Flexible Solutions

Technological advances in properties of soft, flexible foam and elastomeric materials have continued to advance. These thick, soft, flexible foams and elastomers are ideal materials for sealing, gasketing and cushioning across many industries and applications. They compress, form to irregular surfaces, bend, and flex within an application without damage or de-lamination, but from the perspective of the die cutter, may also introduce challenges when trying to achieve the tight dimensional tolerances common in metal and plastic-molded parts.

Why is it so imperative that plastic injection molding companies provide value added services and secondary manufacturing services to their customers after molding their parts? The answer is easy! Many end-customers of plastic injection molders are looking for vendor consolidation and supply chain simplification. They want to cut out and skip steps in their supply chain, sequentially helping to reduce costs and save time!

In this newly released application story, a global designer and manufacturer of critical intercommunication devices experienced a gasket failure allowing moisture to leak and compromise the internal components of their console.  

Just about everything that has been engineered is likely to experience vibration. Unfortunately, it has been proven that vibration can be responsible for causing extreme damage to some applications. The source of vibration can come from impact, internal motors or external sources. Vibration happens all around us whether we know it or not. Sometimes it’s evident when you hear buzzing, squeaking, or rattling noises such as when you run your noisy washing machine or dish washer. Other times you may notice the sensation of vibration when you are driving a car over a bumpy road or when you see the cables on a bridge shaking back and forth on a windy day. Most of us experience the harsh impact of an object when we drop our cell phones on the solid ground.

When choosing a foam for a product design, one feature that should be considered is the compression set resistance of the foam.  C-Set is one of the most important characteristics to consider, and this blog post answers three basic questions to explain why. 

We believe that true stories can tell you more than any fluffy Marketing Materials that we create.  That is why we are sharing two new Case Studies in this blog post.  Both Case Studies explore die-cut solutions that Marian provided to Medical Device Companies.  In this Industry, component quality and reliability is critical.  Additionally, assembly efficiency and cost savings are important to the success of the business.  In these case studies, you will see that Marian is well equipped and prepared to meet the stringent requirements demanded by products in the Medical Device Industry.  Enjoy!  

Marian has a brand new demonstration piece to share with the world! Strategically named "Test My Memory," the demo illustrates the impact of compression cycling over time with 4 different foams. "Test My Memory" demonstrates that certain foams depreciate as it takes on impact over time, whereas other foams such as PORON^® Urethaneand BISCO^® Silicone resist the compression set, ensuring an excellent seal. Foams that resist a compression set make for a good seal in a gasket because the material rebounds to fill any potential gaps that could allow for water or other outside particles to pass through.

Applications that experience periodic compression cycling over time may require a gasket that is capable of compression rebound. In the event that your application uses a material that does not resist compression force, the material may depreciate over time. When your gasket has dwindled or has deteriorated from all of the periodic compression cycling, your gasket will become ineffective and will need to be replaced. In a perfect world, your gasket should rebound to fill any potential gaps. Using a material with great compression resistance will guarantee a long-term sealing performance that will work just as effectively each time you reseal your application.