: Robotic paint lines improve efficiency and safety with Graco Pro XPC Electrostatic.

CUSTOMER: Fleet and Transport Vehicle Manufacturer

EQUIPMENT GRACO: Pro Xpc automatic electrostatic air spray gun

CHALLENGE: Safety is the top priority for any manufacturing facility. When a fleet and transportation vehicle manufacturer was informed that their Ransburg automatic spray guns were the possible cause of a fire, it put quality managers on alert and got management's attention. The company was a regular Ransburg customer, so when they stopped making parts for the Ransburg REA 900, it was decided to switch to the Ransburg Evolver 560 robotic sprayer.

This is where the problem started. In this case, the Ransburg Evolver was reported to have arcing problems and a worn voltage cable, which were identified as a possible cause of the fire.

SOLUTION: Still loyal to the brand, but increasingly less confident in Ransburg's quality, they agreed to try another new automatic spray gun from the same firm. Several months later, the manufacturing engineer had his distributor call the local Graco account representative. The new Ransburg model was having constant problems.

One of the worst problems they encountered was that the electrical cord was coming out of the gun while spraying, forcing them to run without electrostatics. They wasted material (up to 50 percent in transfer efficiency) and time while waiting several weeks for Ransburg to repair the equipment.

The plant engineer wanted to know how quickly Graco could deliver a ProXpc Automatic Electrostatic Air Spray Gun to the plant.

RESULT : Within a week, Graco supplied the manufacturer with a Pro Xpc Automatic Electrostatic Air Spray Gun, a controller and all the necessary accessories to connect to their existing FANUC P-350 robot.

The Pro Xpc immediately provided the confidence needed for an industrial installation that must perform flawlessly, with a much more robust and durable design than its Ransburg counterparts. Less than a week after installing its first Pro Xpc, the manufacturer ordered four more:

• Two for FANUC P-350 robots already installed
• Two more for the FANUC P-50 robots to be installed later in the year

One year later, the Pro Xpc is the standard for all the company's plants and their suppliers. The fleet and transport vehicle manufacturer found a reliable and easy to maintain electrostatic spray gun