How Costly is Your Machine’s Downtime?

           

Whether you are shutting your machinery down to perform scheduled maintenance or to repair a failed internal component the most important factor to consider is how minimize the equipment’s downtime.  Colonial Seal Company realizes how costly repairs to your machinery are when you consider maintenance cost as well as lost production time and is here to help reduce that time and possibly eliminate it all together.  Colonial Seal’s Custom Seal capabilities allow us to provide our customers with unique sealing solutions designed to the customer’s specifications typically within 5 business days.

Colonial Seal’s Custom Metal-Cased seals are available in sizes ranging from 1.2” (30.5mm) OD to 68” (1,727mm) OD.  Casing for these seals is available in Stainless Steel, Mild Steel and Brass with the seal lip material available in NBR, Viton®, Teflon®, Silicone, Leather and HNBR (FDA materials are also available upon request).  Our unique design and manufacturing process allows us to quickly replace obsolete or discontinued styles including the following:

• Garlock 64, Garlock 53 and Garlock P.S. styles.
• SKF HDLA and SKF HDS profiles.
• GACO SKM Seals and Elring Klinger Seals.
• Trostel Leather Seals.

No tooling charges or minimum order quantity along with our short lead time provides our customer with the seal they need as quickly as possible while remaining cost-effective.  These solutions are ideal in situations when your failed seal is no longer being provided by the OEM and their only recommendation is to replace your entire assembly.

Beyond providing our customers with quality sealing solutions for custom applications or replacements for discontinued parts; Colonial Seal takes it one-step farther.  We offer a complete line of Inpro/Seal parts including their unique Bearing Isolators.  Is your equipment difficult to access?  Does scheduled maintenance for replacing internal components lead to expensive, complete manufacturing line shut-downs?  Bearing Isolators could be your answer!

The Inpro/Seal Bearing Isolator is a two part dynamic seal consisting of a stator, most commonly press-fit into the bearing housing, and a rotor attached to the shaft.  The rotor and stator form a non-contacting compound labyrinth seal with no wearing parts.  This unique design allows bearing lubricant to be captured in the inner portion of the labyrinth and to flow directly back into the bearing housing.  All outside contaminants attempting to enter the bearing is captured in the outer labyrinth paths and expelled through a port in the rotor by centrifugal force and gravity.

This Bearing Isolator provides you with a single sealing solution that can more than double the lifetime of your rotating equipment.  This is an ideal fit for anyone who is looking to reduce the frequency of required maintenance shutdowns and/or looking to extend the operating life of their rotating equipment.  Some of the most common applications that can utilize the Bearing Isolator include pumps, motors, gearboxes, pillow blocks, steam turbines, sleeve-bearing motors, paper machine rolls and various other types of rotating equipment.  These isolators can be designed to fit your unique specifications and all come with a performance guarantee.  Designs can additionally be split for ease of installation and all are typically shipped same-day.

Whether you are looking to replace an obsolete OEM part, designing new equipment that requires a non-standard sealing solution or looking to extend the operating life of your machinery while reducing maintenance downtime; Colonial Seal Company can provide you with an ideal sealing solution.  Our knowledgeable and friendly Sales team is available Monday through Friday (9AM to 5PM EST) with additional information about our company and products available 24 hours a day on our website at www.colonialseal.com.  

Colonial Seal Prepares for Atlantic City Fun with NJWEA!

Westville, NJ - Colonial Seal Company, a New Jersey-based specialty distributor of standard and custom sealing solutions, is pleased to announce that they are gearing up for summer’s approach in Atlantic City! Colonial Seal will be attending NJWEA’s 101st Annual Conference and Exposition. The event will be held on May 17th, 2016 through May 19th, 2016 at Bally’s in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

NJWEA (The New Jersey Water Environment Association) has been serving the state of New

Jersey for an entire century. Being one of the most water rich areas in the United States, New Jersey’s

water resources continue to be essential to the quality of life, economic vibrancy, and history of the

state. Since New Jersey has grown to become the most densely populated and heavily industrialized

state in the nation, water quality in Jersey lakes, streams and bays began to significantly deteriorate in

years past.

In 1915, leaders in State Department of Health recognized the importance of providing a means

for professionals in the emerging sewage treatment industry to come together to share in the latest

scientific findings and newest technologies. To accomplish that goal, the NJ Sewerage Works Association was created and held the responsibility of expanding/sharing knowledge about water quality and waste water treatment. The Association, operated under various names over the past 100 years, has been protecting public health through education and training. Today, NJWEA and its members serve as leaders in water preservation and quality, remediation of historically contaminated sites, assisting various industries’ management of sustainable water processes, and educating the public on water quality issues. Colonial Seal Company looks forward to attend an event held by such an honorable association. 

