Physical Testing
Because the range of plastics and coated materials tends to react differently to normal wear and tear, engineers must have confidence that the parts they specify can withstand years of use.
This is especially critical when two or more different plastic compounds are used in the production of a single assembly or system. For example, plastics have to retain compatible elasticity characteristics, color fastness and abrasion resistance in extremes of hot and cold, year after year.
Materials such as leather upholstery or nylon headliners must retain their flexibility and surface texture under constant bumps, pokes and weights.
ACT plastics and material testing laboratories include:
- Rheometrics Impact Machine to evaluate how plastics react to high and low temperature impacts, before and after the painting process
- Taber Abrasion Machine to test how materials and coatings live through years of manipulation
Physical testing
The individual parts, components, systems and assemblies used to construct highly complex cars and trucks are built from a wide variety of materials. These include organic, chemical and human- made substances that must interact with each other in desired, pre-determined ways. Should any one of these materials fail to perform up to expectation it affects the quality level of the total vehicle.
Some of the performance standards are established by law, others are prescribed by customers. ACT Laboratories regularly helps customers achieve these standards and provides documentation to prove compliance.
Among the physical test capabilities we offer are:
- Tension/compression
testing
- Hardness of steel
- Fogging emissions
- Flammability
- Impact resistance
Electronically controlled impact testing measures resistance to damage
The effects of fogging on various materials is closely monitored
Alternately tensioning and compressing metals until failure measures compliance to specification
ACT Laboratories, 28031 Grand Oaks Court, Wixom, MI 48393. Tel: 248-347-6310; Fax: 248-347-6540.