Fastener Technology

Our staff of Application Engineers look at the ins and outs of fasteners every day. They’ve been able to help our customers solve some of their most intricate challenges when it comes to product design and product development and how fasteners play a role in that. Here are four tips from Bossard Application Engineer Jon Dabney.

1)      Matching Property Classes

When looking at bolted joints you must be using the correct matching property classes for the bolt or screw, nut, and washer. If you do not consider this, you can have a pre-mature failure while the joint is in service.

You want to make sure that the nut is always stronger than the bolt. The reason being is a nut failure is a delayed failure and not something you will typically see right away as you would with a bolt. A way of doing this is pairing them appropriately 8.8 and class 8/10.9 and 10. 

Incorrect washer strength for the property class of the bolt. When you have too soft of a washer paired with a higher property class bolt it can cause embedment which will result in a decrease in preload in the joint which can cause failures.

2)      Standard Fasteners

When designing the fastening joint, it is important to design around standards that will govern the material, tolerances, and performance of the fastener. It can greatly increase the cost and lead time of the fastener when going away from the industry standard. What might be a slight change on the drawing can quickly go from a standard cold-headed part to a costly machined part.

3)      Assembly Considerations

When designing the fastening joint, it is important for industrial designers to take into consideration the manufacturability of the joint. Balancing the time it takes to assemble and reducing the complexity of the area of the assembly will greatly reduce the total cost of the joint itself. A good practice is to ask this simple question: How do I put this together?

4)      Consider Using Multifunctional Fasteners to Reduce Total Cost of Ownership

By using features that help with assembly speed and other multifunctional fasteners such as a dog point, MAThread®, pre-applied patches, thread forming screws, SEMS screws and the many other options can help reduce the total cost of the joint by reducing assembly time and removing processes.

If you have any questions about how to design successful products, please reach out to us at ProvenProductivity@bossard.com.  

As an industrial material, stainless steel has many advantages. It is resistant to rust and corrosion and is uniform in composition. It is remarkably self-repairing. Any surface damage, such as scratching or chipping, is fixed by an invisible film know as nonreactive chromium oxide, which forms when oxygen is present. And it can be combined with other materials such as nickel, molybdenum, titanium, copper, or aluminum, to vary its properties.

So, it’s no surprise that Bossard offers many fastener varieties that are made from this material. If you’re trying to determine which is the best one, the short answer is there is none. Instead, the stainless steel screw that you should choose depends on the following factors:

• What is your application? Screws are engineered for specific purposes. Those designed for wood would not work for metal joins and vice-versa. Does your application demand high strength, extreme temperature tolerance, or moisture resistance?
• What is the shape of the screw? The head, for example, can be hex, socket head, flange head, or another design. The shape determines the amount of torque that the screw can take, among other issues. What kind of thread can handle your load characteristics? A coarse thread makes for faster assembly. A fine thread engages better but takes longer to assemble.
• What grade do you require? A2-50 is inexpensive and used in applications of relatively low strength, such as with pipe clamps and hangers. A2-70 has higher strength, making them more suitable for applications that see more stress.
• What are your corrosion requirements? A2 stainless is suitable for most applications in the food and beverage industry, while A4 has a higher corrosion resistance required for marine type applications.

We can help you choose the best stainless steel screw for your fastening challenge. Contact us at ProvenProductivity@bossard.com to see how.

When your workflow demands opening and closing doors and lids, the Southco Counterbalance Hinge can make it safer and more efficient. By compensating for the weight of heavy lids and panels, this engineered access solution gives its users specific control when dealing with heavy panels, improves ergonomics, and minimizes liability issues. Among its many advantages are the following.

• It reduces to zero any effort needed to open and close heavy lids and doors by counteracting the force of gravity. Users can smoothly and precisely position a panel or lid without having to strain themselves, which lessens the risks of accidents and minimizes potential danger. This ease of use makes opening and closing quicker, which makes user tasks more efficient.
• Because the hardware is compact around its pivot points, the hinge can fit inside most enclosures with no protrusions. The lack of gas-strut posts and mounts removes catch points.
• You can adjust the assembly to match the precise requirements of even stringent applications, such as in construction or the military.
• The hinge is highly resistant to vibration, making it suitable for storage applications that are mobile or stationary, such as those found with industrial and medical equipment.
• Due to its aluminum construction, it resists corrosion and tolerates a wide range of temperatures, making it ideal for cooking and food processing.
• No energy source is needed, so even outdoor applications far from generators or powerplants can benefit.
• This technology offers a lifetime of worry-free and consistent operation because it requires no maintenance and is designed for up to 100,000 cycles. This is useful for reducing costs related to warranties, insurance, installation, maintenance, and repair.

Do you want more information about Southco Counterbalance Hinges can work with your application? Contact us today at ProvenProductivity@bossard.com.

Safety stands out as a concern whether you’re working with any kind of commercial container or industrial equipment. When you lift the hinged lift off a compartment, you can’t risk it dropping down on your hands or head. Southco’s CounterBalance Modular Torsion Spring System addresses this issue when it assists in lifting force with positional stability. You still get the full range of motion during opening and closing, which makes operations safer and more reliable.

The CounterBalance Hinge minimizes the effort needed to raise and lower lids, doors, covers, and electromechanical equipment, and to keep them supported. It consists of the following components:

• Cam Assembly controls the motion of the lid or door by managing how spring energy is released.
• Counterbalance Torque Engine consists of the Cam Follower Arm that transfers the spring energy from the torsion rods to the cam assembly and the Internal Torsion Toads that twist to specific angles to counteract the weight of the lid or door.
• Internal Torsion Rods twist (pre-load) to specific angles, counteracting the weight of the lid or door.
• Anchor Mount joins the torque engine to the base of the unit.

When the lid or door moves, these parts work together to neutralize the weight of the lid by managing mechanical energy from the torsion spring and cams. You gain precise control as the spring technology counteracts downward force.

The Counterbalance Hinge is often used in the following applications:

• Lab equipment
• Architectural doors and panels
• Cooking and food processing equipment
• Military and armored vehicles
• Gaming machines and kiosks

It enhances your work tasks by reducing lifting effort to almost nothing and can repeat its process up to 100,000 cycles. This technology is virtually maintenance-free because it requires no power source and resists temperatures from -37–107°C (-98-224°F).

Need more information about Southco Counterbalance Hinges? Contact us today at ProvenProductivity@bossard.com.

Choosing the right fastener for the job plays a crucial role in how the final product turns out. When an application involves joining materials that are too soft or too thin, directly accepting self-tapping screws or bolts will cause damage to the base material. In this situation, threaded inserts make joining those materials possible. Once this type of fastener is installed, the internal threads of the insert are available to support screws, bolts, and other fasteners with male threading.

Threaded inserts aren’t just useful for workpieces made from soft or thin materials. These inserts are often used to replace existing threaded holes that have been stripped or are otherwise no longer suitable for securely holding threaded fasteners. Compared with self-tapping screws, screws and bolts with threaded inserts can handle higher axial and radial loads.

Threaded inserts were initially developed for the aerospace and aviation industries, where their main purpose was to secure deicers to airplane wings. Today, threaded inserts are used in a wide variety of industries and applications. For instance, wellnut threaded inserts are commonly used in the automotive industry to secure plastic and metal body parts. These inserts feature rubber flanges ideal for vibration reduction and creating a watertight seal.

You will also find threaded inserts made from corrosion-resistant materials such as brass and coated steel throughout the boatbuilding industry, mainly to secure boat hulls and trim to wooden and fiberglass bodies. Household appliances also rely on threaded inserts to keep circuit board controls and plastic covers in place. Threaded inserts are also commonly chosen for their durability, making them ideal for use in green energy construction applications. Outdoor solar panels and windmills rely on threaded inserts for their high strength and ease of installation.

The experts at Bossard are more than happy to discuss threaded inserts in greater detail. Contact us to find the right fasteners for your application at ProvenProductivity@bossard.com.

Diversity in the fastener world isn’t just limited to hardware purposes. Fasteners also come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. For global manufacturers, location can mean the difference between using inch and metric measurements for fasteners and other components.

Inch fasteners are most used in the United States and Canada with their sizes and thread pitches denoted in fractional inches. This crucial difference in standards can pose a significant roadblock for manufacturers interested in entering global markets, given that metric fasteners are the de facto standard throughout the rest of the world. 

Many companies that are used to designing with inch fasteners may be reluctant to switch over to metric hardware, mainly for cost and productivity reasons. However, those planning to expand into global markets must eventually come to grips with metric fasteners. For traditional inch fastener users, the relatively simplified methods of measurement make it easy to get the hang of metric hardware.

Even among metric users, different standards can easily complicate the process of converting from one unit of measurement to another. These metric standards, including ANSI, DIN, CEN, and JIS, are like one another in many respects, but they are not entirely interchangeable. However, unified standards such as ISO 9000 are quickly gaining adoption among metric users.

Fortunately, our metric ↔ inch fasteners converter helps take much of the guesswork out of the conversion process. Our converter lets you verify your calculations, providing you with the best proposals while showcasing the differences in a clear and easy-to-understand form. At Bossard, we understand the work that goes into ensuring accuracy and flexibility when it comes to measurement conversion.

Visit our website and discover our online calculators for various applications. To learn more about our line of metric and inch fasteners, get in touch with us today at ProvenProductivity@bossard.com.

Of all the fastening solutions we offer at Bossard, rivets are the ones that have proven the most versatile. Rivets were used widely throughout the ages as a cost-effective and durable method of fastening. Even today, rivets are still the preferred option for applications that demand permanent assembly. Rivets are particularly capable of handling shear loads, but they can also support tension loads.

Rivets come in a surprising array of different types and designs for a broad spectrum of applications. Take blind rivets, for example. Also called “pop rivets” by many, blind rivets feature a mandrel that draws the blind end of the rivet inward. A device known as a riveter pulls the mandrel with internal jaws, while the riveter’s nosepiece pushes on the head of the rivet, causing the hollow shaft to deform and expand into the workpiece. The mandrel snaps off after the blind rivet is firmly secured into position. This feature differs from solid rivets that require a hammer and anvil[KT1] to flatten and expand the completely solid shaft.

Unlike traditional threaded fasteners, assemblers can install blind rivets without needing access to the back of the workpiece. Blind rivets are also used in high-strength applications, with one-piece lock bolt solutions offering similar shear and tensile strength to a comparably sized class 10.9 bolt.

The blind riveting process itself is usually 20% to 50% faster than torquing similar nuts and bolts, making them ideal for applications demanding high-speed installation. Rivet presenters and speed rivets can significantly reduce installation times, depending on the application.

Blind rivets excel in applications that require plastic-to-plastic or plastic-to-metal attachment. Using blind rivets with large rear bearing surfaces, assemblers can join thin sheet metals and weak or brittle plastics together without risking damage to any of the panels. You’ll also find rivets that feature rubber washers on the body or under the rivet head to stop water ingress in sealed applications.

Blind rivets are also ideal for assembly in applications where food safety is critical. Flush-breaking mandrels help blind rivets leave behind a completely flush surface[KT2] that prevents food or contaminants from gathering afterward, thereby meeting stringent NSF standards for cleanliness.

To learn more about how to use blind rivets, contact us today at ProvenProductivity@bossard.com.

Improvements in manufacturing efficiency are wherever you can find them, especially when your product relies on having the right kind of fasteners. A simple walk-through can reveal areas that are not only ripe for improvement, but also profitable to do so. This is where Bossard Expert Walk comes into play.

Based on Gemba walk, Walk-the-Line, and other industry-standard processes, Bossard Expert Walk gives you precise insight on what goes on in the manufacturing process while pinpointing areas for improvement.

Expert Walk begins with a walkthrough of your entire manufacturing process, conducted by one of our Bossard team members and accompanied by one or more front-line workers and engineers. Our Bossard representative performs an in-depth inspection of your assembly lines and workstations to optimize current processes and tools.

By optimizing fastener integration, Bossard Expert Walk brings increased productivity to the manufacturing process while offering quality improvements and a lower Total Cost of Ownership. Bossard offers three service packages that deliver varying levels of optimization:

•    Basic – Focused on Analysis, our experts perform an in-depth examination of the production line, verifying assembly processes and technology while estimating potential cost savings of any improvements based on Total Cost of Ownership. 
•    Advanced – In addition to performing basic services, our experts focus on Verification, verifying the potential for technical improvements while developing proposals for new and proven solutions. We’ll also provide a detailed technical report along with physical samples.
•    Superior – We build upon our basic and advanced services with Implementation, starting with an implementation plan that sets up the project team and priority goals. Our experts lead the implementation and R&D engineering during proposals, as well as on-site and off-site training.  Finding the right fastener solutions is just one part of making your manufacturing more efficient. Email us at ProvenProductivity@bossard.com and see for yourself how our Expert Walk can help deliver the results your company desires.