Лако-красочные материалы — производство

Not only do hundreds of manufacturers (in the United States alone) produce a staggering array of hundreds of thousands of adhesives and sealants for every conceivable application in industry, but these same companies produce even more literature that describes these products. Brochures typically provide a summary of key products in the manufacturer’s line, but often will provide information on basic properties and applications for individual products. Many will provide a selector guide to aid the user in finding the most appro­priate adhesive type for a specific application, which sometimes is included in the bro­chure, or sometimes is printed as a supplement.

Data sheets and technical bulletins are more detailed than a typical brochure and provide precise data points or property ranges on individual products. In addition, tech­nical bulletins often provide processing suggestions and recommendations, safety and handling information, and charts and tables of comparative performance data. Some manufacturers have published user guides and other educational publications to aid their customers, such as basic adhesive technology, or surface preparation techniques, or information on adhesives for ultraviolet technology, or working with adhesives to assemble plastics and other materials. Some have even published books.

Beyond this wealth of information, each company typically has a staff of technically astute personnel that can assist in finding the right product or process. This would include

chemists, technical service specialists, and sales professionals. The experience base in each of these groups is quite variable, but a great deal of information can be obtained just through open-ended discussions with potential supplier companies.

A caveat is in order here. The primary purpose of any manufacturing firm is to sell the goods and services they offer to the consuming audience. Naturally, when contact is made with a company about a particular application, their inclination is to try to present solutions from their own line of products, which may or may not be the best product for the application. This is not to say that a specific recommended product may not work—it probably will. It just may not be as good as the ideal product would be. Working with several companies, at least in the early stages of a project, is more likely to generate more information about what that ideal product might be. Plus the simple fact of being aware that competing firms may be on board usually provides for more acute attention from each manufacturer.

No attempt has been made to compile a listing for manufacturer firms, for several reasons. The first is that others already do this and the listings are noted in the directories in Appendix E. Secondly, no matter how hard a researcher tries, there is rarely a truly comprehensive listing compiled of all manufacturer companies. And lastly, because of mergers and acquisitions activity over the past several years, too many changes occur to give any kind of credence to a compiled listing.

There is also a segment of industrial society that serves as an extension of the manufacturer, and that is the Distributor. The primary role of a distributor is usually to provide place and time utility for a manufacturer’s products. Some distributors perform only that function, serving as a stocking distributor. Others do much more, even to the point of serving as technical specialists in a particular industry or technology area. Many specialized distributors request, and obtain, technical training comparable to the training provided to new members of a manufacturing company. In some cases, distributors will carry several different, but complementary, lines of products to broaden their reach into end user markets. In some cases, technically trained members of distributor organizations are as knowledgeable about certain adhesive and sealant chemistries as are manufacturer’s representatives. Most distributors serve a distinct geographical area, larger operations will establish regional offices.