Tips, Tricks & Professional Advice

Finding the right finishing equipment to put the final touches on any woodworking project is always a challenge.  There are so many brands and spray technologies to consider when making an investment in your wood finishing process; it can really be overwhelming.  But you know what’s at stake –getting that perfect finish while being efficient or having to do a lot of re-work only to have the end result come out mediocre.   Well, the good news is Wagner/C.A. Technologies (CAT) is a well-known brand and offers various technologies for the wood finisher. This manufacturer of professional-grade finishing equipment has...

When air tools aren't maintained, they can cause big problems at your jobsite, including delay projects or shut down your facility. Worse, when these pneumatic tools aren't maintained or used correctly, they can cause injury.  Finish Systems has a few ideas for your pneumatics: 1. Maintain your air tools Maintenance includes ensuring people inspect your air tools.  2. Go with the flow ... the right flow Use the appropriate air pressure and flow, according to your manual.   3. Get an audit Audits ensure you're using your tools correctly. People providing audits can also determine leaks and other issues. 4. Train staff Make sure you're training...

Sometimes, you'll see obvious signs your air compressor needs service. It's noisy, dripping oil, etc. But you may not know about some signs where an air compressor still needs help that you may not notice right away. 1. 2,000 hours or the calendar Air compressors need service every 2,000 hours or annually ... which ever comes first.  2. Extreme conditions The dirtier the environment of your jobsite, the more often you'll need to service your air compressor. Dust, dirt, and other particles can gum up your compressor. Automotive shops and woodworking mills are key examples of places that may need more more frequent service.  3....

With COVID-19, more employers and workers have been thinking about safety. But safety doesn't just involve COVID. Respirators, hard hats, gloves, safety glasses, and more are all critical to keeping workers safe. It's also not just safety that helps employees. Looking at ergonomic issues (how workers complete tasks) can help, too. The idea is to make the tasks as easy as possible on the workers, reducing strain and injury. Fortunately, there are a variety of things employers can do to ensure they're keeping production running and facilities safe. Why is ergonomics important? The Bureau of Labor Statics (BLS) indicated in...

Compressed air systems have come a long way in recent years and there are many more efficient ways to provide compressed air in an industrial, automotive or home garage shop than ever before.  What can be difficult is trying to figure out the best compressed air products to use to make your vision a reality.  RapidAir has some great products to help make selecting the right product for any application very simple and cost effective.  The three product lines that we will explore in more detail are the FastPipe, MaxLine and RapidAir Home Garage systems.  We will discuss the right application for each as well as looking at the features and benefits of these systems.