With NJWEA’s annual anniversary conferences reaching sold out exhibit space since 2002, “this

will be a perfect event to market our growth within the mechanical seals division and replacement

parts,” says Frank Jasionowicz, product manager for mechanical seals. “Many of our ISO 9001:2008 

certified seals, FDA compliant parts, and customizations will also be making appearances," says Shannon Merkhofer, Colonial Seal General Manager. The entire exposition will be open to all attendees on Tuesday 5/17/16 at 9am with breakdown at 2pm on Thursday at 5/19/16. Location preference will be given to past exhibitors. Premium booth space is given on a first come basis.

Founded in 1994, Colonial Seal Co. is headquartered in Westville, New Jersey. Colonial Seal specializes in oil & grease seals, hydraulic seals, rotary shaft seals, mechanical seals, rubber molded products and gaskets. Through a global network of manufacturers, Colonial Seal can produce custom seals designed for a client’s unique sealing applications. Colonial Seal Company is ISO 9001:2008 certified.

Gaskets & FDA Compliance

Frequently asked to provide gaskets complying with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations, gasket manufacturers are often left to face this broad and complex area that often extends far beyond consumable, digested products. This information will help explain many of the requirements for FDA compliant gaskets and why they exist. What does it mean to conform to FDA regulations? Gaskets are considered FDA approved through GRAS, existing FDA regulations, and FDA FCN.

GRAS - Materials that are generally regarded as safe (GRAS). Many materials that have been used successfully in FDA applications are listed as GRAS. Through scientific procedures, the use of a food substance gasket may be GRAS for a substance used in food before 1958 or through experience based on common use in food. However, some materials are already covered by existing regulations. For example, perfluorocarbon resins and PTFE are found in 21 CFR 177.1550. These would fall under the category “existing FDA regulations.” New materials that are not covered by either of these previous choices can be submitted to the FDA through a food control notification (FCN).

The most common gasket materials used for FDA applications are PTFE gaskets. Covered in 21 CFR 177.1550, filled gaskets made entirely from PTFE may be used if the filler/s, coloring agents, etc., are considered GRAS or if they are covered by another regulation. Extractable tests with maximum limitations are also required based on the surface area of the sample. Some gasket materials, such as PTFE joint sealant, are supplied with an adhesive strip to make installation easier. The adhesives must conform to 21 CFR 175.105.

Non-PTFE used materials include elastomer (rubber that is able to conform to FDA regulations and is used in many flat-faced flanges in which the available compressive load is low.) Finding an elastomer suited for the media contained in the given particular system is made possible since compounds can be created from most elastomer types (NBR, SBR and EPDM.)

21 CFR 177.2600 lists acceptable elastomers, as well as acceptable fillers, processing agents, additives and curative systems. Gaskets made from elastomers are covered under this section. Acceptable levels for each component are listed, extraction tests and limitations are identified, and the test fluids are based on the intended specificity of service. An example of this could be that different extractions tests are done for fatty- versus aqueous-based food service.

Some gasket products may also include an adhesive used as an assembly aid. While there is no real “sealing function” performed by such adhesives, since they are used primarily to secure the gasket into position prior to assembly, these adhesives must also meet certain requirements mandated by the FDA. An example of an adhesive used with PTFE material might be an acrylic that is composed of 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, butyl acrylate, methyl methacrylate and glycerin rosin ether. All four compounds are included in 21 CFR 175.105 as acceptable substances.

Proper identification of a gasket material may be necessary in order to provide traceability for the end-user. This requirement is usually satisfied by printing the manufacturer's name or brand name and style number on one or both sides of the gasket sheet. Once converted to the specified gasket configuration, the ink may also come into contact with the process media (therefor it must also meet certain CFR criteria.) All branding ink ingredients must be acceptable for direct contact with food and pharmaceutical products in accordance with appropriate sections of 21CFR.

Various FDA applications use piping with sanitary couplings (such as breweries, wineries, and dairy product plants.) These couplings are made to be easily disassembled so that the system can be cleaned. These specialized seals or gaskets used in these couplings are normally made in a specific shape and cross-section to easily conform under the low available compressive load. These seals are made from many materials including PTFE, elastomers (with or without metal inserts), etc.

