“At The Movies”

From Sartor Bros, South Africa

A customer of mine makes Gen-sets (stationary generators) for the movie industry. They supplied the Gen-sets for Lord of the Rings (Twin Towers), James Bond 007 etc. Apparently for major productions they use up to 5 Gen-sets and re order for each new movie. Problem these generators must push below 55 DB as keeping the noise level on the movie sets low is very important. Using a 6cyl turbo charged Volvo Diesel motor the heat in this box is enormous. This resulted in the generator only being able to run at maximum for 1 hour before overheating. We coated the entire system from the manifolds, turbo and exhaust pipes to the silencer boxes. The generator now runs at max output as long as you want, with no overheating. Just think next time you are at the movies, Tech Line Coatings are being used to make this happen.

CERMALUBE & Coating Bearings

Normally we recommend DFL-1 for use on bearings. Some have asked about CermaLube on bearings. In theory it should have an excellent bond to bearings. However we have not done any in house testing on this application. We did receive a note that B&B Specialty Coatings in Henry Virginia has applied CermaLube to bearings and noticed a significant drop in the effort needed to turn the assembly. As we get more data from engines that are trying bearings coated with CermaLube, we will keep you advised.

WE HAVE FINALLY MOVED

We are now in our new building (well almost, still a few boxes to unpack). Please change your records to reflect the new address. The Texas facility is still in Midlothian and will continue to be used as a shipping point. Our phone numbers remain the same, though please be patient with our new phone system as we work out the bugs.

ENGINE BUILDER MAGAZINE

If you do not receive this magazine try to get on the subscription list. They have a great deal of information for engine builders and machine shops. Coatings get regular exposure, which helps you sell the process to your customers. The March 2003 issue had a story on a build up of a Honda VTEC engine and many of the internal parts were coated. The coating work was done by Polymer Dynamics, Inc of Houston Texas.

INTERNAL ENGINE COATINGS

This market is expanding rapidly. It seems that the internal engine coating market is now about where the header coating market was 7 to 8 years ago. It is poised to expand rapidly as coatings have finally been recognized, by the general market, as well worth the cost. This is a very lucrative market and if you are not currently offering engine coatings it is time to expand your services. In addition we hope to have several new coatings out this year that will be directed at this market and will gain additional magazine exposure, through press releases, ADS and stories.

MARKET CONDITIONS

Some have been concerned about market conditions and if the down turn will affect the coating business. In speaking to shops around the USA, all we have heard is continued growth in business. While there have been a few slow weeks here and there, generally the following weeks are extremely busy. This is evident in our order volume which in 2003 is up about 15 % up over 2002, which is our best year ever and we are just entering the busiest part of the year.

SAVED PISTONS

From Doug of

Process Coatings, MI.

Doug had coated the pistons for a 1200cc Price Motor in a snowmobile. The owner was not aware of the fact that the motor had a defective oil pump. He ran the motor hard for about 3 miles, with no oil pressure. When they found the problem and tore the motor down the pistons were not damaged and could be reused. The pistons were coated both the top and skirts.

Send e-mail to the editor: Leonard Warren