The Master Painter Australia - April 2016 Vol. 1 | Page 30

THE MASTER PAINTER AUSTRALIA

030

Why Use Drywall Power Sanders?
Faster, Smarter, Safer, Cleaner... that’s why!
The introduction of the Drywall Power Sander has been
proven to greatly increase productivity, enhance user
safety and provide a solution for consistent, optimal quality
results. Now having long dominated the plasterboard
trade, popularity is rapidly increasing in the paint trade,
with industry professionals around the globe seeing the
huge benefits of incorporating this powered system in their
operations.
Today over 60% of the international market for the
Intex Giraffe® Sanders is to the Painting trade!
Sanding is required throughout the installation of
plasterboard, and is the final critical process of the board
before painting or any coatings are applied. Although the
sanding process is usually the most time consuming, dusty
and a tedious task, it’s really the most important part of
the process, because the slightest flaw or inconsistency
can show through many layers paint or coating materials.
However, after the drywallers have finished and left the site,
there is still a lot of sanding yet to be done before the painters
have finished. Typically for the professional painter this could
include sanding large surface areas such as walls, ceilings
and even floors, more than once. Sanding will be required
for the likes of re-sanding initial inconsistencies, sanding of
non-plasterboard surfaces such as concrete, timber panelling
and floors,  sanding after the application of sealer coat and
sanding in-between coats.
In the life of a building, be it commercial or residential, it is the
painter who will work on the walls and ceilings of a building
most. Every time a building is renovated, up-graded, redecorated or given a ‘new look’, the painters and redecorators
will be there finishing the project. Whether it is for stripping
back old surfaces or preparing new surfaces, sanding has a
very important part to play in the process and is a major part
of a painter’s life!
Sometimes evolution can be slow. In the past, the use of the
traditional hand sanding methods, sanding blocks and sheets
has been the accepted solution. In more recent years the
introduction of the innovative Power Sander has largely put
hand methods to rest for drywallers and painters.
When introduced to the Plasterboard trade, the huge
benefits of the Intex Giraffe® Sander were quickly recognised
and proven; they have now completely revolutionised
sanding methods for the trade, reducing labour costs and
unhealthy conditions involved in traditional techniques,
whilst maximizing productivity and yielding consistent,
quality results. What we’re seeing now is rapidly increasing
demand from the Paint trade as awareness of this concept
grows, especially with the Intex Giraffe® Sanders ability for
use on many surfaces including plasterboard, cement sheet,
concrete and timber.

Faster & Smarter!
When re-sanding is required for paint preparation, i.e.
where inconsistencies are found from the initial drywallers,
sanding is a task which painters are not paid to do; they are
paid to paint so the faster and cleaner the process can be
achieved, the more profitable the job will be. This ‘profitable’
fact [