For applications that involve food and pharmaceuticals, other requirements may be needed for compliance beyond those of the FDA. These include those of National Sanitary Foundation (NSF), U.S. Pharmacopeias (USP) and 3A. For instance, a certification to meet the U.S. Pharmacopeia Plastic Class VI Requirement is a frequent request. This biological reactivity test requires samples of the gasket material to be tested by implanting them into live animals to confirm that no toxic reactions occur from the material. (Tests must be completed by approved laboratories recognized by the U.S. Pharmacopeia.)

Many countries have changed many of the regulations specific to direct and indirect contact with food, pharmaceutical, and related products. Examples of this are the recent changes in the Official Journal of the European Union Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004. This regulation lays out the principals for any material or article that comes into contact with food. This regulation along with (EC) 2023/2006/EC lays out the principals of good manufacturing practice (GMP) and demonstrates similar practices and concerns as those here in the U.S.

The above information is provided only as a guide in helping you understand how gaskets may comply with the Food and Drug Administration. Please call Colonial Seal Company at 856-432-0012 or email sales@colonialseal.com for more information.

Founded in 1994, Colonial Seal Co. is headquartered in Westville, New Jersey. Colonial Seal specializes in oil & grease seals, hydraulic seals, rotary shaft seals, mechanical seals, rubber molded products and gaskets. Through a global network of manufacturers, Colonial Seal can produce custom seals designed for a client’s unique sealing applications. Colonial Seal Company is ISO 9001:2008 certified.

Elastomer Durometer Explained

When fielding questions about seal design and utilization the customer is often asked if they know the hardness of the rubber or lip material. It is important to know the hardness of the rubber material, as the hardness does have an impact on seal performance. Hardness is defined as resistance to indentation. The degree of measurement of this hardness can also be referred to as its durometer. These terms are sometimes used interchangeably in the industry. The hardness of a rubber can be modified by compounding and/or vulcanization during the production process. Generally, the more the rubber is modified the harder it becomes. Before discussing hardness and how it relates to seal performance, there are two primary methods of performing hardness tests that are used in the rubber industry.

The Shore Durometer scale was defined by Albert Shore in the 1920’s, and is the most common method of hardness measurement used in the USA.  Abroad, most hardness readings use the International Rubber Hardness Degree (IRHD.) Fortunately, these hardness tests use the same scales when conducting measurements. When conducting hardness or durometer measurements, there are many variables that could influence these readings on the scale: the rate at which the probe is applied to the rubber sample; the amount of force used; the time between the probe hitting the rubber and the recording; and the temperature of both the environment and the rubber sample. Because this is an imprecise method of measuring hardness it is usually recommended that several tests be taken and that an average is used to determine the hardness. Because of this range of readings, these tests are often provided with a tolerance of +/- 5 points. ASTM D2240 offers a wide range of scales(12) to be used when measuring the hardness of elastomers, rubbers, or plastics. Generally, for softer rubber products we use a Shore A scale and for harder rubbers a Shore D scale. For the elastomeric lips of most standard shaft seals a range of 70 – 90 Shore is used.

For specialty distributors like Colonial Seal we typically deal with two types of durometer measurement: Shore A and Shore D.  The more common hardness measurement is a Shore A 70 durometer.  How a Shore A durometer type compares to a Shore D durometer is illustrated on the following table:

SHORE A	SHORE D
95	46
90	39
85	33
80	29
75	25
70	22
65	19
60	16
55	14

The majority of applications using an elastomeric lip (NBR, Viton, Silicone, EPDM) have a durometer or hardness between 70 to 90 Shore A.  The application will usually dictate the hardness/durometer.  The lower durometer rubber is usually appropriate for low pressure applications, as they offer less resistance on a shaft or whatever is being sealed. Applications requiring higher pressures will probably require a higher durometer rubber. when selecting the proper seal material and durometer, the higher durometer lip used for a high pressure application should be considered since it will increase the amount of heat at the contact point. 

The above information is provided only as a guide in helping you understand how the durometer scale operates. Please call Colonial Seal Company at 856-432-0012 or email sales@colonialseal.com for more information.

Founded in 1994, Colonial Seal Co. is headquartered in Westville, New Jersey. Colonial Seal specializes in oil & grease seals, hydraulic seals, rotary shaft seals, mechanical seals, rubber molded products and gaskets. Through a global network of manufacturers, Colonial Seal can produce custom seals designed for a client’s unique sealing applications. Colonial Seal Company is ISO 9001:2008 certified.