Höpfl Industrielackierung, based in Weiding (Bavaria), has been a wet coating specialist since 1995. A team of 35 operates six spray booths, handling parts for automotive, rail, mechanical engineering, medical and electrical industries. High mix, constant change, and demanding quality requirements define their daily work.
Until recently, coating depended entirely on experienced painters working inside the booth. Their know-how ensured quality, but it also meant continuous exposure to solvents and a process that varied depending on the operator, the shift, and availability.
The objective was to stabilise the process and reduce time spent inside the spray environment, while keeping the team and their expertise fully involved. The solution was a Lesta MV A6 painting robot with carousel, configured for Höpfl's parts and existing booth layout.
See how similar installations work in practice
From contract to production
Before the system arrived on-site, the setup was already defined. Parts, booth geometry and safety concept were aligned in advance, allowing the installation phase to move without delays.
Week 1 focused on mechanical installation. The robot was placed in the booth, mounted and secured, with safety barriers installed.
In Week 2, the system was connected and powered up. Electrical, air and network integration were completed, followed by the first test programs. The robot ran successfully from the first start, and additional programs were validated over the following days.
Week 3 brought the system into real coating conditions. The spray gun and material supply were installed, and operators began working with the system. Training happened alongside integration, covering loading, program selection and process monitoring. A minor cable issue was corrected the next day without impact on progress.
By Week 4, the focus shifted to teaching and handover. Höpfl's painters guided the robot through real coating paths on their parts. The system records these movements and turns them into repeatable programs. Once saved, they can be executed consistently by any operator.
The result
Production continues with the same parts and requirements, but the way the work is done has changed.
Operators load parts, select programs and supervise the process from outside the booth. The repetitive spraying movement is handled by the robot, while the painters' expertise is captured in the programs and reused across shifts.
Within four weeks, the transition was completed, from installation to independent operation, without interrupting production. Same amount of work is now done by one supervisor per shift and one robot, and it is scalable to more shifts without any pause between painting processes so that the output of one painting cabin is at least 5x higher.
Considering a similar setup?
If you are running a coating operation in Germany, Austria or Switzerland, share your booth layout and parts. We will prepare a concept adapted to your setup within 48 hours.
