Robotic Paint Line Improves Reliability with New Electrostatic Gun Standard

CUSTOMER: Fleet and transport vehicle manufacturer

GRACO EQUIPMENT: Pro Xpc Automatic Electrostatic Air Spray Gun    

CHALLENGE: Safety is a top priority for any manufacturing facility. When a fleet and transport vehicle manufacturer was informed that its Ransburg automatic spray guns were the possible cause for a fire, it caught management’s attention.

The company was a loyal Ransburg customer. So when Ransburg REA 900 parts were discontinued, they moved to the Ransburg Evolver 560 Robotic Atomizer.

This is where the problem started. In this case, it was reported that the Ransburg Evolver had arcing issues and a worn out voltage cable, which were identified as a possible cause of the fire.

SOLUTION: Still loyal, but growing weary of Ransburg’s quality, they agreed to try another new Ransburg automatic spray gun.

Several months later, the manufacturing engineer had his distributor give the local Graco account representative a call. The new Ransburg model was having constant issues.

One of the worst issues they found was that the voltage cable would come off 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 service the equipment.

The 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, controller, and all of the accessories needed to connect to their existing FANUC P-350 robot.

The Pro Xpc immediately provided a renewed confidence with a much more robust and durable design than its Ransburg counterparts.

Less than a week after installing their first Pro Xpc, the manufacturer ordered four more:

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

A year later, the Pro Xpc is the standard for all of the company’s plants and their suppliers. The fleet and transport vehicle manufacturer found an electrostatic spray gun that is reliable and easy to maintain.