MexxBot Coat · Cobot spray coating

Get your people out of the spray. Let a cobot hold the gun.

For water-based paints, polyurea linings and other coatings that aren't flammable, a cobot on a pedestal holds the spray gun and does the spraying. You keep your own paint pot, pump or proportioner. No explosion-proof robot, no full paint line.

From$100,000+ GST · the cobot system
or about $461 a week on business finance (5 yrs at 7.49% p.a., ex GST, subject to approval)
Will a cobot suit?What's in the price

Spraying flammable paint? We build ABB paint robot systems too.

A cobot in a white protective cover spraying a grey coating onto a test wall with an automatic spray gun
Mexx spray trials: a cobot in its protective cover, spraying with an automatic Graco gun.
The robot
A cobot — on a bolt-down pedestal, in a protective cover
The gun
Held and switched by the cobot — fed from your own pot, pump or proportioner
The coatings
Not flammable — water-based paints, polyurea linings and similar
Flammable paint?
ABB paint robot — an industrial paint system, built by Mexx
As off the shelf as we can make it. We set it up for your parts, your coating and your gun, and confirm the system in your quote.
Why a cobot

Move your people out of the spray

Spraying is skilled work, and the spray zone is a hard place to spend a shift.

The fumes

Two-pack paints and polyurea linings contain isocyanates, which can sensitise workers and cause occupational asthma. Automated processes are among the controls SafeWork NSW lists.Source: SafeWork NSW, isocyanates technical fact sheet.

The gear

An air-supplied hood, overalls and gloves, all shift. With the cobot spraying, your people work outside the spray zone.

The thickness

The cobot sprays the program you approved: the same path, speed and distance on every part, so the coating goes on evenly, part after part.

The cobot does the spraying. Your people prepare the parts, load them, run the program and check the finish. Same team, more skills, out of the spray.

The MexxBot Coat system · from $100,000 + GST

We supply the robot side. You supply the paint side.

Many spray shops already own a good paint system. So you don't pay for it twice: the cobot holds your gun, switches it on and off, and sprays your parts.

Mexx supplies

  • Cobot on a bolt-down pedestal
  • Protective robot coverKeeps overspray off the arm
  • End effector that holds your spray gunBuilt to suit your gun
  • Gun on/off from the robot programThe cobot switches the gun at the same points on every pass
  • Your spray programsSet up and tested for your parts
  • Installation and training

You supply

  • Your paint systemThe pressure pot, pump or proportioner, with its hoses
  • Your spray gunTell us the make and model, and we build the end effector for it

Options

  • A paint system and gunDon't have one? We supply one to suit your coating. Quoted.
  • Spray enclosure with extractionContains the overspray. Quoted.
  • Turntable or part positionerSo the cobot reaches every face. Quoted.
  • Spray trials with your coatingOn our cobot, before you commit. Quoted.
Why only coatings that aren't flammable? Cobots aren't explosion-protected. Solvent-based and two-pack solvent paints make the spray area hazardous, and that needs an ABB paint robot. And while it sprays, people stay out: overspray and isocyanates mean the cobot works in its own spray area, not beside your team.
Will a cobot suit?

Check your coating in two minutes

Have your coating's safety data sheet handy. You'll see straight away whether it's a cobot job or an industrial paint robot job.

1 Your details

Why we ask first: so there's no catch at the end. When you press Check my coating, your details and answers come to Mexx and we email you a copy of the result. News emails only if you tick the box below.

2 Your coating
3 Your job
Spraying flammable paint?

You need an ABB paint robot. We build those systems too.

Solvent-based and two-pack solvent paints make the spray booth a hazardous area, so the robot inside must be explosion-protected. ABB's paint robots are. Mexx designs and builds the paint system around them.

