Dispensing system hits the mark for engineering company.

Challenge

As a manufacturing engineer at Doble Engineering, Theresa Chartienitz routinely works with products that use epoxy to seal in electronic circuitry. However, using epoxies can pose difficulties. Mixing them is a very precise practice, requiring the perfect ratio of resin and hardener.

"You have to be very careful," Chartienitz says. "The mixing process has to be exactly right. Improperly mixed epoxy can ruin our electronics. It can also be really messy. Our floors used to be covered with black epoxy."

Minimum orders of large quantities of epoxies can be expensive, particularly on smaller jobs. Chartienitz was looking for an easy-to-use, accurate epoxy dispensing system. One project posed an added time constraint - she needed it fast.

Solution

Seeking a product that combined efficiency, accuracy and quality, Chartienitz found Epoxies, Etc.'s TriggerBond dispensing system. TriggerBond uses manual and pneumatic "guns" to dispense pre-ratioed epoxy from cartridges.

"With TriggerBond, the mixing is done for you. You can't possibly make a mistake," she says. "In addition, the design of the TriggerBond system allows you to more accurately dispense the epoxy."

Because the cartridges come in different sizes and may be ordered in small quantities, they save money.

"Before TriggerBond, we would have to purchase large quantities of epoxy. We now order just what we need. The cost savings is phenomenal," Chartienitz says.

Epoxies, Etc.'s commitment to customer service impressed Chartienitz. For the project with a quick turnaround time, Doble and Epoxies, Etc. worked together to determine the right epoxy for the product.

"We explained to Epoxies, Etc. just what our needs were, and three days later they sent us a sample. It worked great! Three days after that, we had 48 tubes of epoxy, which was just what we needed."

Future

Epoxies, Etc. has changed the way that Doble Engineering uses epoxies. One convert, John Lahey, has worked at Doble for more than 30 years. He had been mixing epoxies by hand, but now will only accept epoxies that are in TriggerBond's automatic dispensing system.

"(Lahey) used to think mixing from quart or gallon cans was no big deal," Chartienitz says. "Now, if I brought a can into the room, he'd be extremely upset.

"Around here, we won't touch anything unless it's in TriggerBond packaging."

About Doble Engineering Co.

Established in 1920, Doble Engineering Co. has been supplying diagnostic instruments and engineering services to the electric power industry for decades. Doble also maintains the industry's most extensive resource library of apparatus test results and knowledge. The company maintains close working relationships with the world's electric power companies, collaborating to improve the performance of their systems and operations.

About Epoxies, Etc.

Epoxies, Etc. is a leading resin formulator of epoxy, urethane and silicone systems. Its adhesives, potting compounds and coatings are widely used in the electronic, electrical, construction, and decorative industries.

For more information, contact Epoxies Etc., 21 Starline Way; Cranston, RI 02921; phone (800) EPOXIES; fax (877) EPOXIES; or visit http://www.epoxies.com .

20-3006 Epoxy

Doble Engineering uses 20-3006, a flexible epoxy potting and encapsulating compound. This is an electronic-grade epoxy engineered to provide insulation, chemical protection and thermal shock resistance. The flexibility of 20-3006 provides low stress on surface mount and other delicate electronic components.

Packaging

TriggerBond 200ml Cartridge

Dispensing Gun

TriggerBond 200ml Pneumatic

Mix ratio, Volume

1:1

Color

Black

Viscosity, 25ºC, cps

20,000

Hardness, Shore D

30

Lap shear, psi

3,500

Glass Transition, ºC

37

Dielectric Constant, 100Hz, 25ºC

3.53

Volume resistivity, 25ºC, Ohm-cm

3.33 x 10