Patrick Reinicke is Head of Innovation and Development Projects at SATA. As part of the Research and Development department, he and his team work on product innovations and new developments. In this interview, Patrick Reinicke looks back on the development of the jet X. Mr Reinicke, here it is – the jet X.

The finished product is in front of us and production is underway. If you think back to the very beginning, how did you approach the project?

I can only say that standards were very high right from the start. We were very aware that didn’t ‘just’ want to have an upgrade of the SATAjet X 5500, we wanted to take a very innovative approach. Our development manager said, and I quote, ‘Let’s build the best damn paint spray gun in the world and nothing less.’

What does that mean?

It means that everything had to be the best. First and foremost, of course, the nozzle technology. Then the ergonomics, the design and the digital unit. But it also means that the premium quality had to be reflected in all aspects of the product. That includes the operating instructions and the presentation of the product in the packaging. Everything was scrutinised.

Nozzle technology is at the heart of a spray gun. How did you manage to raise the bar even higher?

With the labyrinth airflow system, we found a way to make the air and particle distribution highly homogeneous. The jet X has a particularly even, clearly defined spray pattern. This is technically quite sophisticated. But the decisive factor is what the user gets out of it: an extremely safe application, a very direct painting feel and, as a result, an outstanding result.

How difficult was it to increase product performance by such a significant margin once again – in an area where not only the competition is giving its all, but where existing SATA spray guns have already set benchmarks that are so high?

We needed all our expertise – and persistence. We worked even more intensively than before with simulations in the two-substance system during nozzle development. This means that we not only simulated air flows, we also simulated the behaviour of liquid particles in the air – which is considerably harder to do. But, as sophisticated as the simulation is, nothing beats good old extensive testing with a wide variety of materials and under different conditions. This is what it comes down to.

What kind of numbers are we talking?

We have developed, manufactured and tested several hundred nozzles. In total, there were well over 1,000 variants of nozzle systems consisting of air and paint nozzles.

Couldn’t you have stopped at 500 and said that’s enough?

(laughs) Maybe we could have. Then the result would certainly have been very good. But not optimal. We simply didn’t stop until it met our requirements.

What is immediately noticeable about the jet X DIGITAL pro is the digital unit.

The adam X pro. Of course, it has a range of functions that goes far beyond what we have seen so far. That is one thing. But what is just as important is that we placed great importance on keeping the whole thing practical. For instance, we developed a battery management system that is designed to maximise battery life. We didn’t want the painter to have to change the battery after just six months. We developed an operating concept that is tailored to the conditions in the paint booth. It works intuitively, with simple movements, even when wearing gloves. And, another great feature: the adam X pro is very easy to install and remove – without a docking station or anything like that. You can do it quite literally in the blink of an eye.

The trigger is another clever feature.

It is removable – which makes cleaning much easier. And it has an integrated tool for the paint nozzle. So you have everything you need with you in the spray booth. If you want to tighten the paint nozzle, you can do so right there on the spot. You don’t have to leave the booth to look for tools. Initially, there were those who thought it was a gimmick. But now everyone is saying how great they think this feature is. Especially as it is simply very well thought out and implemented to a high standard. You will notice it when you remove the trigger: it simply feels good and of high quality. It’s not that easy to explain. It fits, runs well and sounds good too. You can just feel that it’s done well.