How the 3M PPS Series 2.0 Spray Cup System was Developed

Oct. 9, 2017
The 3M team identified three key areas for improvement: cleanliness, simplicity and peace of mind. They designed the 3M PPS Series 2.0 Spray Cup System to deliver these benefits.

Oct. 9, 2017—For the 3M PPS Series 2.0 Spray Cup System, the 3M team identified three key areas for improvement. The team designed the system to deliver these benefits.

3M’s research with painters around the world found these opportunities for improvements in the vehicle painting process:

  • Cleanliness - Reduce potential for contamination in the paint process like flakes due to improper equipment cleaning and maintenance
  • Simplicity - Cut down on non-productive assembly time
  • Peace-of-Mind - Make it easier to deliver consistent performance and stability even when using larger cup sizes

“The new 3M PPS Series 2.0 solves problems I didn’t know I had,” said Chad Saale, automotive painter from St. Peters, MO, who participated in the product testing.

Here are some product advancements that 3M claims provide improved performance:

No Separate Collar Required

To improve the cleanliness in the paint process and eliminate potential sources of contamination due to equipment cleaning or maintenance, the 3M PPS Series 2.0 Spray Cup System integrates a disposable quarter-turn lid locking system into each lid to limit the amount of parts reused in jobs to just the durable outer cup:

  • By eliminating the collar, 3M significantly reduced the chance of dried paint flakes—caused by improper system cleaning—from damaging a fresh paint job
  • For added convenience and improved cleanliness, each new lid and liner kit box contains a new hard outer cup
  • The new system also contains a wider gun-to-cup adapter to make cleaning residual paint between jobs easier and faster 

Keep It Simple for Success

For high-production painters, any time spent on repetitive activities like cup assembly is not only non-billable but also take away from time painting vehicles and detract from maximizing efficiency. The 3M team worked to reduce this assembly time with three improvements:

  • 3M replaced the separate collar component, opting to provide a quarter-turn lid locking system instead
  • An “access window” was also added into each hard cup, making it more convenient to view the paint remaining throughout the job, but more importantly, to give the painter better access to grab the liner when assembling or refilling the cup
  • Since inception, the 3M PPS design has avoided additional assembly steps such as separate filters or vent plugs, instead opting to integrate components directly into each unit, and  3M™ PPS™ Series 2.0 Spray Cup System takes it a quantum leap further

Reduce the Variables that Can Cause Inconsistency, Inefficiency

Painters are keenly aware of and control an endless number of variables to obtain the desired results. One trend is to prime/seal or clear coat a range of parts in a single cycle via batch painting to improve efficiency and consistency, but this requires a larger paint cup. The 3M team’s goal was to give painters peace-of-mind, eliminating a few of these variables, especially when using a larger cup, including:

  • Using a larger, heavier cup can cause some painters concerns when hand shaking or adjusting the spray angle, so the new 3M PPS Series 2.0 Spray Cup System integrates a wider, more robust adapter with a stabilized four-point connection, including retention tabs with locking undercut geometry
  • The wider adapter, when combined with a domed lid design used in all 3M PPS Series 2.0 lids, also allows for more paint below the filter while spraying, providing better flow and reducing sputtering
  • The quarter-turn lid locking system provides a firm seal to avoid any concerns of paint leaking

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