Thursday, 08 May 2014

dab conquers contamination

dab conquers contamination

London Region's November meeting saw a presentation on the removal of contaminants
Mike and James Patten of DAB Restorations Limited, experts in fallout and overspray removal, gave a very interesting presentation to sixteen delegates at the London Region's November meeting.

The company was set up in 1994 by Mike Patten who was originally a graduate chemist with over 30 years' experience in fibres, plastics and paint industries in the UK and North America.

dab, a registered trademark, offer a tailor made mobile nationwide service to the Insurance and Motor Repair Industry for removal of fallout and overspray. dab undertake restorations, not only to motorcars, but motorcycles, coaches, goods vehicles, caravans, boats and even buildings.

The majority of work undertaken by dab is the removal of airborne paint contamination, usually from the renovation or fireproofing of buildings. Such paints/coatings are usually a two pack structure with low solvent and high adhesion properties, thus the need for expert analysis of the contaminants and substrates.

dab report that the second most common contaminants dealt with are industrial fallout, acid fallout / sulphurous coal from power stations and iron dust from engineering and steel making industrial works, although the former is now seen less.

Other contaminants dealt with include resins, sealants, tar, cement and concrete spills, vandalism (paint), lime staining and particle emissions from chimney process plant or blasting operations.

Whatever the contamination is, it basically falls into one of two categories, either a) where there is no interaction between the deposit and the vehicle surface, or b) where interaction may take place either immediately (acid rain) or over a long period (rail dust or cement). dab have adequate experience and knowledge of paint coatings and chemicals to enable them to identify the contaminant and substrate and execute an effective non-destructive removal process.

dab's objectives are:

• To remove the contaminant as soon as is possible to avoid surface damage
• To provide the most effective solution
• To minimise any consequential loss
• To eliminate the need for vehicle resprays, extended repair time and car hire charges

dab offer their services to suit the client's requirement, working in a whole range of sites, setting up mobile restoration stations and dealing with the logistics of multiple clients, taking into account their personal time restraints and commitments. Ninety percent of the restorations are carried out by hand, leaving just ten percent requiring some form of mechanical intervention. Quality control is confirmed by the owner of the contaminated subject and any queries or complaints can be dealt with immediately.

dab report a very high success rate, 98%, in restoration of metal and glass and 50% in restoration of smooth plastics. Textured plastics may be damaged by the cleaning process and thus, as with any process, a trial area is always explored first.

dab's technicians are mainly from a valeting background and dab have in place a comprehensive in house training scheme combining repair bodyshop and Autoglym techniques.

The potential savings to be made, particularly by the Insurance industry are considerable. A typical entire vehicle paint and glass restoration charge is likely to be under a quarter of the cost of an entire respray carried out by a reputable bodyshop.

dab's ability to travel to the client and execute the restoration process in a single day eliminates travel costs and vehicle hire charges put forward. The concept of diminution in value or betterment can also be eliminated with a tailor made restoration process.

Large cases usually end up with liability Insurers, once a general problem has been identified at an area, i.e. building site/works factory. In such multiple claims cases, dab can demonstrate that there is a solution to the problem by restoring a sample vehicle and make it clear that the work can be carried out with the minimum disruption and within a very reasonable time period.

The presentation included details of a number of case scenarios from a single car restoration requiring one technician one day to 500 brand new cars requiring eighteen technicians three weeks to complete where a massive saving was made by the liability Insurers of over two million pounds.

At the close of the presentation, each delegate was presented with a brochure and a small model car sign written with dab's logos.

Darren Morgan