CAB Automotive upgrades to Metavate’s Toran 3a system
CAB Automotive are a privately owned Tier 1 supplier of interior trim parts to the automotive industry. Based at its 110,000 sq ft facility in the heart of the West Midlands, the company is a major employer in the area. The Company has Bentley, Jaguar Land Rover and Aston Martin among its customers.
In 2014 CAB chose to change their outdated system to our Toran 3a (air drying) polymer degreasing and pre-treatment system to prepare and protect the parts for powder coating. Toran 3a delivers Metavate’s one-stage Polymer pre-treatment system in an air-drying form, giving more than 1000 hours salt spray protection with no waste and no flash rust.
This approach has produced a lean manufacturing facility using minimal energy and producing lower carbon emissions per item than any other method of undertaking this work. There is no water use, no liquid or solid waste to dispose of and no noxious chemicals to handle, with obvious benefits to staff and cost! Installation took less than 2 weeks and no local authority or water authority permits were required.
The Installation simply could not have been in use so quickly if conventional heated chemical and water based technologies had been used and the levels of corrosion protection would not have been as high. This approach fits squarely with CAB’s dedication to service and environmental protection.
Metavate also installed an innovative, custom-designed powder-coating plant capable of handling the high capacity throughput demanded of them, with the ability to provide higher production or take other products. There is minimal daily management requirement for the system, as processes chosen either require no day to day analysis, in contrast to conventional phosphating systems, or are controlled and monitored automatically, with GKN/JLR enabled to dial in to observe processes and production live.
Every stage of the process:- degreasing; corrosion-proofing; materials-handling; oven technology; control systems; data handling, storage and reporting; is bespoke, using new technology or innovative new twists on up to date technology.