Tabletop precision assembly systems are poised to move out of the lab and onto the plant floor. Agile assembly architectures promise to help manufacturers use these systems as minifactories for automated assembly of small products.
Round drive belts tend to slip as they reach maximum load capacity. Struggling with this occurrence, Dura-Belt Inc. (Hilliard, OH) chose Stevens Urethane's (Holyoke, MA) thermoplastic polyurethane for its groove sleeve. The substance enables the groove sleeve to increase the load-bearing capacity on industrial conveyors.
Suppliers of automated assembly systems agree that the more information they have up front, the more accurately they can estimate the cost of a project and the better they can serve their customer, the assembler.
The Motorola facility in Elma, NY produces over 1 million parts annually, supplying electronic modules to some of the largest automotive manufacturers in the world. Depending on the type of unit installed, its circuits could control one or more operations, such as interior lights or power windows, door locks, seats and seat heating.
The Marshalltown, IA plant of Lennox Industries, a manufacturer of residential and commercial heating and air conditioning equipment, required automation for a new portion of their gas furnace manufacturing process.
To fabricate a new tonneau cover for pickup trucks, Leer Div., Truck Accessories Group Inc. (Elkhart, IN) is joining ABS and high-impact Telene thermoplastic panels using a polyurethane adhesive.
Thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs) continue to find use among manufacturers of power tools and other industrial applications. An example of this is an overmolding application for a palm-sized sanding tool from National Detroit Inc. (Rockford, IL), a manufacturer of pneumatic handheld sanders for industrial, autobody and woodworking applications.