Minimizing Your Rework to Near Zero
Could your team be missing out on achieving unwavering accuracy?
In an industry where accuracy, traceability, and precision is everything, Struers provides comprehensive solutions designed to fine-tune your laboratories with our proven methods, to elevate your team skills . Our expertise, applications knowledge, and step-by-step methods will ensure your team has everything they need to meet the industry's stringent specifications and regulations. Our expert team will ensure you minimize your rework to near zero.
Coatings
When developing an aeroplane or any type of aircraft, the research and development team examines the different conditions each part will face, such as temperature, changes in pressure, and atmospheric conditions through preparing a material sample. The material and the coatings are analysed through sectioning, mounting, grinding and polishing and finally verification samples to ensure it will meet stringent aerospace regulations.
The turbine, including the air veins and coatings on the aircraft, often must withstand very large temperature changes and is subject to sulphur oxides in the atmosphere, requiring them to be heat-resistant and chemically resistant. This appreciation gave rise to the use of coatings, especially on the turbine sections of an engine. Many of the coatings used contain Chrome (CrVI). REACH regulations were introduced in 2007 to protect the environment and human health. As CrVI is carcinogenic, this has spurred the development of chrome-free coatings.
These new coatings require extensive testing before they can be put into production. Part of this testing consists of carrying out full research of the material through Microscopy. Materialographic preparation aims to produce samples that provide an accurate and representative sample that can be used to confirm the manufacturing process or reveal any defects that may be present. The samples prepared for Microscopy will need a sufficient surface finish to report the analysis accurately and confidently. As aeroplane technology has advanced, so has the sample preparation technology. A change in the coating's composition provides an opportunity to reassess and refine the preparation methods. Explore Struers latest application notes below to discover the latest advice in preparing coatings for Aerospace.
How to ensure accurate quality control of plasma spray coatings
Tremendous advances have been made in plasma spray coatings in recent years. But many companies still lag behind when it comes to quality control and quality assurance of these coatings. Find out how to accurately assess the quality of your plasma spray coatings and application techniques.
Materialographic preparation of thermal spray coatings
Thermal spray coatings are widely used to give a material a specific surface quality or function, such as corrosion, heat or wear resistance. Materialographic examination of spray coatings includes an estimation of porosity, oxides and unmelted particles, as well as adhesion to the substrate.
28 Minute Reduction in Prep Time
“The new application method we developed at Struers saves 12 minutes per sample, and that’s just the machine running time, not the manpower time it takes to change everything over. That is an estimated reduction from 40 minutes to 12. Together with reduction in grinding papers, water, and lower running costs, this contributes to additional environmental savings.”
Paul Holder, Holder Specialised Solutions.
Materials
Struers will ensure certainty in your sample preparation process, whether in a production environment or in your quality control laboratory. Our team will provide expert advice, equipment, and consumables for sectioning, mounting, grinding, polishing, and verification of materials. Explore our latest application notes on preparing material samples for aircraft turbines, titanium, aluminum, and stainless steel. For a deeper dive on titanium, see how to prepare titanium pages for how-to guides, videos, and additional tips.
Metallographic preparation of stainless steel
Due to their corrosion resistance and superior surface finish, stainless steels play a major part in the aircraft, chemical, medical and food industries, in professional kitchens, architecture and even jewelry. They are prone to mechanical deformation and scratching during metallographic preparation – and require a specific preparation method to ensure reproducible results.
Metallographic preparation of titanium
Titanium is a relatively new and expensive metal. However, its high strength-to-weight ratio and excellent corrosion and heat resistance have made titanium and its alloys well-established engineering materials. It is widely used in the aerospace, aircraft, chemical and medical industries, where safety is essential. Consequently, quality control of titanium production and processing is extremely important.
Metallographic preparation of aluminum and aluminum alloys
Low density, high strength and corrosion resistant, aluminum is the material of choice for many applications in the automobile, aircraft, aerospace, packaging and other industries. Metallography is used in quality control to determine the material’s grain size and evaluate phases, impurities and mechanical defects.
Fasteners
Explore the very latest in specialist sample preparation laboratory equipment, consumables, and proven methods for the metallographic preparation of fasteners. Regardless of whether you are looking for your aerospace quality control laboratory or your production floor, this fasteners application note provides advice for every step of the sample preparation process. Whether you need to train a new team member, check an existing method or learn the latest advice for fasteners in aerospace.
Metallographic preparation of fasteners
The metallographic preparation of fasteners, such as screws, has a specific challenge: geometry. The fastener usually has to be cut through the center, and it can be a challenge to clamp a specimen securely. Additionally, the curves of the thread and head can result in preferential shrinking of the mounting resin. This is particularly problematic on coated materials, as coatings cannot be examined properly without good edge retention.
Case studies
Struers is a global leader in providing equipment, consumables, and advice in the aerospace industry. We provide proven sample preparation methods for aerospace laboratories and production environments around the world. We are the partner of choice across the industry. Explore our latest customer case studies from the Aerospace industry below.
VSM (Value Stream Mapping) improves productivity
Product: LEAN Value Stream Mapping with Struers Application Specialists
Company: GE Aerospace
Challenge: How to increase samples by 20–30% with fewer man-dependent processes
Results: Development of plan for implementation of process improvements
The main goal for GE Aerospace is to prepare for a higher volume of samples while maintaining consistent, high-quality preparation. GE Aerospace partnered with Struers to use the LEAN VSM principles to map the current state of the sample preparation process.
