• TQC at Hannover Messe April 2008
• Current Vacancy - Mechanical Project Engineer
• TQC Medical enjoy a successful MEDTEC 2008
• TQC were at the MEDTEC Ireland 2007 Exhibition
• TQC announce becoming Kawasaki Robotics System Partner
• Novel Leak Testing Techniques

• Turbocharger Testing
• Laser cut profile based Jigs & Fixtures
• TQLog Data Logger
• Clutch Testing
• EUPASS - Evolvable Ultra-Precision Assembly Systems
• E-Race - E-Space for the design & manufacture of reconfigurable assembly cells
• Leak Testing News "TQC Solves Leaky Problem"
• Assembly News "Web used for interactive collaboration of automation projects"
• Plastics News "sub-assembling adds value to counter low labour competition"
• Plastics News "when handling means assembly as well"
• Assembly News "Automated Assembly & Testing in Medical Device Production"
• Leak Testing News "Revolutionary Leak Test Unit - Nolek S9"
• Eureka - The Way for Automatic Assembly Cell Design
• Fundamentals of Leak Detection & Measurement
• Research Development & Diversification

research, development & diversification at TQC

TQC Ltd. is a classic example of company evolution involving research, development and diversification.

Featured in European Industry Magazine

Initially operating as Consultants, TQC started with a small but highly qualified team of engineers whose speciality was the solution of difficult technical problems. An enviable reputation followed, both for investigative and arbitration work, particularly where it related to legal disputes, and for innovative product designs.

A significant preoccupation with the explanation of problem causes and recommendations for their subsequent solution was overtaken by requests from volume manufacturing companies for specialised on line test equipment.

The result was a change, from the academic to the commercial world. With this change came the expansion of core mechanical, electrical/electronic and software design teams into a body of engineers capable of designing and manufacturing the most innovative solutions to any manufacturing problem.

Today TQC, although still involved with some aspects of its original investigative and product design work, now primarily builds special purpose machines; electronic/electrical and mechanical test equipment, lead measurement units, automated assembly machines and product handling installations.

TQC is a one stop contract operation, with in house electrical and mechanical design, control and interactive software development, manufacturing, assembly, service support and customer training facilities.

The specialist areas where the pool of accumulated experience of TQC engineers is strongest relate variously to electrical component test, interactive and control software and leak measurement together with associated automation and handling equipment.

Amongst these, Leak Measurement is currently the subject of ever increasing attention by legislative bodies, environmental, health, etc., which is resulting in not only more stringent, but also more definitive standards and specifications.

Probably the most well known of these are the latest vehicle component requirements for the USA market and Europe is close behind!

These pictures show an automotive engine under test on a TQC Cold Test unit.

Specification may state the test medium, the pressure differential, the permitted loss relative to duration and temperature, or perhaps involve a description of the test conditions to be created with criteria to be used for visual judgements. Whatever system is employed the basic theme must be a combination of product fitness for use and process compatibility.

At this point a distinction should be drawn between leak detection and leak measurement; broadly it is the difference between identifying the location of the leak and the measurement of the rate of leakage. The choice of test method used in any particular situation is particularly important. There must be compatibility of process with product quality, it is very much a case of horses for courses.

Leak measurement as practised in the past is, in the majority of cases, no longer acceptable or economically viable.

Too often wrong assumptions are made concerning the efficiency of the test process which results in either poor or over stringent procedures being used, lower quality or less yield! The test specification and technique to be applied should always correlate to the required working performance of the product.

There are three commonly used test techniques relating to leak measurement. These are differential pressure, continuous flow and gas trace.

There are multiple sub-divisions within each involving either gas, positive pressure, vacuum or combinations of these.

Unfortunately when one tries to give a general over view of such a complex subject, important details tend to get bypassed, specific mechanical properties of the various test instruments available sometimes present a minefield of compromise, cost against quality. The average engineer today often does not have either the time, or opportunity, to become sufficiently experienced in the science of leak testing before equipment is purchased and later has to live with his best guess.

It is important that there is compatibility between the overall combination of test elements and the test requirement.

The test specification must be both specific and appropriate to the product in question.

The test technique must he compatible with the test specification and the characteristics of the product.

The instrument must be appropriate for the specific test application.

The tooling used to present the product for test must be suited to the purpose.

All basic points but if there are weaknesses in any of these areas then validity of the test result will be degraded.

It is essential that there is a specific standard or reference in each case for comparison with the measurements taken, in other words calibration and measurements traceable to National Standards.

A prerequisite of effective leak measurement is the application of an appropriate technique, instrument and tooling combination which as a whole can be appropriately calibrated.

The ultimate value of the standard selected for production control should equate with the working conditions under which the test piece will be required to perform. There should be correlation of air or gas leakage with the working condition, i.e., a simple gas flow translation or a maximum value where gas will pass through a leak path but a prescribed liquid will not emerge. In many cases leak specifications are not the result of reasoned consideration, they are more often copies or an adjustment of past practice, the 'we have always done it that way' syndrome. It is a sad fact that our Universities do not seem to consider 'leaks', and the science to which it relates, worthy of research. Leak technology is a subject which significantly effects the whole of industry "Poor instrument, tooling and test technique combinations, although they may appear to perform can seriously effect your business"