AddParts continues to invest in the innovative technology needed to ensure that digital spare parts meet the demands of some of the most highly regulated industries in the UK.
The team at AddParts have been working with AMT’s Post Pro vapour smoothing technology for the last 18 months and after proving the value of this cutting edge technology felt the time was right to bring the smoothing process in-house giving greater access to higher quality parts for AddParts customers.
The smoothing process ensures that key parts supplied by AddParts have a smoother surface finish with reduced friction and surface roughness (by up to 420%), a 3-x improvement in the mechanical properties and a 100% sealed surface. The upshot of this is that AddParts can offer parts with extended part lifecycle and tensile strength, significantly less liquid absorption, parts which are easier to clean and maintain high levels of hygiene with and which resist scratching and breakage. Not only that but the materials and the process meet the same FDA approvals as AddParts’ standard materials when it comes to food contact meaning that the service can add significantly enhanced value in key markets which include food & drink, pharmaceutical and nutritional supplement manufacturing. The upgraded parts show similar levels of chemical resistance to Stainless Steel but are significantly more accessible through AddParts Professional digital storerooms. The solvent used in the process has been a key development as its fully green, FDA approved chemistry is both biocompatible and biodegradable, enabling parts to be made that are food contact safe which is critical to many AddParts Professional customers. The team at AddParts lave also successfully transferred their knowledge of food contact safe blue dying into the process too meaning that parts can be food safe, easy to clean, full sealed and an easy to identify blue colour.
Tom Fripp, Director said “Our AddParts customers rely on us to produce high quality parts with a quick turnaround to enable them to keep their production lines running smoothly and reduce their downtime costs. We have worked closely with the team at AMT as we validated the Post Pro SFX into our quality management system to meet the extremely high standards required by our food an pharma manufacturing customers.
The work to bring this technology in house has been both extensive and thorough which is nothing less than our customer’s demand. Our validation process has been so detailed that it identified several opportunities for improvement in our upstream supply chain to greatly enhance our services for our customers beyond simply the smoothing of the parts. The effective implementation of this technology at AddParts keeps us well ahead of the curve and ensures that we extend the value we bring to our customers as the only UK spare parts solution that reduces downtime and inventory at the same time.”
