Symach states that it has invented a unique technology for body shops that will dry paint in less than one minute. Drytronic technology was developed by the Italian-based company to help shops reduce key-to-key time, labor costs and overall efficiency.
“With our patented method, it takes 50 seconds to fully dry clear, 30 seconds to dry waterborne and 40 seconds for body filler and primer,” said Osvaldo Bergaglio, CEO of Symach. “It is very cost-effective compared to traditional methods such as the conventional oven method and electric infrared heaters. In fact, the quantity of gas used for drying a painted car is no more than 10 percent of the amount used in a conventional spraybooth.”
Drytronic technology changes the process shops have typically used in the past to paint and repair vehicles. Using conventional processes, Bergaglio said technicians typically manage three to four cars at a time and spend about eight days to repair them, taking approximately 12 hours per job. With Drytronic technology, the flash-off and drying occurs in two minutes.
“This allows technicians to work on one vehicle at a time, drastically reducing key-to-key time and efficiency in the shop,” said Bergaglio. He said the technology also reduces labor costs. “Rather than moving cars outside seven or eight times as is required in the conventional process, Symach’s technology reduces this to three. This saves more than an hour per repair. There are also 30 to 40 percent less vehicles in the shop, so it is less congested.”
Symach’s patented generator operates based on a catalytic chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen, using natural gas or LPG (liquid propane gas).
“This chemical reaction generates different temperatures that produce an electromagnetic wave spectrum that can easily dry paint molecules,” said Bergaglio. “This makes it ideal for drying every type and brand of paint, including waterborne and solvent-based.”
The drying process happens from inside the molecules, which allows the wavelength to be modified in order to reach every atom in the paint. Bergaglio said this significantly reduces the drying time. With the absence of carbon, there is no fire, combustion or emissions of carbon monoxide. Drytronic technology is used with a Symach robot and laser sensors, which automatically manage the variables of different absorption of infrared for different paint colors, thicknesses, parts of vehicles’ materials and room temperatures. The Symach Paint Process (SPP) is used in conjunction with the Drytronic technology and robot.
“Symach was able to develop a painting process that reduces flash-off times and drying,” said Bergaglio. “The robot performs this process faster than a conventional booth or electric infrared and distributes radiation over the painted vehicle so it is dried evenly.”
Bergaglio said the painting product is chemically stable and inert, which prevents the appearance of any future defects and allows for immediate polishing.
“The SPP application time for body filler, primer, waterborne and clear is reduced by 60 to 70 percent compared to the conventional process, while the drying time using Drytronic technology and the robot is reduced by 80 to 90 percent, compared to traditional methods,” he said.
An average repair is one and a half to two hours. Both SPP and Drytronic technology use specific drying formulas, which are loaded into the computer systems of Symach’s robots. No changes are necessary in regard to the paint producers’ datasheets, other than the sequences of application coats.
“Using Drytronic technology and the SPP process, body shop technicians will see better results when applying body filler, primer, spraying waterborne and applying clear,” said Bergaglio. “This leads to overall productivity, which all shops continually strive for.”
For more information about Symach’s Drytronic technology and the SPP process, visit Symach’s website or email [email protected].
