For Golf Club Maker, Sealing System Makes Better Bonds

A major golf club manufacturer was experiencing problems with its adhesive metering systems. Every 4 hours, the underpowered pneumatic dispensing systems would gum up, resulting in lost production time and many maintenance hours spent repairing the systems.

The manufacturer reviewed its need to improve product quality, manufacturing uptime, and production rate, and invited other vendors to provide a 90-day trial system for review. Sealant Equipment & Engineering provided its Servo-Flo® 801 servomotor metering system. After 30 days the manufacturer ordered the system to replace its troublesome dispensing equipment.

The golf club manufacturer reviewed Sealant Equipment & Engineering's Micro-Meter 2 product family before selecting the Servo-Flo 801. Micro-Meter 2 series includes:

Servo-Flo 801: Servo-driven, electronically controlled shot-size and flow rate with preset shot selection.

See-Flo 202: Air-over-oil driven, manually set flow rate control with manually adjusted shot size.

See-Flo 391: Pneumatic-driven, manually set flow rate control with manually adjusted shot size.

At the same time, the manufacturer was reviewing shaft-to-head bonding performance and decided to change adhesives to improve product quality, customer performance, and production speed. In the past, the manufacturer used a 2-component epoxy and has now converted to a 2-component, 1:1 ratio acrylic adhesive to provide a stronger permanent bond between the head and shaft. The adhesive is heated and cures in approximately 3 minutes.

Preset shot sizes are in the range of 0.3-1.5cc and are selected several times a day. The operator selects one of the preset shot sizes, matched to the clubs being assembled. On command, the Servo-Flo 801 system dispenses a precise volume of mixed material into the hosel. The shaft is then inserted, the assembly is fixtured, and then pressed together for proper adhesive coverage. To test the club shaft to club head bond strength, the shaft and club head undergoes a pull test to insure that it can withstand a 5,500 psi pull-apart test.

Prior to the upgrade, the production rate was approximately 1,200 clubs per day; now, that has increased to approximately 4,500 clubs per day. As a result of the investment, plus product and process improvements, the manufacturer expects to realize a net cost savings.