In order to promote improvements in public health and environmental quality, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) recognizes projects that “eliminate or reduce the generation of pollutants or wastes at the source or projects that conserve natural resources.” The Pollution Prevention Award was recently presented to the General Motors Fairfax Assembly Plant in Kansas City for its Purge Thinner Reduction Project.
The goal of this project was to find ways to reduce the amount of the thinner used to clear paint lines when changing colors. The plant began the project by forming a Purge Reduction Committee that examined and analyzed the current process and materials. In monthly meetings they looked at how the thinner was used to determine where reductions could be made without sacrificing quality or productivity.
By switching thinners from the one they were using to Gage purge solvents, they realized the savings and benefits almost immediately. Our high-performance formulations are designed to improve the quality of paint applications using less solvent than is required by other products. Using the new product reduced paint per vehicle as well as lowered material and waste disposal costs. And, best of all, environmental compliance is increased and less thinner is needed to complete the purge process.
By reevaluating the process of purging the paint line piping between color changes and switching to Gage purge solvents, GM decreased thinner use by 101,894 gal, lowered VOC emissions by 92,700 pounds, and saved $405,500 over 12 months.
Using Gage purge solvents improved efficiencies at the Chevy Malibu and Buick Lacrosse assembly plant and resulted in clean, efficient, and fast color changes. Process variability and system costs were reduced which maximized the plant’s efficiency while minimizing wastes.
Gage develops high-quality solvent solutions and specializes in:
• Uniquely designed purge solvents • Solvent recovery and solvent blending solutions • High performance blended solvent and water borne purge solutions
We are continually working to shrink the environmental impact of our products and are proud to have been involved with the GM Purge Thinner Reduction Project and the recognition it received through this award. For more information on our sustainable products check out our website.
At Gage, we follow some straightforward ideals: quality, reliability, innovation, customer focus, and environmental stewardship. With the opening of our new Gage Innovation Center we have put all of these concepts into overdrive to strengthen our commitment to vehicle manufacturers and the automotive and industrial suppliers we serve.
Our commitment to advancing research and development efforts for new products and continued growth is evident in our new center. This multi-million dollar facility, located at our 12-acre Ferndale headquarters site, is important for many reasons: It lets us bring the Quality Control (QC) and Research & Development (R&D) departments together under the same roof for easier collaboration and in-house testing. We celebrated the official opening on Oct. 15th with community leaders, state and local officials, and, of course, all of our valued employees.
One of the most exciting aspects of this new center is the state-of-the-art laboratory outfitted with highly technical equipment. Our scientists now have access to gas chromatography and mass spectrometry equipment, both of which are critical to the multitude of tests we run. In the past, it was also time consuming to deliver reports and findings across departments — the new computerized, integrated information system allows technicians to share QC and R&D testing results much more quickly and efficiently.
This new facility also allows us to add new capabilities. We are now able to:
• Perform aromatic and detailed hydrocarbon analysis for fuels • Determine compound identifications through use of a mass spectrometry upgrade • Execute critical testing on up to 50 distinct fuel properties • Increase storage capacity for customer-product test samples
As one of our missions is for continuous improvement, this new Innovation Center gives our QC technicians better control and focus on the 500+ tests that we run each week. Performing all the tests in our own laboratory, without needing to outsource, lets us deliver results in 1-2 days. If re-testing is necessary, it can begin right away. The benefit greatly enhances the service we provide for our customers.
This new Innovation Center is an investment in our future so that we can expand our capabilities and develop new products while continuing to offer outstanding customer service. Gage is certified for ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 14001:2004 and the new Gage Innovation Center laboratory is in the process of certifying to ISO 17025 standards.
To learn more about our expanded and upgraded facilities and capabilities, feel free to contact us. We’d love to share our new innovations with you!
As the experts in paint system cleaning solutions, it’s only natural that we offer paint line cleaning products and services to ensure that paint systems continue to run efficiently. In addition to keeping the systems running at optimal levels, using our paint line cleaning services restores the system to original design specifications and our turnkey program ensures that used chemicals are recycled safely.
Gage Products’ on-site paint line cleaning program utilizes our proprietary Cobra® and Hydra® line cleaning solutions. These paint cleaners restore paint circulation lines to as-new condition, that is, taking the lines back to ‘Bare Metal Clean.’ With in-plant monitoring and annual cleaning, our clients have seen 30% less dirt in the paint, reducing product waste considerably. The correct maintenance of paint lines improves productivity and the quality of finished products.
