With the rapid development of the Indian economy, the number of cars plying on roads has increased tremendously. In less than 30 
years, the number of cars jumped from a few thousands to over 23 million. Despite such impressive growth, India is still far behind advanced countries like the US, Western Europe and Japan in terms of vehicle ownership. In India, there is one car for every 56 people, whereas in Western Europe or Japan, the ratio is around one car for every 1.5-1.7 person. However, the situation in India is expected to improve in view of the economic development as reflected in the GDP growth.
Besides 23 million cars, there are also a large number of other vehicles plying on Indian roads, such as three-wheelers, small trucks and buses. Unfortunately, development of roads, highways and other infrastructure is not as fast as that of the vehicle industry. As a result, Indian cities and roads are overcrowded and are thus dangerous.
According to official statistics, in 2011 more than 490 thousand car crashes occurred with over 142 thousand people killed. As against the “officially” reported crashes, there are probably several other minor crashes without injuries to people. Further, poor maintenance of roads is also causing damages to vehicles. Thus, the vehicle repair market is growing fast.
As cars have now more expensive – bigger cars with bigger engines with more accessories, etc. – customers become more demanding in terms of the quality of cars and their repairs. In this market, one segment that will grow much faster is the car body repair (fixing of damages after crashes, repainting, etc.)
To meet these challenges, it is important to choose the right products that allow increase in productivity (easy and quick to use products) and improve the quality.
IMPA is an Italian company specialising in painting and refinish products for car and vehicle body repairs. It has developed a set of products for small repairs that are very easy and quick to use. Some products are in the form of sprays which are applied easily and do not require any investment in the car body shop for installing expensive air guns for painting or dedicated painting room.
A correct repairing cycle for a damaged vehicle is as follow:
* Reshaping of the damaged metal part and sanding of the old paint or rust, if any.
* Accurate cleaning of the area using a specific cleaner like the “IMPA Quick Off” to remove dust, grease, silicon, etc. Quick off is a water-based product fully compliant with the environmental norms and can be used outside the shop also.
* Filling of gaps, grooves and other defects of the part using a polyester putty. IMPA recommends its product F4 putty. When putty dries up, usually after 10-15 minutes, a light sanding is required to smoothen the surface.
* In order to achieve the best from the painting process, it is mandatory to apply an adhesion primer. Such primer will increase the adhesion of the paint when applied, will prevent the putty from “absorbing” the color, giving a different shade, and will improve the smoothness of the surface to be painted. For such applications, IMPA has developed a product named “Filler Spray” that is supplied in spray bottles. It offers ease of application and excellent adhesion. After a few seconds, to allow the spray to dry, another light sanding with a sanding paper number is recommended for quick results.
* After primer application, two coats of PU paint of the required color can be applied.
* After the paint is dried up, it is advised to use a slightly abrasive liquid to be applied with a wool pad on the “border area” between the old and new paint to decrease the gloss differences between the old paint and new paint. For this application, IMPA offers its “Polish Abrasivo” liquid. After this operation, the company offers the “Extra Gloss” liquid to be applied on the full surface for achieving a high gloss.
Another very common type of repairing involves the plastic parts of a car such as bumpers, external mirrors and so on. For such applications, IMPA has developed a set of special products for application on plastics. They are:
* For the repair of damaged parts, a special mastic named Bumper Fine Stuk is needed. It should be sanded when dried after 5-10 minutes.
* A special paint for plastic called Bumper Spray, provided in black or grey color, is offered by IMPA. It is a ready-to-use paint supplied in spray bottles that could be directly applied on the plastic parts without any primer.
Finally, for the repaint / restoration of wheels, the company is offering a spray paint in aluminium color, which can be directly applied on the wheels, after sanding of rust and accurate cleaning using Quick Off.
All IMPA products are imported and marketed in India exclusively by VRTS Industrial Solutions Pvt. Ltd., Noida.
For details, access www.impa.it (or) info@vrts.co.in