Air Tractor Showcases First PPG E-Coat System for Aircraft OEM
OLNEY, TX — Air Tractor hosted aerospace industry representatives, elected dignitaries, Air Tractor dealers and members of the media at its agricultural aircraft manufacturing facilities in Olney, Texas, to see operation of the first electrocoat primer system for full-scale original-equipment aircraft parts manufacturing. Celebrating the groundbreaking event with Air Tractor officials were executives of aerospace coatings manufacturer PPG, which developed the pioneering e-coat aerospace primer system.
"This is an important day for Air Tractor and for PPG, and it is a milestone for the aerospace industry," said Air Tractor President Jim Hirsch. "E-coat is not a new metal primer application technology for corrosion resistance and paint adhesion, but it is new to aerospace. E-coat has been used in the automotive industry for 50 years. Until PPG AEROCRON™ e-coat primer was developed — the same company that introduced e-coat commercially for automotive OEM production — the technology had not been adopted by aerospace OEMs. The relatively high cure temperatures used in the automotive world can damage the structural and metallurgical properties of aluminum used in the aerospace industry. With PPG Aerocron e-coat primer, the cure temperature can be lowered to 200 degrees Fahrenheit [93.33 degrees Celsius], which makes e-coat a viable option for us."