Both the Hydra® and Cobra® cleaning products use a scrubbing action to remove the paint that has adhered to the pipe walls over time. The Hydra® cleaner is designed for waterborne systems and the Cobra® works on solventborne lines. These custom designed products remove residue and supply and return piping to Bare Metal Clean specs with just one cleaning cycle!
Both Hydra™ and Cobra® are technology-blind meaning that these efficient cleaners will work for any paint chemistry, formulation, or color. Gage’s On-Site Service Program results in improved productivity and efficiency, a reduction of product waste, lower VOC emissions, and overall cost savings. In industry it isn’t always easy being green, but with our paint cleaning services we are able to make the process greener for all. Contact us to learn more about our outstanding products and services.
Our Mission: Gage Products Company’s mission is to be the world’s preferred supplier of chemical related products and processes by:
Delivering superior value to all stakeholders
Developing and utilizing the knowledge, skills and creativity of our people
Demonstrating responsible behavior toward ourselves, our community and our environment
Gage Products Company is excited to announce our new, state-of-the-art laboratory, which is set to open in August. This new lab will be our dedicated in-house product development facility and will allow us to improve our quality control and analytical capabilities for our customers. We built this new lab to increase our internal capabilities and streamline our current processes to enhance new product development to better service our customers. It will also help grow new opportunities by developing an innovations center and help Gage Products Company meet the needs of chemical and automotive industries for today and the future.
We are thoroughly committed to reducing our environmental footprint through sustainable practices that support the needs of today and for future generations. Our products are all designed, formulated, and manufactured with the care of our natural resources in mind.
Our solutions are known for providing customers with unique and innovative custom technology. We are a prominent supplier of high performance solvent blends, test fuels, calibration fluids, paint line cleaning programs and specialty product solutions for various applications. We firmly believe, as we continue our mission to be the world’s preferred supplier of chemical related products and processes, that we can also build a better world. Our purge solvents are developed with recovery in mind and our closed loop remanufacturing process allows us to recycle solvents and chemical waste resulting in millions of gallons being remanufactured. Additionally, our chemical recycling, fractional distillation, and toll remanufacturing help us to build a more sustainable future.
Since our business opened in Ferndale in 1936, we have dedicated ourselves to earning the trust and respect of our customers, partners and neighbors, which has helped our company grow locally and globally. Gage Products Company now spans three continents and we will continue to grow through careful planning, forward thinking, product integrity and solid customer and community partnerships.
To learn more about Gage Products Company and our new lab, visit our website. We also post more company updates and industry news on our Twitter and LinkedIn pages.
At Gage Products we specialize in solvents. We have worked hard to design high performance solvent and water borne purge solutions and all of this is done with our customers in mind. To further our dedication we also offer our customers solvent optimization services. This involves working closely with our clients and providing in-plant technical expertise to monitor performance. We offer on-site support as well as perform a solvent process parameter audit. By inspecting the product and performance systems we are able to help our customers reduce costs and help build a sustainable system for reducing environmental impact.
Solvent sustainability is incredibly important to us and as an industry leader and provider of closed-loop processes for solvent recycling for a variety of applications we are able to help our customers minimize their waste and therefore reduce costs. We have safely recycled over 100 million gallons of solvents and our process allows for the products to be re-used in the same industry. Most importantly, our solvent and sustainability optimization services allow our clients to perform better without sacrificing quality.
To learn more about our solvent optimization services or our closed loop solvent recovery process, visit our website. We are also active on Twitter and LinkedIn where we post more company updates and industry news.
Sharon Stahl, Director of Environmental Health and Safety at Gage, accepts the Creativity in Implementing Sustainable Practices Award.
The relationship between original equipment manufacturers and their suppliers is a delicate and important one—but when the Environmental Protection Agency gets involved, an entirely new level of collaboration is reached. The Suppliers Partnership for the Environment encompasses all three of these entities to form a space for small, mid-sized and largesuppliers to come together.
The purpose of this partnership is for these groups to share ideas and brainstorm on the best business practices for the environment. As you know, Gage considers recycling to be one of the company’s core elements, and we’ve blogged about our initiatives and ways we support going “green.” We’re happy to announce the Suppliers Partnership for the Environment has chosen to recognize us with the Creativity in Implementing Sustainable Practices Award for our closed-loop solvent recycling program.
This remanufacturing program aims to cut costs and reduce the environmental impact. From the moment a project starts to anywhere in between project completion, recovery and repurposing are possible. We’ve seen plenty of positive results, and we will continue to push for sustainability in all aspects of our business as a part of our rethink_refine_resolve initiative.
Read more about this award or head over to our website for more information on our recycling initiatives.
Motors Fairfax Assembly Plant in Kansas City for its Purge Thinner Reduction Project.