Mexx Engineering: “Robotic Paint System”. A paint system we designed and built.
  • ABB IRB 5510 paint robot13 kg on the wrist. Certified for Zone 1 hazardous areas under ATEX and IECEx. For small and medium parts.
  • ABB IRB 5500 FlexPainterFor big parts and long lines. Can run on ABB's elevated rail.
  • Built around it by MexxSpray booth with dry filtration and temperature control, automatic 2K mixing and colour change, curing and conveyors.
Talk to MexxSee our dual-booth paint system →
ABB paint robot with spray gun inside a Mexx-built paint booth, finishing a glossy timber panel
Inside the boothAn ABB paint robot finishing a timber panel.
3D layout of the Mexx dual paint booth system with two booths, extraction ducts, curing sections and conveyors
The layoutTwo booths, a rest zone between coats, curing and cooling conveyors.
How a job runs

From a data sheet to a cobot spraying your parts

You see and approve the setup before we build anything.

Step 1

Check your coating

The check above, or send us the safety data sheet. We confirm whether it's a cobot job.

Step 2

Spray trial

If you want proof first, we trial your coating on our cobot. Quoted.

Step 3

Quote and sign-off

A firm quote, and the layout for you to approve before we build.

Step 4

Built and programmed

We build, program and test it in our Arundel workshop before it leaves.

Step 5

Installed and trained

Installed at your site, and your team trained to run it.

Questions

Straight answers

Can a cobot spray paint?

Yes, if the paint isn't flammable. Cobots aren't explosion-protected, so they suit water-based paints, polyurea linings and other coatings with no solvents or flash point. Flammable paint needs an ABB paint robot in a proper booth, and we build those systems too.

How do I know if my coating is flammable?

Check its safety data sheet for a flash point and for solvents in the composition. If you're not sure, send it to us and we'll check it with you.

Can it spray polyurea linings?

Yes. Polyurea is sprayed hot and at high pressure from a plural-component proportioner, through heated hoses to an automatic gun on the cobot. We've run spray trials with this setup. Polyurea contains isocyanates, so people stay out of the spray area while it sprays, and anyone going in needs air-supplied respiratory protection.

Does it work beside my team?

Not while it's spraying. Overspray and fumes mean the cobot works in its own spray area. The cobot keeps it simple: an arm you can teach by hand, on a pedestal, with no big safety cage around a hazardous booth.

Do we need a programmer?

No. We set up and test the spray programs for your parts, and train your team to run them and teach new ones. We're a phone call away if you get stuck.

How much does it cost?

The cobot system is from $100,000 + GST, or about $461 a week on business finance (5 years at 7.49% p.a., ex GST, subject to approval). That's the cobot on its pedestal with its cover, the end effector that holds your spray gun, gun on/off control, your spray programs, installation and training. You supply the paint system and the gun. A paint system from us, an enclosure or a turntable are quoted on top. Flammable paint needs an ABB paint robot system, which we quote job by job.

Can I use the paint system I already have?

That's the idea. Send us the make and model of your pot, pump or proportioner and your gun. We build the end effector to hold your gun and connect it so the robot switches it on and off. If your gear doesn't suit robot spraying, we'll tell you before you buy.

Can a grant help pay for it?

Government manufacturing grants may help fund automation. Check the grant's rules before you order: some don't allow anything to be ordered or paid before the grant agreement is signed. We can give you a quote in the form the grant asks for.

Mexx Engineering Pty Ltd
Who stands behind it

MexxBot is a product of Mexx Engineering.

Mexx Engineering has been an ABB Authorized Value Provider for over 18 years and is a Kemppi Authorized Distributor, working in industrial robotics integration, EPCM and factory automation from Arundel on the Gold Coast. The robot is ABB. The engineering, integration, commissioning, training and ongoing Australian support are ours.

ABB Authorized Value Provider
ABB Authorized Value ProviderABB’s premium partner status, for over 18 years.
Kemppi Authorized Distributor
Kemppi Authorized DistributorGenuine Kemppi welding equipment and support.
ISO 9001ISO 45001AS9100
Certified by ATLASMexx Engineering’s quality, safety and aerospace certifications.
(07) 5571 5733 [email protected] 28 Harrington St, Arundel QLD 4214 ABN 58 121 994 563 mexx.com.au →

Get your people out of the spray.

Tell us what you spray. We'll tell you straight if a cobot suits the job.

Check my coating
Mexx Engineering Pty Ltd · ABN 58 121 994 563 · ABB Authorized Value Provider · ABB and Graco are trademarks of their respective owners.