Hardness Tester increases efficiency
Product: Hardness Tester Duramin-40
Company: MAN Energy Solutions
Challenge: Efficiently hardness test thermal spray-coated cast iron parts.
Results: A faster and more efficient process performed on one machine.
MAN Energy Solutions, one of the world’s leading suppliers of marine industry engines, wanted to boost the efficiency of hardness testing of thermal spray-coated parts. The solution was to automate hardness testing with Duramin-40.
Preparation time reduced from 60 to 11 minutes
Product: TPM Courses
Company: Siemens Industrial Turbomachinery AB
Challenge: How to produce scratch-free samples, quickly
Results: Reduction of prep time from up to 60 to just 11 minutes
Swedish Siemens Industrial Turbomachinery AB had trouble preparing a new material, titanium. The preparation time was far too long, and the titanium surface was full of scratches. Discover the new method they learned at the Struers TPM course which resulted in what a highly experienced colleague called the best samples he had ever seen.
Coating lab set up
Discover how to enhance your laboratories overall productivity with our team's suggested lab setup for your laboratory.
Struers is a trusted provider for aerospace companies, offering equipment, consumables, and expert advice in preparing samples for the aerospace industry. This is your guide to selecting the perfect laboratory setup for those preparing coatings samples ready for verification or analysis. In the demanding aerospace/defence industry, efficiency is paramount. Our equipment is engineered to optimise every aspect of your sample preparation process. By selecting Struers as a partner, you will maximize uptime, minimize waste, and improve the speed of results across your quality control and/or production departments.
Expert-selected cutting equipment
Semi-automatic cut-off machines are ideal for the aerospace industry, where speed, accuracy, versatility, and time efficiency are essential features for metallographic sample preparation. With intuitive interfaces, automatic features for optimizing cutting parameters, and options for different sectioning modes to handle a variety of coatings and sample sizes. Selecting your cut-off machine begins with the sample size of your workpiece.
Axitom
- Cutting capacity 125 x 290 mm / 5.0" x 11.5"
- Fully automatic high volume cutting machine
- Cut-off wheel size 350 or 400 mm / 14.0” or 16.0” dia.
If you visit some of the largest automotive materialographic facilities around the world, there is a good chance that you will com...
Expert-selected mounting equipment
The metallographic mounting process in coatings plays a pivotal role in the analysis of metallographic samples, as appropriate mounting guarantees that specimens are firmly secured, correctly aligned, without gaps between specimen and mount material. To mount your coatings samples, firstly you would need to select whether to prepare your sample using the hot or cold mounting process. See our guide to help you select the correct method.
CitoPress mounting press
- Fastest hot mounting solution: 3.5 min. w/ CitoFast resin
- Thousands of installations worldwide prove durability under heavy loads
- Automatic dosing system for safer resin filling & less spillage
CitoPress is a high-performance hot mounting press designed for rapid operation and ease of use, ensuring faster turnaround times ...
Expert-selected grinding and polishing equipment
Automatic grinding and polishing solutions provide you with traceability through full documentation, including the number of specimen holders processed, methods used, consumable consumption, and operating times. This enables those preparing samples in the aerospace industry to standardize processes for greater reproducibility and efficiency with no margin or operator influence. Semi-automatic automatic grinding and polishing solutions also provide the ability for a method library and easy to use operating system whether you require a benchtop machine or a free standing our team recommends the below solutions for preparing coating samples in Aerospace laboratories.
Tegramin
- Semi-automatic all-purpose grinding and polishing machine
- Advanced dosing functions for high reproducibility
- Fine-tune multiple features for higher efficiency across different tasks
Tegramin’s compact design, integrated specimen mover, automated process control, and user-friendly operation make it a reliable, a...
Expert-selected hardness testing equipment
In analysing coatings, the hardness of the material will also be tested, for precise, accurate results, a Micro Vickers hardness test will be performed on the coating. The DuraVista-80 is a full-automatic hardness tester featuring a movable test head and an 8-position angled turret, providing enhanced application range and ergonomics.
DuraVista-80
- Methods: Vickers, Knoop, and Brinell hardness testing
- Motorized test head with dual displacement system
- Fast & flexible eight-position angled turret
Vickers/Knoop testers with automated repeatability
Automated sample preparation for aerospace coatings and composites
Join Kelsey Torboli, Senior Applications Engineer for advice on the automatic preparation of aerospace coatings. For aerospace coating labs, tracible reproducible results are critical to approve parts. Explore how automation can allow your lab team to multitask and ensure an automated result across each and every sample.
Metallographic preparation of aluminum and aluminum alloys
Are you finding scratches, embedded abrasives, or smearing on your samples? Join Birgitte Nielsen, Application Specialist for the latest guidance to how to succeed in materialographic preparation of pure aluminium and aluminium alloys.
Microstructure of thermal spray coatings
Are you examining thermal spray coating in materialographic preparation to assess coating thickness, amount and distribution of porosity, the presence of oxides and un-melted particles, or adhesion integrity? This webinar will take you through the best preparation methods and provide key troubleshooting advice in preparing samples.
Optimise your lab's efficiency: Best practices for preparing weld macros
This session is designed for lab managers, laboratory technicians, engineers preparing samples, quality control specialists, materials testing professionals, and production teams working with a range of materials ideal for those working in the Aerospace industry.