Bobby Alloway loves the color black. Alloway, who has been building and painting hot rods for years, was named the 2011 Autorama Builder of the Year at the 59th Detroit Autorama earlier this year. The award was just the latest in a long series of coveted accolades for the painter, including Goodguys’ Street Rod and Street Machine of the Year, the Don Ridler Memorial Award, America’s Most Beautiful Roadster, plus countless others. He was inducted into the Rod & Custom Hall of Fame in 2004.

A small motor oil spill incident at the I-CAR Tech Centre in Appleton, Wisconsin in the spring of 2011 has raised our awareness of the many considerations involved with a material spill into the environment. What started as an accidental collision between a snowplow and a 55-gallon drum of waste oil on an adjoining property resulted in an experience we would never want to repeat.

To view a PDF of this article please click HERE.

There were several steps and decisions that had to be made to assure proper cleanup. What was more stressful than what we knew about the incident was what was unknown. How far had the spill traveled? Was the groundwater contaminated? What public agencies might have to be involved? How much was this all going to cost?

We thought we’d share our experience to perhaps benefit another facility that might encounter a similar incident.

Environmental legislation and increasing restrictions on VOC emissions continue to transform the coatings industry and collision repair business. Waterborne paint systems have become more prevalent as the best way to radically reduce greenhouse gasses. At BASF, this environmental breakthrough has also become an opportunity for product and service innovation to add superior value, helping increase shop safety, productivity, quality and, ultimately, customer satisfaction.

To view a PDF of this article please click HERE.

Innovative BASF Products Leads
As a world leader in automotive refinishing products, BASF introduced one of the first waterborne systems with the launch of the Glasurit® 90-Line™ in 1992. Ahead of its time, the high-performing 90-Line began a revolution that has not only made many collision repair shops more environmentally friendly, but has improved quality and throughput — through ease-of-use, low material consumption, fast-drying formulas, better hiding and easier blending.

Moreover, the fact that approximately 70 percent of all new cars are finished with waterborne paint make 90-Line an ideal system for repair. And when it comes to quality, it’s reassuring to know that the world’s finest automobiles—including Mercedes-Benz and BMW—have waterborne paint. In addition, ultra-luxury cars such as Maybach and Rolls Royce are hand sprayed at the plant with 90-Line.

For collision repair centers that demand high productivity, superior quality and cost efficiency, BASF’s R-M® automotive finishes continue to be the right choice. R-M’s low-VOC waterborne basecoat—Onyx HD™ — has been used by many independent collision repair centers and car dealerships for almost two decades. The system brings next-generation processes into the shop, while offering excellent versatility, durability and cost effectiveness along with superb color matching with BASF’s proprietary COLOR-MAX® system. And, Onyx HD does all this while meeting today’s most stringent VOC regulations at local, regional and national levels.

The combination of R-M’s fast drying primers, high gloss “no-bake” clears and Onyx HD low-VOC waterborne basecoat reduce cycle time and energy consumption while helping preserve the environment. Being green with Onyx HD can actually save you some green, helping make the business case to switch to the waterborne system.

It’s like water and oil; church and state—the Democrats and the Republicans. For many decades, there have always been two disparate sources for collision and mechanical parts.