Cranage EMC and Safety unveil new environmental testing facilities

At Cranage EMC and Safety, we are proud to announce that we have extended our environmental testing facilities in response to our customer needs.

Environmental testing in a laboratory allows for the accelerated evaluation of environmental stresses on a product, rather than a lengthy process of sending products overseas for testing in natural outdoor sites. We are able to simulate the effects of weathering, ageing, and degradation of products and materials due to physical agents and environmental conditions.

The environmental test facility at Cranage is a multipurpose resource for simulating the majority of environments in which products may be stored, operated and transported. Our specialised equipment is used to create climatic conditions seen throughout the world, whether this be a tropical humid climate with heavy rainfall, or a hot arid climate with low humidity.

The environmental testing facilities at Cranage EMC and Safety, include:

• Salt spray, where we measure the corrosion of metals, plastics, paints and surface coatings to saline solution. Testing is carried out to standard IEC/EN 60068-2-52.
• Shock and vibration
• Solar radiation
• Temperature and humidity
• Water, dust and solid object ingress protection.

Our new facilities include a fully compliant IPX9 test system. IP testing is used to assess how well a product is protected against liquid and foreign objects. The highest rating currently available for water ingress, IPX9, is a high-pressure and high-temperature test system. IPX9 was originally used for the automotive industry, but is now applied for evaluating machinery in highly regulated industries, such as food and beverage, medical and chemical. At Cranage EMC and Safety, we have a 50m² indoor test area suitable for testing large machinery.

IPX9 testing requires high pressure water, heated to 80c, to be blasted from jets at 4 positions (0°, 30°, 60°, 90°) for 30 seconds per position. The product will then be inspected to evaluate whether it has met the criteria required by the standard.

We have also added a new walk-in dust chamber, with an internal test volume of 18m³ for testing large machinery, as well as a walk-in climate chamber. Our climate chamber has a testing range of -40°c to +80°c and a humidity range of 20 per cent to 93 per cent to accommodate commercial specifications.

Climatic and environmental testing helps to identify potential component weakness, validate reliability, analyse and resolve design issues, reduce damage and costs and provide assurance of fitness for purpose.

Almost any product which is exposed to physical disturbances or handling, transport, or delivery hazards could suffer an adverse response and testing is used as a means to make improvements.

Get in touch with our team to discuss your environmental testing requirements.