Autobody News: Young Painter is a SATA Veteran With 15 Guns

CARLSBAD, Calif., October 3, 2017 (Newswire.com) - Casey Martin is only 23 years old, but he has 11 years of experience painting cars. In that time, he acquired 15 SATA spray guns and, by using other SATA equipment such as the SATA® vision 2000™ Respirator System and its Spray Gun Equipment Storage Cabinet, Martin is all-in when it comes to SATA.

This young painter has painted more cars than many veterans with decades of experience under their belts, so how has Martin been able to fast track his career? "I started at age 12," he said. "My family owned a body shop in Springfield, OH, so I learned from my grandfather and my uncle. The first car I painted was a 1968 Chevy Camaro. I did it in solid black and my uncle watched me do it to make sure it came out nice. After that, I was pretty much hooked."

All of my SATA guns feel comfortable in my hands and they're easy to clean. They rarely break, but if they do, it is simple to repair them. And the support that SATA provides is great. If I have a question or a concern (which is rare), they always call me right back.

Casey Martin, Painter

After working at his family's shop, Martin landed a job at a large MSO where he painted cars in a high-volume environment for six years. After doing some research, he found out about Sugar Hill Auto Collision and reached out. Currently, Martin is the only painter at Sugar Hill Auto Collision and his production numbers are staggering. 

With his Prepper Brian Ledford, they are logging 250-plus hours a week. Knocking out the work with high efficiency five days a week, Martin sprays in two paint booths at a fast rate without sacrificing quality.

"We have our system down," Martin said. "Brian and I work well together. We have two paint booths and I am constantly jumping back and forth. While I am painting a vehicle or color matching, Brian is getting the next car ready to roll. This is a brand new shop and the equipment is excellent, so I am in the right place to be. They switched their paint system when I came here, because I told them I am more comfortable with another brand, which was pretty exceptional."

The duo's finished product is exemplary, according to the shop's Co-Owner/CEO, Kevin Moreland. "Casey and Brian put out an impressive amount of work, that's for sure," Moreland said. "Casey was working in the area and he stopped by one day and we decided to give him a shot. Now he's logging a ton of hours of production every week without exception."

Martin is happy to be working for a shop that shares his work ethic and his passion for quality, he said. "I love it here at Sugar Hill and I want to work here for a long time. As long as I can be using my SATA guns and working with this amazing company, I won't be going anywhere."

A second-generation shop that opened its doors back in 1965, Sugar Hill Auto Collision is run by two brothers: Randy Moreland is the COO and Vice President and Kevin Moreland is the CEO, President and co-owner of a shop that repairs close to 120 vehicles every month.

Martin is always looking to buy one of the newest SATA guns to add to his extensive collection. "Each one has a different purpose and I do use them all," he said. "I have different ones based on how I set up the job. There are some that are better with waterborne and better with solvent and I have one for just white and another for only black. I have probably invested more than $15,000 total on SATA guns over the years and all of that money has come back to me many times over."

Martin loves SATA for its products, but also sees a lot of value in the company's terrific customer service. "All of my SATA guns feel comfortable in my hands and they're easy to clean," he said. "They rarely break, but if they do, it is simple to repair them. And the support that SATA provides is great. If I have a question or a concern (which is rare), they always call me right back."

While painting 6-8 cars every day without exception, Martin uses SATA's comfortable breathing hood that thoroughly protects the face, hair and neck from overspray, he said.

"It works very well. It has a charcoal filter that I wear on my belt in a protective cage and it removes oil vapor and gasses. I wear it all the time so that I can work in a containment-free environment that is safe. I am only 23, granted, but I have a wife and I want to be in this business for a long time if I can."

Before jumping back into the booth to meet his incredible production schedule, Martin wanted to thank the people who helped him to be where he is. "Dick Ater, Bob Chaney and Chris Mormon were great mentors in the development of my career," he said. "I want to credit them for my success, right alongside the people from SATA."

Sugar Hill Auto Collision
Sugar Hill, GA
sugarhillautocollision.com

Company At A Glance...
Type: Collision Repair
Facility Employees: 18
In Business Since: 1965
Locations: Two
Combined Production Space: 13,000 square feet

Dan-Am Company
Spring Valley, MN 
(800) 633-7282
​sata.com

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Source: Autobody News