Testing times ahead

Mike Richardson discovers how Attwater & Sons’ investment in new testing kit sees the company gaining an increasing demand for its extensive testing services.

In recent years, Preston-based industrial laminates specialist, Attwater & Sons’ family business has invested in purchasing new machinery, refined its production processes and up-skilled its team’s expertise. This has included investment in software, including a new ERP system and SolidWorks specialist 3D modelling software and the publication of an ‘equivalent grades table’ that covers cotton, paper and glass laminates.

The company has also launched a range of gasket materials, including its flagship epoxy/steel laminate products. As an insulating gasket material, Attwater’s products are capable of withstanding the high pressures and high temperatures demanded by the oil & gas industry.

“Since last year’s Composites Engineering show, we’ve seen an upturn in interest in our gasket materials,” begins Attwater’s technical manager, Matt D’Arcy. “Capital investment in testing fixture equipment has been a really positive move for the company, allowing us to perform new types of tests. For example, we’ve invested in flexural testing: a new jig for the BS EN 2562 three-point carbon fibre-reinforced plastic bend test which forms part of the aerospace series of test methods.

“It tells us two things: the eventual failure point of the material in fracture and the flexural modulus. It helps reveal a wealth of information about material strength and also modulus - which can tell us about the dynamic properties of the material. Our new test fixture enables us to perform this test much more efficiently and is part of a programme of annually qualifying our laboratory to Airbus standards.”

An information benchmark

D’Arcy agrees that there is definitely a fundamental lack within the industry in terms of exactly what composites are, their properties and how they perform.

“A customer manufacturing components from aluminium for example, but now want to make them from composite materials isn’t always aware that it’s not as straightforward as just replacing ‘like for like’ – unlike most metals, composites are anisotropic (meaning they perform differently in different directions), and it can often mean a complete redesign of the component. This is where we can offer valuable support by explaining how materials work, such as the directions of strength, fibre orientation and how they relate to the performance of the component. Testing is absolutely vital here because it allows us to quantify the actual, and prove the theoretical, properties of materials.

“We don’t offer design services, but we can offer our material test data to our customers and they can take it to a design house, allowing them to design their components more effectively and look at things like weight savings.”

For the tenth consecutive year, Attwater has achieved AS9100 Rev C quality management certification. The company also has MOD AQAP4, BS5750, ISO9002:1994 and ISO9001:2008 certifications.

“AS9100 is essential if a supplier wants to work within the aerospace industry. That said, we’re prepared to go even further than this to satisfy our customers. For example, Airbus will qualify our systems to ensure that we’re not only keeping up with internationally recognised standards, but to their own standards too.

“Yes, there are overheads involved in managing these kinds of quality management systems, but we’re fortunate in that our systems are very robust - plus we have a dedicated quality department that can dedicate time into managing this system and make the required changes. We have a longstanding history of involvement in quality, standards and specifications, and an ingrained understanding of how these quality-related things actually work.”

Attwater’s continued investment in fixtures and test equipment has enabled it to increase its range of tests – and the company now uses its facilities to meet testing requirements of their customers as well.

“Previously, we would use them for validating our own products to ensure what we’re manufacturing meets all the requirements of certain special standards. If our customers want additional testing done on a material purchased from us – or even a test performed on their own materials – we can do it. Some of our customers have their own unique materials specifications, so they’ll take an existing standard and go even further by adding their own requirements. We have the ability to test these materials too. We’re actively trying to market our facilities and test capabilities.

“There are limits, such as the physical dimensions and capacity of a materials test machine. We have a 25kN test stand, which allows us to perform flexural, compressive, tensile and shear testing among others, and we’ll be publishing our list of testing capabilities on our website shortly. In addition to our general destructive testing, we’re now performing non-destructive testing too. Responding to our customers’ needs, we’ve purchased our first ultrasonic flaw detector, which enables us to check for voids and inclusions in tubes and laminates. There’s a particular interest where dissimilar materials are involved, such as our gasket material for example which has a stainless steel core with epoxy glass either side. There is a desire to inspect it and ensure that your processes are working correctly.”

Meeting the standards

D’Arcy sits on an international standards committee known as the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), and continues to keep Attwater at the forefront of industry developments and mitigate against any changes resulting from restricted chemicals.

“Attwater’s former technical director, Tom Eland passed away almost three years ago. He was the chairman of a standards committee and essentially wrote the standards along with other members that the industry now adheres to today. When he passed away, I wanted to ensure Attwater would still be involved.

“Our international committee, called TC15 WG6 (Technical Committee 15, Working Group 6), meets yearly and reviews the standards to ensure they are still suitable and consider any changes suggested by the national committees. The world of composites is moving very quickly with changes happening every month.”

D’Arcy says that the materials Attwater manufacture tend to focus on electrical insulation, so it must ensure that the standards in force are still appropriate and that it’s still possible to achieve the properties actually specified.

“As materials technology evolves, their performance requirements are increasing,” D’Arcy concludes. “As a committee, we’re responsible for ensuring that what we’re saying is an acceptable performance is still indeed acceptable/appropriate. We’re continuing Tom’s legacy and keeping in touch with the people who worked very closely with him for many years. The people that I now work with knew Tom for many years and we’ve all had the benefit of his expertise.

“EU directives and regulations like RoHS and REACH are important because if a substance is restricted and it’s connected with our products, then potentially we could be left in a position where we cannot supply it. We really keep our finger on the pulse with legislation developments and always prepare in advance. We keep abreast of industry developments, and whether it be connected with materials, equipment, testing standards or regulatory compliance, we’re prepared to tackle everything head-on and ensure that we don’t fall foul of anything.”

www.attwater.com