AUBURN – Firefighters made quick work of a blaze Monday afternoon at Performance Product Painting, but damage to a sandblasting machine was estimated at several thousand dollars.

Fire investigators said a piece of debris that lodged in the sandblasting filtration system caused filters to burn inside the equipment.

Fire crews on their way to the Omni Circle scene initially feared their efforts would be complicated by a number of chemicals stored inside the building. The company works with paints, coatings and adhesives, among other materials.

According to Auburn Fire Lt. Gary Simard, who is the fire prevention officer, none of those products was stored near the fire scene.

“The company did a good job of letting us know there were no chemicals in that part of the building,” Simard said.

With that knowledge, crews knocked down the flames within about 10 minutes. Simard said filters and other materials inside the sandblasting machine burned as sprinklers were activated overhead.

“It was a good, hot fire there for a while,” he said. “The damage was confined to the unit itself.”

No one was hurt in the 12:30 p.m. fire. The exact amount of damage was not known Monday afternoon. Company employees were able to continue working once the fire was extinguished.

Performance Products Painting opened for business in 1987 and is considered one of the largest industrial coatings job shops on the East Coast, according to the company’s Web site. The company employs about 37 people.