UV-Curing Technology Continues to Shed Light on Assembly Techniques
The economic savings, process optimization and increased product performance of UV materials at first were limited to large-volume producers who could tolerate the initial monetary investments incurred to justify the benefits. However, dramatic developments in raw materials, improvements in photo-initiators and decreases in cost of UV-curing equipment have made UV-curable techniques more accessible to smaller companies. UV and broad-spectrum light-curing resins can reduce costs for many assembly processes.
Originally developed for inks and thin coatings, light curing did not become popular for other applications until the early 1980s. Light curing has since become the method of choice for many bonding, sealing, coating, potting and tacking applications. Because faster cures boost process efficiency and lower total assembly cost, and because light-curing adhesives are being used in a wider variety of applications, the types of resins and curing equipment available have expanded dramatically.