Take a peek into our new color tint studio! Our studio utilizes M.L. Campbell Wood Finishing Systems and features the latest and greatest, cutting-edge technology. It is the heart of our Coatings Division and where all the magic happens. Our Coatings Division offers 4 services: color matching stains and pigmented coatings, in-store catalyzing, shop demos, and training classes. Along with our expert team, our studio equipment is a vital part of making these services work efficiently and provide the best service for our customers.
Color Matching or Formulating
Our coatings division can match stains or pigmented coatings for a custom wood finish. Color matches can be completed within 3-4 days with the help of our state-of-the-art equipment such as the DataColor Color-Eye, Prime Heat Infrared Heat Oven and Corob Automated Tinter. Let’s check out the benefits of each and how they’re used!
The process starts with our DataColor color eye that is used to scan pigmented colors to get a baseline color formula. This process decreases the turnaround time for a color match because our technicians do not have to start the color matching process by eye.
After the formula is generated, our technicians move to the manual tint wheel. This machine measures small amounts of pigment and dye to create a starting finish sample.
Once a finish sample is created, it is sprayed onto a wood piece. We then sand wood provided by our customers to align with their standard preparation, ensuring it will match when applied in their application. Our downdraft sanding table keeps our studio free of sanding dust and ensures a clean work space for our team to avoid product contamination.
The wood sample is then placed under our Prime Heat Infrared Heat Oven. This oven creates a 30 day cure in less than 30 minutes, quickening the time needed to preview the final sample for accurate color and finish.
The cured finishes are previewed by our tint technicians under various light temperatures such daylight, incandescent and fluorescent in our Color Viewing Light box. This ensures further color accuracy for all types of project applications and that the match we have created is true to the advertised color or custom color match.
Once the color match is perfected, the formula is scaled up and inputted into our Corob Automated Tinter. This calibrated and computerized machine measures and dispenses colorants and dyes 66% faster than a manual tinter with impeccable accuracy. Not only does the automated tinter accurately dispense colorants and dyes, it assists in our in-house catalyzing. Our M.L. Campbell diverse product offering allows us to catalyze coatings in-house as needed.
To ensure the dye or colorant is equally distributed, the cans are placed in our explosion proof shaker. The shaker thoroughly spins, turns, and flips the paint bucket, mixing it in only 3 minutes instead of the standard 10 minutes.
Upon request, we can also provide custom touch up cans with your coating orders using our Fillon Technology Fill-Spray Can Machine. The color will be an exact match to the final finish for the rest of your project.
In Person Demo
The goal of our new Coatings Division is to be THE wood finishing resource and assist our customers through each part of the coating process. We learn in-depth how your shop functions and can create and implement a plan to improve overall productivity, work flow and quality. Our team will help implement those systems and guide customers in product set-up and application. We will also provide education on safety of equipment and application, as well as, be the go-to resource for all M.L. Campbell products. If you are interested in an in-person demo, please don’t hesitate to contact us!
Training classes
Now that our tint studio is fully functioning, we are planning to hold hands-on training classes to teach customers about M.L. Campbell and the products we have available for them. These training sessions will educate our customers on topics such as new technologies, products, finishing tools and specialty finishing techniques. Our upcoming M.L. Campbell Open House will be an intro to M.L. Campbell products, a chance to tour our tint studio and meet our coatings team! Follow us on socials to stay up-to-date on our upcoming events.
Having cutting-edge technology makes it possible for our tint technicians to work efficiently and with great accuracy to give our customers the confidence to know their colors will be right the first time. We are dedicated to improving our productivity and knowledge to benefit our customers and are excited to continue to grow our Coatings Division and Tint Studio in the years to come!
