Conventional fixed heating

Systems

Conventional industrial central heating systems are

to be found in many bodyshops. Central heating

relies on a central boiler feeding a number of convector

radiators. These radiators warm the surrounding

air, therefore raising the ambient temperature of the

whole environment and anything contained in it. The

amount of energy required is in direct relation to the

volume of air contained within the area to be heated.

As soon as a door or window is opened, warm air is

pushed out by the heavier cold air streaming in from

outside. This makes such heating extremely unsuitable

for bodyshops, where doors are constantly being

opened to allow vehicles to be moved in and out. A

further drawback is that the convector radiators need

to be mounted on the walls of the workshop, thus

taking up valuable space.

Portable heaters

Portable heaters come in a variety of sizes and

types, from electric fan heaters and propane gas to

forced air space heaters using gas, oil or paraffin,

and even mobile IR quartz heaters. Whilst mobile

forced heaters are relatively expensive to run, they

are cheap to buy and flexible in use. They generate

considerable air movement which can create dust

problems. It is important to ascertain that the

design of the unit being considered is suitable for

the area to be heated and will not cause any safety

problems.

15.4 Bodyshop lighting

Lighting in the bodyshop plays a critical role in the

final finish of a vehicle body. Effective lighting can

highlight faults which otherwise may not be seen;

this not only reduces job times but also minimizes

rectification work.

Effective lighting is not necessarily a question

of increasing the level of lighting: this can be

counter-productive as it produces what is known

as disability glare which can effectively blind the

operative, preventing him from seeing surface

faults. Both the level and type of lighting can be

crucial to the vehicle painter’s colour matching

ability.

Planning and specifying bodyshop lighting

requirements are an extremely complex and technical

subject because many factors have to be considered

in conjunction with calculations. Therefore it

is recommended that consultant specialist bodyshop

lighting companies should be contacted when either

designing a bodyshop or re-equipping an existing

workshop with new lights.

There are four important areas of a bodyshop,

each of which has different lighting requirements.

Stripping and straightening areas

The stripping and straightening areas require

only walk-around vertical lighting with relatively

low illumination. A suitable lighting level for this

type of area would be between 300 and 500 lux

(Figure 15.3).

Preparation area

The lighting in the preparation area is of critical

importance because the quality of preparation fixes

the final finished paint level. It needs to be of much

Bodyshop planning 511

higher illuminance and multidirectional to enable

the most minor faults to be picked up. It is also

important that glare and shadow are kept to a minimum

and that side lighting is of a good level. The

lighting level required for the preparation area is

between 750 and 1000 lux on both vertical and

horizontal surfaces. Mounted standard fluorescent

fittings at a 45 degree angle are unsuitable as the

disability glare and uneven light levels can effectively

prevent even major faults from being seen

(Figure 15.4). Specialist bodyshop lighting units

that give glare-free vertical and horizontal lights

are available. They improve the productivity of the

operatives and also reduce the amount of remedial

work necessary.

It is important that light readings are taken with

a vehicle in situ. The light meter should be placed

in a variety of positions, not just for straight down

light readings, in order to ensure that adequate

light is available on the sides and lower portions of

the vehicle.

By use of the correct lighting, any preparation

faults will be found straight away and hence will

not go through to the final finish, where they would

be both difficult and time consuming to rectify.

Paint mixing room area

The paint mixing room usually contains only one

or two light fittings, but if any colour comparison

is to be done in this room the correct tubes must

be used. The light levels for this area should be

between 800 and 1100 lux.

Spray booth and painting area

The lighting requirements in the spray booth are

similar to those of the preparation area but with an

even greater necessity for avoiding glare. This is

because the surfaces of the vehicle, once painted,

will be of a very high gloss and hence reflective,

exacerbating any disability glare and masking

faults in the paintwork. This problem necessitates a

much more sophisticated lighting system than the

rest of the bodyshop.

The key factor should be avoidance of cross-booth

glare. This is where the operative, standing on one

side of the booth, has his vision impaired by the

glare emanating from the lighting on the opposite

side of the booth.

Most spray booths are designed with integral

lighting systems. Hence it is as well, when choosing

a booth, to carry out a dummy run with a car inside

the booth. You should then stand in a variety of positions

as if you were the paint operative: if, in any

one of these positions, you are receiving direct light

from one or more of the lighting tubes installed in

the booth, you will be suffering from some degree

of glare, which will probably be disabling and will

certainly be tiring.

The light intensity inside the spray booth should

be in the region of 900–1200 lux and approximately

the same at the sill level and the gutter line.

Lighting is only one of the many factors that will

be taken into account when choosing a spray booth.

However, if a booth is excellent in all other respects,

the lighting can be modified by a specialist company

without causing too many problems. The same

applies where improved lighting is required in an

Figure 15.3Lighting used in the stripping and

straightening areas (Fifth Generation Technology Ltd )

Figure 15.4Lighting used in the preparation area

(Fifth Generation Technology Ltd )

512Repair of Vehicle Bodies

existing booth. Lighting is certainly an area worthy

of meticulous attention by the bodyshop operator

(Figure 15.5).