Tech Valley Times

The company utilizes several outside associates who lend their expertise in such fields as metal fatigue, welding and brazing, stress corrosion cracking, lubrication and wear, hot corrosion and electrical insulation. With few exceptions, the majority of the work is done onsite. Most of the substances tested in the lab are industrial in nature. Meta... llics, polymers, fuels, oils, and greases are common in the development of power generation equipment. However, Arcesi explains, "A number of different industries and lots of small manufacturers utilize our lab's services as well. It all comes down to materials. The same kinds of materials that are analyzed for power generation can be used in aircraft, pulp and paper products, automobiles, medical devices, and the defense industry." While in the planning stages, Arcesi explains, "a development engineer or manufacturer is better off to find out what the properties of a material are before large quantities are ordered for use in production." When something is not working, clients often come to The M&P Lab for answers. In an area called failure analysis, all the properties of a material are analyzed to determine the cause of the failure. Occasionally, the company is recruited to get involved in expert witness and litigation. Arcesi explains, "when a product has been defective, or failed, we are approached by either the insurance company and/or the lawyers that are involved in the caseto actually determine whose fault it was that the product went wrong. Was it the manufacturer? Was it the way that it was used? We can help answer these questions." At any given time, The M&P Lab could have from one to two hundred jobs going on in-house, with most taking one or two weeks to complete. Most of the testing performed at the lab is called destructive testing. The sample is cut up and set in mounts so it can be seen under the microscope, machined into specimens for mechanical testing, or put in a very harsh digestive solution to discern the chemical composition. The lab has no ...Read More