Maximizing Your AMT Investment with Materials Testing Software

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Whether a materials testing system is fully or only partially automated, managing and analyzing the resulting data is just as important as the repeatability and sustainability of the testing process itself.

Data is key to engineering decision intelligence through advanced analysis, which increases your opportunities to rethink and optimize decisions for a better return on investment (ROI).

Align Your Data to Business Value

The best business value comes from efficiently compiling, analyzing, controlling and reporting on the data collected.  So, once you've aligned your automated testing system to achieve maximum productivity for your operation, make sure you can put those insights into action with powerful materials testing software that provides:

  • Insightful data analysis
  • Complex control
  • Sophisticated reporting

Designed to deliver test results instantaneously to the teams that need them, Horizon Software optimizes multiple parts of your automated materials testing operation:

  • Manufacturing Process
  • Quality Manager
  • Lab Manager
  • Back-up and Archive

Its pre-defined testing programs can be modified to fit a customer's particular requirements and Horizon also enables testing data to be exported and transferred to other data analysis systems. Find out how you can broaden the impact of your data with Horizon Software.

The future of plastic Melt Flow Index Testing

Today ASTM D1238 for melt flow does not currently accommodate a closed loop MFI it is a weight loading standard only.

However, the ASTM Committee D20.30 Thermal Properties, specifically D20.30.08 Thermal Processing Properties responsible for the standard are evaluating closed loop technology, in particular accuracy, repeatability and comparison of the same with dead weight systems. At this point they have a path to updating ASTM D1238 to cover both dead weight and closed loop MFI technology.

ISO 1133-1 does allow for closed loop melt flow technology see extract from the standard in pic.

That said it does not mean ASTM are lagging, rather they take a different approach proving technology works before they add it to a standard by performing actual comparative material tests to verify measurement performance and capability in key parameters including accuracy, repeatability and being able to define a precision and bias statement. In short ASTM wants to see the technology working before it will include it in a standard.

ISO takes a different route; it verifies a technology concept capability to perform a test irrespective of results being correct and or accurate etc. If a Technology is possible, feasible in concept ISO will put it in a standard in readiness for the future technology capability to come along.

I believe MFI technology will follow the same path as tension/compression machines many many years ago and more recently hardness testers in that the use of dead weight to provide a loading force will become extinct. Closed loop systems using a load cell and a control feedback loop will eclipse weight-based products in all areas of capability including but not limited to resolution, accuracy, repeatability, productivity and safety.

At Tinius Olsen our MFI technology application experts and active participants in ASTM standards are;

Harry Yohn – Profile linkedin.com/in/harold-yohn-532b9411

John Thompson – Profile linkedin.com/in/thompson-john-3b85957b

and you can check me out at linkedin.com/in/martin-wheeler-b6475294