Manufacturers report testing throughput increases of 50%.

Must quality engineers and product managers always be at odds? The former seeks perfection while the latter pushes for greater throughput. With the latest improvements in leak detection devices, both agendas can be served, as the best examples of this testing equipment help speed the quality control processwithout sacrificing accuracy.

When manufacturing for critical applications in which every single product must be tested, the consequences for component failure can come back to haunt the manufacturer in the form of expensive liability claims. Yet, armed with some advanced knowledge about what to look for in leak detection devices, test engineers can increase the odds that all products will roll off the production line with absolute quality assurance without acting as an anchor to production schedules.

"We had some older manual testers we used in Mexico, but I can honestly say that our new automated testers have cut the test time in half, if not a little more," says Brian Yutzy, Design Engineer at Marshall Gas Controls in San Marcos, Texas.

Such impressive gains come from a refocused emphasis on the process of selecting test equipment — one that recognizes the salient differences between devices. What follows are several important pointers that can help any manufacturing engineer determine which leak testing equipment can quickly recast the quality control department into a strong ally of the production schedule while still upholding the highest quality standards.

1) INSIST ON APPLICATION SPECIFICITY
A one-size-fits-all approach only succeeds at being universally mediocre.

Leak-testing equipment demands especially exacting attention to detail, since even verysmall leaks can mean the difference between product success and failure in critical applications. Any test equipment must be designed so that it can be adaptedto accurately meet the needs of the quality check at hand.

For particularly challenging applications, the experience of the test equipment vendor accounts for the bulk of successfully channeling a leak tester’scapabilities for the benefit of a specific product. The vendor should considereach unique case, and then maximize the potential of the test equipment to fitthat need through a redesign of the tester or by reconfiguring it — withcustom designed pneumatic circuits, for example — to integrate within themanufacturer’s production system.

2) LOOK FOR EQUIPMENT THAT AUTOMATES THE TESTING PROCESS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE
Ideally, test equipment must feature semi-automatic or fully automated leak detection systems that streamline product delivery, sealing, clamping, testing,and marking.

Timesaving features such as “infills” — which reduce volumes and allow for varying container sizes to be tested in the same chamber with minimum changeover time and expense. PLC connectivity, and remote-start input, can greatly speed the testing process. Additionally, the latest multi-channel testers, some of which can run up to 10 channels, automatically cycle throughall the tests at the push of a button.

3) EXAMINE EASE OF OPERATION
A leak tester, no matter how capable its performance, is nothing if the human/machine interface lacks ready comprehension. Programming should be simplified bysoftware with pre-formatted test configurations easily modified to each application.

Leak testers that work within the Windows environment also lend themselves toward instant, intuitive operation. Added features to look for include touch screen input, large graphical displays, selectable engineering units, built-indiagnostics, and remote troubleshooting.

“With the old testers, I was the only one who could support them, so if anything went down, I'd have to jump on a plane — occasionally even to China — to reload the software,” says Yutzy. “But since our new testers are a standardized piece of equipment,the staff at our remote plants can program them by themselves.”