New ‘Spectraflair’ finish kickstarts Bentley’s new paint shop

MANILA: Bentley commenced the operations of its new state-of-the-art paint shop, which debuted a new paintwork for the storied British marque, dubbed Spectraflair.

Per the Crewe-based carmaker, the said paint job was applied to a one-of-one Continental GT S commission. 

“Today marks one of the most significant milestones in our Dream Factory journey, and one of the proudest moments for me since I joined Bentley in 2023. The new Paint Shop is a testament to the skill and commitment of everyone involved in its development, construction, and integration into the company’s overall manufacturing operations,” Bentley’s Board Member for Manufacturing Andreas Lehe was quoted as saying.

“For decades to come, this Paint Shop will help to solidify our position as leaders in paint quality and be a core strategic enabler of Bentley’s capability to build on our recent developments in paint offerings – such as new Ombré and satin finishes – to develop truly bespoke, world-class finishes across our diverse product range,” he added. 

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Spectraflair-painted Bentley Continental GT S

Spectraflair — Bentley explained — was designed and developed by the brand’s artisans in Crewe.

The company calls it an innovative iteration on the firm’s Verdant color, culminating in a new Spectral Verdant paint finish, that features a stunning spectrum of hues that sparkle through the Verdant color under natural lighting. 

“This new finish is available to customers through the ‘By Mulliner’ extended paint range,” Bentley wrote in a press release.

“The unique Continental GT S also features a Union Flag racing stripe in Ghost White Pearlescent, hand-sprayed to the car over several days using bespoke paint application techniques – a true showpiece of how Bentley blends craftsmanship and innovation to deliver its extraordinary cars for customers all over the world,” it added.

Multi-level paint shop

The newly-established paint section in the company’s complex in Cheshire covers a span of 12,500 square meters and currently stands as the tallest building on the site with its multi-level platform.

According to Bentley, the establishment marks the next step in its journey in setting a new benchmark in high-value, digital manufacturing capabilities, having been designed with dedicated space to introduce new bespoke paint processes in the future. 

Inside, Bentley pointed out that operations are spread across two floors.

These floors have been meticulously designed to optimize every aspect of the production process and create the perfect conditions for both manually intensive and automated application work.

And since the facility has two floors, Bentley applied sophisticated energy and thermal management technologies to ensure comfortable, cooler working conditions on the ground floor, where the handcraftsmanship of its highly skilled paint team is required most.

In addition, the introduction of a water-based paint primer replaces the previous solvent-based solution. At the same time, the improved accuracy of paint application, a reduction in masking materials, and a filtration monitoring system mean the new paint shop (compared to the previous facility) produces approximately 45 percent less waste. 

Production stages are seamlessly connected by a fleet of ten Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs), programmed to move bodies from one workstation to the next, as efficiently and securely as possible.

Bentley noted that its paint shop is the first facility in the world to introduce self-propelled carriers, enabling a completely flexible control of stations across to support highly-bespoke customer paint desires. 

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