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According to Keith Seaman, President of Technical Barrier Systems, Inc. (TBS) and the ARMEX distributor in Ontario, Canada, marketing to governmental agencies often requires a lot of effort ... and a lot of patience ... before you see any results. Consequently, when A & A Pressure Kleen of Burlington, Ontario, asked TBS to help introduce ARMEX Cleaning and Coating Removal Systems to the Highway Maintenance Department in Hamilton, Ontario, TBS prepared for months of calls, demonstrations, and follow-up. However, within weeks a unique opportunity changed this game plan substantially.

Hamilton is a city of 500,000 and the center of steel production in Canada. Like any other city of its size, Hamilton has miles and miles of asphalt streets and highways with lines and traffic markings that must be routinely repainted to ensure safety. In the past, the city either removed the old markings or "blacked" them out by painting over the existing lines with black paint. Methods of depainting included abrasion using the Black Beauty Shot Blast system and burn-off using propane burners. However, both depainting systems present serious problems.

Shot blast and burn-off produce dust and fumes that can be hazardous to bystanders. And because Black Beauty is not soluble, work must periodically stop while workers collect accumulating residue to keep it from entering the sewer system. These concerns translate into scheduling headaches for the city, especially in busy downtown areas, because all work must be scheduled around peak shopping and traffic hours. In addition, both methods damage the road surface, thus speeding breakdown and the need for costly repairs or repaving. Abrasion also creates minor depressions in which water can accumulate and freeze, a hazard to motorists in any cold region. Because of these drawbacks, city officials were interested in learning about cost-effective alternatives that could meet their tight scheduling requirements.

During early discussions with maintenance personnel, TBS marketing representatives discovered that bicycle lanes on two of the city's main thoroughfares, King Street and Main Street, were scheduled for repainting in November 1993. Since these streets are parallel and carry one-way traffic in opposite directions, TBS and city officials agreed that the job represented an excellent opportunity to compare, in a head-to-head competition, the performance of ARMEX to existing methods of depainting.

A & A Pressure Kleen employees used Maintenance Formula XL and the new Performance Nozzle to depaint about a mile of roadway lines and traffic markings on Main Street, starting on a bridge at one end of the commercial district and running through the busiest sections of the city. During the trial, ARMEX Blast Media removed roadway paint at a rate of 3 feet/minute. Although Black beauty removed paint somewhat faster, overall progress was the same due to the need to stop-repeatedly to clean up the shot blast/ residue.

City officials were impressed with the fact that the ARMEX® Blast Media residue could be safely flushed into the sewer system (unlike the shot blast residue) and that the work posed no threat to shoppers, passing vehicles, or the workers themselves. In addition, officials noted that, unlike the roadway blasted with Black Beauty, the ARMEX roadway suffered none of the damaging and dangerous effects of abrasion. In fact, they were so impressed that they stopped the shot blast crew and asked A & A Pressure Kleen employees to complete that section as well. At the end of the trial, ARMEX brought the project in on time and on budget.

The Superintendent of Traffic Operations for the City of Hamilton, was closely involved with the line removal project and became an outspoken proponent of ARMEX Cleaning and Coating Removal Systems. "I see this method as being a wave of the future in our operations because of the environmentally friendly nature of the product at virtually the same cost as traditional line removal methods," he states.

During the project, TBS invited officials from the Ontario Ministry of Transportation to view this unique side-by-side comparison of the two technologies. Ministry officials asked for further trials at the Ministry Test Center. As a result, ARMEX Cleaning and Coating Removal Systems represent the only approved method of removing traffic markings on fresh pavements throughout the Province of Ontario.

The amount of work with the city of Hamilton has increased dramatically and the potential throughout Ontario is, according to Keith Seaman, unlimited. He also points to a growing secondary market in parking lots and privately owned properties. What was anticipated to be a long and complex sales process turned out to be a brilliant overnight success. It just goes to show you that miracles on Main Street can happen when you've got a product like ARMEX Cleaning and Coating Removal Systems.

What do you when you're responsible for removing small areas of graffiti, grime, and chewing gum from bus stops and common areas all over the city? This question was posed to Andrew Taylor, president of American Graffiti, San Antonio, Texas by representatives of the Austin, Texas, transit authority. According to Andrew, the answer was obvious – you use the WADU® Soluble Media Injector and ARMEX® Blast Media HydroFlex Formula XL.

The transit authority first discussed the WADU with Andrew Taylor at a trade show in Austin. They explained their need to clean spray paint, grime, and, of course, chewing gum – including the residual gum stain that is often impossible to get out – from the decorative sandstone walkways at bus stops and common areas in downtown Austin. In addition, they explained the strict Austin environmental guidelines concerning effluent. These guidelines forbid the use of solvents or harsh chemicals and even stipulate that hot water cannot be used. As an additional challenge, the job sites were spread out across the city of Austin.

Overall, the cleaning task was massive. When viewed individually, however, each job was too small to warrant the use of a larger cleaning system, such as the ACCUSTRIP® Cleaning and Coating Removal System. In short, the transit authority needed a system with the effectiveness of ACCUSTRIP, but one that was cost-effective and easier to move from site to site.

Until learning of the WADU, the transit authority had been using cold water and pressure washers in an attempt to scour the graffiti off, with little success. After viewing a videotape of the WADU in action, the officials asked Andrew and his group to do a carefully monitored trial cleaning at one of their sites.

American Graffiti went to work on the 12" by 12" blocks of Arizona sandstone using the WADU and ARMEX HydroFlex Formula XL. Within minutes, years of graffiti and grime began to disappear. City officials found it particularly amazing how easily the WADU removed their most annoying problem – baked-on gum and gum stains – from the decorative walkways and waiting areas. After cleaning the area, American Graffiti applied a 100% vapor permeable coating that will continue to resist gum and other penetrating stains for years to come. The whole project was a resounding success and American Graffiti was awarded a contract to do even more work for the city.

Taylor is encouraged by the enthusiasm of Austin officials, but not surprised. "For years," he states, "cities and businesses have been looking for a cost-effective solution to a mounting graffiti problem. In the WADU, they finally have a system for smaller jobs – for example those under 100 square feet – that offers the environmental and worker safety advantages of the ACCUSTRIP system at a fraction of the expensive."