13.  Best Practices:  Cost Reductions

A.  Steel Defects
SPEAKER:  Dave Chalk, Galaxy Associates

Processes of steel making of importance to coaters will be discussed, with emphasis on defect identification and management. The chemical and physical processes of rendering steel from iron ore will be explained, with a focus on how users of steel can achieve the best quality possible in their finished products. Procedures for dealing with non-ferrous metals, primarily aluminum and alloys of zinc, as well as castings and special situations will also be shared.

B.  Powder Color Change: Fast and Getting Faster
SPEAKER:  Jerry Trostle, Wagner Industrial Solutions

Technology has been changing in the powder business in the past several years.  Previously, powder was typically thought of as a 1-, 2- or 3-color market.  Today people are changing colors constantly - anywhere from 1-30 color changes in a given day, and in some cases even more.  The demand for color change reclaim systems is as low as 10 minutes or less, and non- reclaim as low as 20 seconds.  This session will review the different technologies for fast color change that are continuing to get faster all the time. 

C.  Increasing First Time Quality & Cost Savings by Reducing Dirt Defects
Kevin Lockwood, Paint Performance Consulting

When problems occur in a painting process, they cause defects that increase cycle time and add cost (not value) to the products that are manufactured.  Paint defects - a.k.a. Dirt Defects - are often the number one defect category that subtracts from First Time Quality (%FTQ) or % Yield measurements.   Identifying and eliminating the root causes of dirt defects are the keys to effective Paint Defect Reduction and cost savings.  Essential to this process is having fully trained staff - a Paint Defect Analyst - capable of identifying dirt defects and their root cause.  This presentation will help you learn how to become a Paint Defect Analyst.