York’s Auto Body changes automotive painting style

    HOULTON — York’s of Houlton’s Body Shop recently converted its paint operation to DuPont Cromax  Pro, an environmentally friendly waterborne basecoat from DuPont.
    “Waterborne products dramatically reduce the amount of solvent and volatile organic compounds (VOC) that would otherwise evaporate into the air, when compared to traditional solvent borne products,” said owner Jerry York.
    Tougher environmental regulations in California and Western Europe require collision repair shops to use products like Cromax Pro to reduce air pollution, according to York. York’s of Houlton’s Body Shop made the switch to Cromax Pro voluntarily and is happy to embrace the “green” technology.
Contributed photo
PAINTERS — Shane Gallop, left, and Jordan Ouellette were recently trained in waterborne basecoat painting techniques for their jobs at York’s of Houlton’s Body Shop. The body shop recently switched to the environmentally friendly waterborne basecoat from DuPont for its painting projects.
    “We made the move because we believe that it’s the right thing to do,” said Body Shop Manager, Roger Graham. “Now the people in our community have the option to have their vehicle repaired with a product that is better for the environment.”
    Waterborne basecoat technology is not new. Vehicle manufacturers have used the technology for almost two decades, and is the paint system of choice for more than half the cars made in the world today, according to York.
     The DuPont Cromax Pro paint system meets the strict quality standards established by vehicle manufacturers to ensure that the value of your vehicle remains at its highest possible level.
    Jordan Ouellette, one of York’s paint technicians attended a training session for a week recently in preparation of the conversion from solvent base to waterborne.  The new waterborne, low-VOC coatings don’t mix, apply or act like solvent based finishes. The training Jordan attended was expressly designed to teach new users of the waterborne paint how to handle, agitate, mix, spray, clear, clean and dispose of all materials.
    In addition to the formal training Ouellette received, representatives from Carquest and DuPont were at the Body Shop the week York’s converted.
    “They provided additional training for Jordan as well as Shane Gallop, body shop assistant manager,” York said. “They were critical in making sure that we got up and running smoothly. Both Jordan and Shane said that with the technicians help, the conversion went quite smoothly.”
    York’s of Houlton Body Shop is proud to “go green” and invites any questions customers may have about the process. For more information, call 532-6534.