Customer
Our client is a supplier of sanitary equipment (mechanical taps, thermostatic taps, shower columns, etc.), for the kitchen, bathroom and shower. It is the market leader in the Nordic countries and the market leader in continental Europe.
Tested product
Sanitary taps with chrome coating, especially for use in saunas and steam rooms, hospitals, etc.
When used in saunas and steam rooms, the faucet is subject to high temperature and humidity variations. In hospitals, the hygiene conditions sometimes require cleaning the taps at a very high temperature.
These temperature variations lead to variations in the expansion of the products, which can cause cracks and delamination of the lining.
Objective
Design an endurance test bench to check the quality of the product's coating, particularly its ability to withstand thermal shocks.
Problematic issues
- Speed of testing
- Easy to implement
- Control of dive times and number of cycles
- Limitation of test energy consumption
- Accurate temperature control
- Need to test with or without water circulation along the product walls
Solution and result
The bench consists of two tanks: a hot tank and a cold tank. Each tank is temperature controlled. Two stainless steel baskets are attached to a pivoting arm. The baskets are distributed in the tanks: one basket in the cold tank and one basket in the hot tank.
When the adjustable time has elapsed, the arm is raised to remove the baskets from the water and the arm rotates 180°. This movement allows the baskets to move from the cold to the hot tank and vice versa.
This principle allows twice as many products to be tested in the same time.
Other advantages of our solution :
- Heating and cooling capacities are sized to ensure good temperature control and fast test preparation time
- Tank design allowing testing in stagnant water or with flowing water around the product
- Ergonomic product set-up
- Ergonomic software and intuitive operation
- PC control with different pre-recorded test protocols
