fabrication

Improving Sheet Metal Industry Efficiencies

Technologies

A sheet metal manufacturer is using tesa® ACXplus 7074 to bond profiles onto ceiling panels that typically house air conditioning units or lighting assemblies

IPM-ACXplus_liquid-glue-001_72dpi
tesa ACXplus offers many advantages over traditional liquid adhesives

tesa® ACXplus 7074, a new category of double-sided adhesive tape for high performance constructive bonds, is being used by a sheet metal manufacturer to bond profiles onto ceiling panels that typically house air conditioning units or lighting assemblies.
In the sheet metal industry, the ability to provide optimal wetting of different surfaces while also absorbing dynamic forces and vibration has been identified as a key factor, especially in panel bonding applications.

Application and Current Method
On this particular application, the customer was bonding profiles to panels using a conventional liquid adhesive, prior to powder- coating.

Customer Issue
Applying the liquid adhesive was found to be somewhat laborious, involving a relatively cumbersome jig and clamp in order to accommodate a six-hour cure time, in addition to presenting some health and safety issues.

tesa Assessment and Proposal
The tesacohesion team considered the process as a whole and engaged with the customer in an assessment and testing programme using 12mm tesa® ACXplus 7074 as an alternative solution.

tesa® ACXplus 7074 consists of a high performance acrylic system defined by the strength of its bonding power. It also offers viscoelastic properties, with elastic restoring forces that provide inner strength and viscous characteristics which relax mechanical  stresses, to create a dimensionally stable and permanent bond.

Outcome

The testing phase was completed with impressive results. Bonding was found to be effective and robust, with a significant simplification of the production cycle and reduced time, in the order of some 140 hours per month.
In addition the process was cleaner and healthier for staff, with further cost reductions delivered by eradicating the need to manufacture a jig and clamp system.
With 350 units in production per month, the benefits to the company were significant.