Shop Facility

The Keltech Shop contains functioning prototype lapping and polishing

machines.  It also contains auxiliary abrading support equipment including an

air compressor, compressed air dehumidifiers and filters, a vacuum pump

system, ovens, a sintering furnace, welders, a jib-crane hoist, ventilation

systems and various other shop fabrication equipment and tools.  Equipment

modifications, oven curing of the island-disc abrasive adhesives, oven drying

of abrasive beads, and furnace sintering of the erodible abrasive beads take

place in the shop.

  

Large Commercial Ovens

There are two large Despatch LAC-1 ovens with a 250º C temperature

capability that can accommodate multiple 19” diameter abrasive island discs

for curing the phenolic adhesive. A Watlow programmable temperature control

provides multi-step temperature profiles that can be used to precisely control

the oven temperatures. Different accurate oven time-temp profiles are required

for drying “green” surface-hardened porous ceramic abrasive beads and for

curing phenolic resins used to adhesively bond abrasive beads to abrasive disc island tops. The ovens are also used to attach sapphire wafers to backing discs with wax. Vacuum is also supplied to the ventilated oven for fixturing components during processing.

 

Paragon Lab Furnace

A high temperature Paragon Lab Furnace with a Watlow profile-temperature controller provides precision heating environments for several different processes. One use is the furnace sintering of the porous ceramic beads that contain diamond abrasive particles. A critical time-temperature profile is ramped up slowly to 500º C and held there to complete the sintering. This is the same profile that has been used for years to produce conventional porous ceramic diamond particle abrasive beads commonly used in abrasive lapping films.

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Welders

A Millermatic 200 MIG commercial welder is used for fast wire-feed welding of steel machine components. A Miller Synchrowave 250 TIG commercial welder for precision welding of small or thin component parts.

 

Air Compressor, Air Dryer, Vacuum Pump

The air compressor room contains a 7.5 hp Ingersol Rand compressor with an 80 gal tank, a 2 hp Bush Vacuum pump with two 7.5 gallon surge tanks with automatic controls. Also, there is a Ingersol Rand refrigerated air dryer for supplying dry and filtered air to the lapper and disc grinder air bearing spindles and to the lab room.

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Steel, Aluminum and Plastic Material

There is a large supply of steel and aluminum tube, rod, plate, angle, and flat stock along with various thicknesses and types of plastic sheeting.