ADHESIVE CHALLENGES WE HELP SOLVE
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Set Speed and Open Time
When the Adhesive No Longer Matches the Speed of Your Process
An adhesive needs enough open time to bring materials together—and enough set speed to hold them once they get there.
When that balance is wrong, production suffers.
An adhesive that sets too quickly may lose tack before the parts are joined. One that sets too slowly may allow products to move, spring open, or require more compression and handling time than the process can provide.
HAR helps manufacturers match adhesive performance to the realities of the production line.
It’s About Timing
Set speed and open time are affected by more than the adhesive formulation.
We look at factors such as:
Production and line speed
Distance between adhesive application and assembly
Adhesive application temperature
Amount and pattern of adhesive applied
Substrate temperature and absorption
Compression time and pressure
Ambient plant conditions
Equipment performance
Finished-product requirements
A faster adhesive isn’t automatically better. Neither is one with more open time.
The right adhesive needs to perform within the timing window your process actually provides.
What Changed?
Set-speed problems often appear after production changes.
A line runs faster. A substrate changes. Equipment is replaced. A package is redesigned. Plant temperatures change seasonally. Or an adhesive that once provided plenty of working time no longer fits the process.
HAR can help determine whether the best answer is an adhesive change, equipment adjustment, process improvement, or combination of the three.
Why Manufacturers Contact HAR About Set Speed and Open Time
Products move or open before the adhesive develops strength.
Adhesive loses tack before materials come together.
Increased line speed has reduced the available bonding window.
Too much compression time is limiting production.
Seasonal temperature changes affect performance.
Operators are changing temperatures or adhesive amounts to compensate.
A new material or process no longer matches the existing adhesive.
