This is the fourth chapter of our story with us as prospective workers. This is the moment when the frame, with bonnet and boot lid, goes into the paint shop. The new and modern facility shows that high-tech and workers can’t be separated.
Paint Shop
At this point, we need to change into dustproof overalls and shoes that are rubbed on suitable rubber mats to remove any residue and, finally, blasted with air to guarantee that the operations room remains dry. ‘Here dust is the main enemy,’ emphasises Maurizio Baldini, a veteran of the paint shop at Ferrari who can easily remember when everything was done by hand. The new plant, inaugurated in 2004, uses powder-based primers and water-based paints which limits the emissions to close to zero. ‘Compared with other manufacturers, we are years ahead when it comes to the standards that are govern the protection of the environment,’ adds Giuseppe di Gennaro, who manages operations in the plant. As soon as the body-shell arrives, it is mounted on the loading bay. Here all the cars-to-be can have one of 20 colour ranges, or even different colours chosen expressly by the customer.
The first crucial stage of the process consists of the immersion and rotation of the body shell in the cataphoresis tanks with subsequent transfer to a fixing oven at 140 degrees. Subsequently the primers are applied and fixed at 190 degrees, and then the completely grey body-shell is presented for painting – in red, of course. Before this, there is a not-so exciting preparation stage; not only is the car ‘washed’ with air to avoid the electrostatic effect, it is carefully brushed with emu feathers as they have the natural capacity to be anti-electrostatic and can gather any impurities left behind by the previous processes.
The body-shell is then transferred for painting: by hand for the most difficult and delicate parts, and by robot for the larger surfaces. In all five kilos of paint are used (for each vehicle), with the scattered paint being collected by the water that flows beneath the plant and is then separated to avoid pollution.
After a brief passage through the oven, the body-shell is covered with the lacquer that will fix the paint and give it the exquisite finish we’ve come to expect. The final stage, as always, is the check for any possible defects. Our body-shell is perfect and now ready for the assembly of its components. From tomorrow morning it will start to become a real car – the first 148 Italia.
Published on The Official Ferrari Magazine issue 7, December 2009
PUBLISHED IN CARS, HOME BY ANTONIO GHINI ON 08.12.2011
Credit: Ferrari S.p.A. (www.ferrari.com)
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