The project was based on experience and innovation. Our relationships with our clients and partners are extremely important to us, and we believe that innovation is the key to success for all our projects. Our work with SATYS (formerly STTS–Société toulousaine de traitement de surface)–designing paint hangars for wide-body aircraft–is a prime example of this. During its first mission, 10 years ago, WSP designed a model to optimize paint hangar operating costs.
Our approach
We sought to maximize the volume of the hangar while allowing for adequate ventilation and ensuring optimal air flow velocity in the painting areas. To do so, we ran multiple airflow models to identify the best design while taking technical difficulties into account. The velocity had to be less than 0.8 m/s to avoid clouds of paint forming between the gun and the surface to be painted, and more than 0.3 m/s in order to comply with the health and hygiene requirements of the French health authorities.
Our innovative model to design paint hangars for wide-body aircraft enabled us to optimize the paint hangar’s operating costs.
Over the years, WSP and SATYS have improved their induction air diffusion systems to further reduce the treated air flow rates.
A technical and human adventure
A true challenge, this project was accomplished through team work. It took only 17 months from the start of the project for the first aircraft to be painted. The work of our employees has become a reference for paint hangars, which has helped WSP expand its activities globally in this sector.
