TPT January 2013

Inspection, measuring and

testing

Inspection, measuring and testing

Photo: KJM GmbH – Germany

Producers of tubes for medical uses face strict government and industry regulations that hold them liable for lapses in quality. To ensure proper thermal shrink ratios, manufacturers of heat-shrink tube must extrude consistent wall thickness – and certify those thicknesses. Tube makers to the automotive industry must provide product that holds tight tolerances, together with thorough documentation as proof. Plastic tube manufacturers, even as they meet challenges as

diverse as the markets and customers they serve, are under a concomitant obligation to substantiate their claims for the safety and serviceability of their products. Inspection, testing and quality control generally represent high investment, but it is an outlay that the seasoned operator in today’s highly competitive tube and pipe market will not begrudge. These are specialities that come at a price – and justify every penny of it.