EuroFasteners January 2024

Products

Bumax chosen for Einstein Telescope project Swedish specialist fastener manufacturer Bumax has been selected to supply premium fasteners to ETpathfinder, an R&D facility at Maastricht University (Netherlands) for testing and prototyping innovative concepts and enabling new technologies for the Einstein Telescope (ET).

The Einstein Telescope is a next generation underground gravitational wave observatory, being developed to be 100 times more sensitive than current instruments and scheduled for completion in 2035. The telescope will enable scientists to study the precise structure of neutron stars, the birth of black holes and the structure of the universe immediately after the Big Bang. The ETpathfinder equipment is currently being assembled in a cleanroom that includes a large vacuum vessel containing various optics and seismic attenuation structures to isolate the test setup as much as possible from any noise from the outside world. The test setup resides in a vacuum to further remove vibrations carried through the air, and to also minimise interference of air molecules with the optics and lasers. “Because we can’t use any oils or lubri- cants in our cleanroom, regular fasteners just aren’t an option,” explained Mathijs Baars, mechanical engineer at the Dutch National Institute for Subatomic Physics (Nikhef ). fastener alternatives, including titanium-nitride “We investigated various

The ETpathfinder equipment is being assembled in a cleanroom

project – particularly in the vacuum chamber where we will only use Bumax fasteners.” The Bumax 88 bolts and nuts delivered to the ETpathfinder project are electro polished, receive Kolsterising treatment and are cleanroom packed. This avoids particles from the nuts and bolts in the ETpathfinder cleanroom, and Kolsterising increases surface hardness, which further reduces the risk of galling. The ETpathfinder mirrors will be cooled to 8K (-265°C) when they are operational, to ensure optimum performance. Metals typically become brittle at cryogenic temperatures, which makes them prone to sudden failure. However, Bumax 88 fasteners provide resistance to cryogenic temperatures due to their high material quality, low impurities and high-quality finish. Third-party tests have shown that the fasteners retain ductility even in temperatures as low as 0K (-273°C). Bumax AB www.bumax-fasteners.com Roofing screw exports Tianjin Lituo Group, based in China, has more than 20 years of screw production experience, and has been exporting roofing screws since 2009 to over 100 countries, including Chile, Bolivia, South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia, Mauritius, Brazil, Puerto Rico and India. The company also produces and supplies sheet metal screws. Other key products are drywall screws, self-drilling screws and self tapping screws. Tianjin Lituo Imp & Exp Co, Ltd www.tjlituo.com

coated fasteners, but Bumax was the only solution that fully met our requirements while still being cost effective.” Bumax is supplying bolts, washers and nuts in the Bumax 88 stainless steel grade, which offers anti-galling properties. regular stainless steel fasteners, and involves the fastener seizing up with the internal threads as a result of cold welding. In the ETpathfinder project, some parts may need to be disassembled and reassembled more than 100 times over the next couple of decades, so any galling issues would have serious consequences for the project. “The worst-case scenario for us would be if a galled fastener were to weld with one of our custom-made vacuum parts as these would be very costly to replace,” said Mr Baars. “This is why choosing fasteners with anti-galling properties is essential risk management for the entire ETpathfinder Galling is common with

Technical service platform for fastener installation

and an extensive spare parts inventory for swift issue resolution. The pro- gramme emphasises customisable service agreements, technical training programmes and various tooling solutions to optimise manufacturing processes. HaegerCare provides a consolidated support system, offering a single point of contact for all machine needs. Haeger Inc www.haeger.com

Haeger has launched the HaegerCare™ technical service programme for Haeger and Pemserter fastener installation machine users. HaegerCare serves as a resource for individuals using these brands of installation machine, offering services such as maintenance, technical training, inspection, repair services and spare parts provisions. Key features include a 24/7 hotline connecting users to expert technicians,

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January 2024