New 3M Adhesive System Increases Production

Bridgewater Wholesalers Inc. (BWI) in Branchburg, N.J., says it has increased door production immensely after switching to the 3M Jet-Weld Thermoset Adhesive System. According to 3M, BWI's production manager Matthew Lomastro reports an increase from 75 custom doors per week to 300 per week.

The Jet-Weld Thermoset Adhesive System is a self-contained system that combines the speed of a hot-melt adhesive and bond strength associated with a two-part structural adhesive, according to 3M.

At Bridgewater the Jet-Weld System replaced white glue for bonding 1-1/8 inches square fir reblock strips between hardboard door panels. The Jet-Weld adhesive cartridge is inserted and heated in the 3M Jet-Weld II Applicator. A bead of adhesive is then applied at 250 degrees F to the strip and hardens quickly as it cools. Clamping time on the door is only five minutes compared to five hours with the white glue.

"Jet-Weld Adhesive doesn't set as quickly as a hot melt. A four-minute open time gives us enough time for even the longest strips, but the system still shortens our production cycle," said Lomastro.

With this new adhesive system 3 M says the bond line on each door reaches handling strength in about two minutes thus doors are moved out of the way quickly to free up production space.

For more information visit www.3M.com/adhesives.