Author Archives Bossard

Solving your fastening problems is what bigHead does. Whether it is a difficult project or an extreme environment, we can come up with fastening solutions tailored to your needs. That is what bigHead did for offshore wind turbine maintenance hatches.

Siemens nacelle suppliers approached bigHead with a fastening problem. They recently came up with a composite hatch to replace a steel panel for covering a maintenance hatch. The only problem with the composite hatch was fastening it with traditional bolt fixings. This was a challenge because two people were required to perform the operation—one inside and one outside the nacelle. That made the operation not only less safe, but more challenging and time consuming to perform.

However, bigHead and Siemens came up with a solution through prototyping and extreme testing to make sure the fastening solution could hold up under the harsh conditions that the offshore wind turbines endured.

The solution for these offshore wind turbines was surface bonding the 316 marine grade stainless steel bigHead to the outer skin of the nacelle and passing the threaded stud section through its composite structure. This means the panel can easily be secured or removed by one person from the interior of the structure. The bigHead’s large perforated head allows a generous flow of adhesive to firmly secure it in position and its outer surface includes an over-moulded insulation layer that safeguards the nacelle against lightning strikes.

bigHead and Siemens worked together to create the perfect fastening solution for a tough problem. bigHead has been manufacturing its distinctive and leading brand of discrete bonding fasteners for over 50 years and has extensive experience across a wide range of industries where formed and molded composite products require discrete and completely secure fixing. Applications range from carbon fiber panel fixing in specialist and luxury car production to building and construction, railway carriage construction, marine and boat building, and more.

Do you have a tough problem that needs a fastening solution? Reach out to us at ProvenProductivity@bossard.com and we can find your perfect solution or even develop one for you.

When looking at fasteners, you have to decide whether you want imperial fasteners or metric fasteners. When designing new products metric dimensioning should be considered as a low cost solution to fastener assembling.

Metric fasteners most often win out over imperial fasteners and here’s why:

1. It is a simple form of measurement with a base of whole numbers. This can help reduce the number of fasteners in a bill of materials.
2. They are interchangeable in a global market. Parts can be assembled globally because of the availability of tools. Replacement fasteners can be purchased from local sources. Interchangeability was the key reason the automotive industry has moved to the metric form of fasteners.
3. The metric system is the most precise form of measurement. It has been adopted by the medical industry as well as the aerospace and electronics industries.
4. Metric thread falls between an inch course and fine thread. This allows the designer to take advantage of both thread types. It’s a better choice for vibration resistance as well as providing a larger stress area in the cross section of the screw. A commercial finish can be applied without gaging issues.
5. Standard metric fasteners are manufactured in accordance to the ISO 4759 standard. This is a global base hole system that uses a letters and numbers system to determine a standard plus/minus tolerance for threaded fasteners.

These benefits will aid long term cost savings in design, manufacturing, and assembly, as well as product longevity in the market. If you are interested in other ways of making your business more productive, check out our product solutions and our Smart Factory Logistics.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, let us know how we can help you by contacting us at ProvenProductivity@bossard.com.

In an ideal world, your product would exist in the perfect climate with no wind, water or extreme temperatures of any kind. You would also never have to deal with any type of corrosion or rust. In a perfect world, your product would withstand anything man or nature could throw at it.

This isn’t a perfect world, but at Bossard we work to improve it every day. We work to provide you with fastening solutions that better stand up to the elements and keep your product going stronger for longer. One of these fastening solutions is ecosyn®-MRX, and it was developed for many reasons, but one of these reasons was to withstand extreme heat.

Customer Problem: Extreme Heat

A Bossard customer in France develops fixing systems around the world. They needed a fastening solution for a tunnel renovation. We were asked to provide a solution that could withstand corrosion and heat in the case of extreme conditions like a tunnel fire.

Our Solution: ecosyn®-MRX

Our team came up with the solution of ecosyn®-MRX. This fastener is constructed with special martensitic, hardened and tempered chrome steel. This means it can resist at least six hours in extreme high temperature up to 1,200° C. ecosyn®-MRX can withstand those hot temperatures to get the job done.

Examples of application areas for ecosyn®-MRX:

• General sheet metal construction
• Heating and ventilation ducts
• Appliances
• Vehicle body construction
• Facade constructions
• Green houses

You can use this fastening solution for a variety of different applications because it offers you many benefits. However, if you are looking for a solution for heat resistance, ecosyn®-MRX is a great option for you. Contact us at ProvenProductivity@bossard.com if you have any questions!