Page 15 - Industrial Technology April 2021 issue

DESIGN ENGINEERING

Threadlocker resolves quality issue

drinking water supply. It produces in the region of one share of thread locking applications and has recently been
million brass pipe fittings per year and the EN805 further developed for use on zinc-coated products. Loctite
standard to which they conform requires them to have a 2400 enables companies such as Huot to benefit from
service life of more than 50 years. In reality, this is the many design and performance advantages
substantially exceeded. The average lifespan of a Huot engineering adhesives bring whilst demonstrating
product is 70 years so clearly quality is at the heart of the responsibility for their staff and the environment.
company’s design and manufacturing process. For Huot, a key specification for the replacement
Huot uses various grades of thread lockers but thread locker was that it should be hazard label free but
especially Loctite 2400 when medium strength sealing is by switching to Loctite 2400, the company has also
required as it benefits from the latest health and safety drastically reduced customer returns, ensured the long
developments. This product provides an effective term service quality of products and underpinned its
mechanical connection that is resistant to handling brand image.
shocks and all installation procedures and creates a MORE INFORMATION: www.henkel.com
he adhesive that pipe fitting manufacturer Huot perfect seal between body and nipple. Loctite 2400
had been using to seal its threaded products was ensures high quality pipe fittings will continue to meet the
causing quality issues. When cured, it became company’s high standards when they leave the
Tbrittle resulting in the seal breaking if the fitting production line.
was accidentally dropped. Even the impact of the fitting Loctite 2400 cures when it is confined in the absence
being thrown into a steel storage box could result in the of air between the close-fitting metal surfaces when the
seal fracturing. joint is tightened. As the adhesive fills all gaps between
Several alternative adhesives were therefore trialled to the threads there is no scope for any micromovement of
resolve the problem and the WRAS-approved Loctite the joint, the major cause of self-loosening. It is designed
2400 thread locker and sealant proved superior for three for locking and sealing threaded fasteners which require
reasons; when cured it could absorb any shock, the normal disassembly with standard hand tools.
resultant bond was extremely durable and, most This one-part adhesive was one of the founding
importantly, it was also hazard label free. products in Henkel’s Health and Safety range. It remains
Huot is a century-old French company that specialises Henkel’s front line
in the manufacture of products and components for offering for the lion’s

Defective UV cure bond with critical approvals or when troubleshooting does not
on a flat panel display: begin immediately at the optical bonding stage or when a
incorrect colour display fault in the optical bonding is not even suspected at first.
retardation process Errors in optical bonding happen easily. Right now is
defective display also the appropriate moment to check the activation of the
interfaces of the materials to be bonded. Without mercury
UV, there is usually no UVC component that could at least
partially activate these surfaces for the necessary good
wetting with the bonding adhesive.
These errors become even more costly if the Certifi ed to:
incomplete curing is not immediately recognised, but the IATF 16949
existing problems only become apparent after a certain ISO 9001
period of time. Unfortunately, the probability is currently
quite high that more and more such trouble shooting
issues will occur in the near future.
MORE INFORMATION: www.wammes.eu

March/April 2021 • INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY