ICT ICT HIGHLIGHT EDITORIAL
by Paola Giraldo
I
n a production process, the inter-operational cleaning or the cleaning used as a finishing step play a key role. In the production of any metal object – a pair of scissors, a hydraulic component, a connecting rod or any other part of an engine – the components need to be cleaned between one production step and the other, in order to remove the residues from the processing, be they organic or inorganic: emulsions, processing oils, swarf and whatever may affect the subsequent stages of production. Normally, the production flow of an object involves the following steps: a semi finished product is obtained by moulding or casting, it is sandpapered or deburred and then it undergoes various other mechanical processes such as drilling, welding, polishing and so on, until the finished product is finally obtained. Sometimes, between one stage and the other, a so-called “inter-operational” cleaning is necessary. In the production of assembled objects, the components must be cleaned several times to ensure the perfect assembly. In many cases, the tolerances are so small that the components must be perfectly clean: if we consider the production of an internal combustion engine, it is easy to imagine the degree of cleanliness required for each component. In the past, a new car needed a long running in period because the various components of the engine had to “settle” and therefore it could be dangerous, from the mechanical point of view, to force the engine, since the processing residues could damage the components. Modern cars do not need any (or little) running in, because all components of the engine are perfectly clean when assembled, thanks to the modern cleaning and mechanical polishing technologies. The industrial cleaning field is complex and multifaceted, but sometimes undervalued. There exist several industrial cleaning technologies, each suited to a different type of product: from cochlear implants, spray tunnels and ultrasonic tanks to plasma systems for the microfine cleaning of surfaces, no matter how complex. The cleaning process often involves more than one step; in these cases (normally, with small objects such as the glasses frames and lenses or the components for the watchmaking, electronics, goldsmith, etc. industries), multi-tank ultrasonic plants are used. Also the spray cleaning process involves different stages; that is why new multi-stage cleaning machines – where all cleaning steps, from degreasing to rinsing and drying up, are carried out in a single chamber – have been developed. Also the cleaning products have experienced a great development in the last few years: nowadays, we increasingly use low or very low environmental impact products, ensuring the same results of the old chlorinated solvents thanks to their technical characteristics. In certain fields, the solvents are still irreplaceable, but some last generation products have been developed in order to limit their environmental impact and dangerousness. All of the most innovative technologies and products will be on display on October, 25th to 27th at the parts2clean trade fair in Stuttgart – an event which, for nine years now, has been the largest and most profitable European meeting point for the producers and users of industrial cleaning and mechanical polishing technologies. The fact that in Europe there exists such a specialised and such a successful event means that the surface washing and cleaning industry is dynamic, active, innovative and ready to face the future challenges posed by an increasingly demanding market. This sector therefore needs – besides an exhibition bringing together all the players in the industry once a year – a magazine which gives it a voice. The new Ipcm_Industrial Cleaning Technologies comes out for the first time as a special issue in conjunction with parts2clean. It aims to become a technical and cross-sectional source of information for this sector at European level, with a range of contents in line with the editorial policy of ipcm: technical, verifiable and high-level. Happy reading!
Francesco Stucchi Stuccchi Editor
1 AUGUST 2011