In-house calibration
expedites turnaround

In-house calibration has saved a company that specializes in the production of pneumatic cylinders time and money. What used to take three weeks, utilizing outside calibration services, is now done in a day.

Dirk Moody, QA engineer/manager of IMI Norgren, Inc., formerly Mosier Industries, Inc., finally found what he wanted when he purchased a horizontal setting device from Fred V. Fowler Company, Newton, MA. Although Fowler first recommended a more accurate, and costly, calibration device to do the work, it turned out that the majority of the company's gages could be verified by the Fowler/Trimos TELMA instrument.

Dirk Moody, QA Manager at IMI Norgren, calibrates a thread plug gage member on Fowler's Trimos TELMA horizontal setting instrument.

TELMA has an updated measurement system, and electronic display unit functions are adapted to meet horizontal measurements such as min/max. It also has RS232-C data output, and the scale has been relocated to the back of the instrument for better protection. Its listed accuracy is 0.003+(L[M]/300)mm.

Savings, benefits

By having gage calibration done in-house, IMI Norgren provides quick turn-around and is saving more than $24,000 a year in direct costs. "Formerly we used to tie up our micrometers two to three days. Now I can do it in our own metrology lab in 15 minutes for each micrometer," Moody says.

"Spread out over our range of gages, we schedule two hours a day to keep them all up to snuff. It also helps me to have more confidence in our gages' accuracy. If I question a gage, within 30 minutes I can verify its accuracy."

	Originally, Moody says, he was looking for an instrument that could provide at least 0.00005´´ accuracy. Today, with the Norgren quality check regimes used on the TELMA horizontal setting instrument, Moody can calibrate a whole range of instruments--including pin and plug gages,
Close up of the Trimos TELMA horizontal setting instrument.

micrometers, length standards, thread plug gages, set-thread plug gages, indicators and bore gages, among others.

Verifying parts

"We use our gaging equipment to verify the parts we make," Moody says, "and these are made to tolerances of from ±0.015´´ to 0.0001´´. In addition to being able to assure equipment is working efficiently, the time savings of having an adequate calibration function in your own shop are impressive. And the TELMA's accuracy is perfect for our particular accuracy needs. Actually, I'm getting a 0.00003´´ for a 3´´ length."

IMI Norgren, Inc., has a range of manufacturing company clients for its line of pneumatic cylinders--Harley Davidson for its assembly operations, many packaging companies for automated packaging, and boat manufacturers for pumping chemicals used in hull-forming processes. To enhance its position as a reliable supplier of these pneumatic cylinders, the company has had ISO 9001 certification for the past two years.

"Our calibration focus," says Moody, "is on assuring the accuracy of our gaging instrumentation in a short amount of time. Now that I can use instruments like TELMA to verify the accuracy of an item like a pipe thread gage, I have the confidence to assure our customers that our gages are fully accurate to manufacturers' standards. That results from our improved ability to calibrate our gages accurately, quickly, and economically. In addition, the added benefit is that our gages are not tied up in an outside calibration organization."

Fred V. Fowler, Co., Inc., Newton, MA. Phone: (800) 788-2353