All in the look

Refurbishment is not just about the physical - it is often to do with aesthetics. The visual appearance of equipment, especially in the rental sector, can be an important factor, with faded, aged paintwork creating a negative impression in the customer's mind, as well as impacting on the resale value of equipment. While repainting can and often is carried out as part of refurbishment, there is an alternative treatment.

Dakota Shine is used to restore the colour, lustre and value to faded and oxidised surfaces like paint, decals, plastics and more. It is a ready-to-use product that requires no mixing. It consists of agricultural by-products and other proprietary ingredients; and contains no silicones. These ingredients are designed to penetrate the surface to rejuvenate the pigments to their original, as-new appearance.

Launched in 2002, Dakota Shine has been used in 23 countries around the world. According to Dakota AG Innovations' director of finance and operations, Eric Christensen, “Most of the equipment in the industry is built to last, but can weather faster under certain conditions. But in most cases, the paint fades on 90% of the surfaces that do not get scratched off. Most crane bodies do not have a scratch on them, but the paint is faded and starts to look bad. This is where Dakota Shine comes in...we can take that faded and oxidised piece of equipment that still has good paint, but needs its colour and lustre restored, and make it look like new.”

Christensen says auctioneers, dealers and rental companies have reported that they see 15-20% in additional sales revenue when selling equipment that has been treated with the product, quite apart from the fact that the look of the equipment is improved, allowing customers to retain older equipment that still looks good in their fleets.

Dakota Shine can be used on a range of surfaces to restore appearance, including painted surfaces, decals and vinyl lettering, plastics and fibreglass.