WCA September 2020

Industry news

Nord-Lock expands and future-proofs production

A new high-tech Nord-Lock facility is taking shape in Mattmar, Sweden, just a stone’s throw from an old barn where the company’s story began, manufacturing wedge-locking washers, over 35 years ago. By expanding its current building from 5,300m 2 of production facility and offices to 8,700m 2 , the company is making a leap forward in its improvement and development work. With the expansion, Nord-Lock will create new and more efficient production lines, introduce new machines with more automation, and offer better premises for optimised workflows.

❍ Nord-Lock is expanding its production facility

“The expansion will also allow us to utilise the heat we produce to heat the building,” said Daniel Eriksson, product manager at Nord-Lock. “There will be 100 per cent heat recovery from production, and all incoming energy is from renewable local sources, such as wind and hydropower.” The water of the nearby Indal River is put to use in Nord-Lock’s cooling system. Even in summer, the water temperature in the river does not exceed 15°C. Other than its products, the only things to leave Nord-Lock are clean water and carbon dioxide. Its wedge-locking washers are used to secure bolted joints in exposed applications all over the world. With applications in mines, bridges, trains, heavy machinery and wind turbines, from 1,000m below the ocean surface all the way up into space, the washers ensure that screws, bolts or wheel nuts do not come loose. The company claims that its engineering team has perfected the coating process, and promises 1,000 hours’ corrosion resistance on all steel wedge-locking washers. The results of salt spray tests performed every week show that the washers, on average, endure over twice as long in the salt spray chamber before any signs of corrosion occur. Customer demand for controlled environments, documentation, environmental considerations, reports and follow-ups is growing. Certifications and standards are important, and an integral part of day-to-day life at Nord-Lock. Customers from all over the world choose to visit the company to discuss solutions with engineers, carry out tests in the development lab and see production on-site.

“Concentrating all our specialist expertise on wedge-locking washers here in Mattmar means we get great depth to our competence,” said Mr Eriksson. “Spreading production across several locations would have diluted that specialist competence. The concentration of expertise under one roof is the whole reason we’ve become what we are today – a world leader in wedge-locking washers.” Erika Olsson, engineer and production support manager, pointed out that laser marking makes every washer traceable down to the steel quality. “Whilst a washer may seem an insignificant product at first glance, it is produced in an

❍ Wedge-locking washers secure bolts in critical applications

extremely high-tech way. Control and accuracy are the hallmarks of the company and evident in everything it does.” Guarantees are important in key construction, such as bridges, industrial machines, and wind and hydroelectric power plants. Nord-Lock has carried out several thousand “Junker tests” and has acquired experience in how to secure bolted joints and bolts. When an international customer was unable to find either a lab or an institute capable of helping them carry out tests on very large dimensions, they turned to Nord-Lock. The engineers accepted the challenge and created the world’s largest Junker machine – “Super Junker” – capable of testing dimensions of up to M48. “Our Super Junker is a testament to our experience and quality assurance in terms of engineering expertise,” said division director Anders Manfred. “It makes us unique in the world. We want to be at the forefront – and even one step ahead of that.” Nord-Lock International AB www.nord-lock.com

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Fasteners ASIA – September/October 2020