Follow-up is rarely fun, but it is often necessary to verify an assembly process. The most important follow-up to threaded-fastener installation is a static torque audit. Depending on the application, a static torque audit may be performed a few minutes or several hours after a fastener is installed.
“A torque audit measures residual torque, which is the amount of tension that remains in the joint after it has been fastened,” says Brad Mountz, president of Mountz Inc. “It’s the best way to confirm that you’ve installed the fastener as intended. And it assures that you’ve achieved the torque specification for the fastener.”