Case Studies: Force Tester Springs into Action

Electronic data collection, storage and export to Bespak’s database saves time and removes opportunity for error. Source: Mecmesin
Bespak Ltd. (Buckinghamshire, United Kingdom) is a manufacturer of specialty medical devices for inhaled drug delivery and anaesthesia. The company manufactures more than 450 million complex devices each year, many of which are inhalers used to administer medicine to those with illnesses such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Tensile and compressive helical springs form a key element of the operating mechanism of these devices. As a supplier quality control measure, Bespak performs free height test and compressive/tensile force tests on the springs to ensure conformance with specification. This is critical to guarantee correct functioning of the resultant device. The springs, which range from 20 to 120 millimeters, arrive at Bespak’s King’s Lynn site in the United Kingdom in six deliveries per week, and 30 to 50 samples from each batch must be tested.

The MultiTest 1-i automatically descends to the correct compression height, avoiding the time-consuming and error-prone process of setting it manually. Source: Mecmesin
To help Bespak obtain more accurate and repeatable measurement results, Mecmesin (Sterling, VA), a designer and supplier of force and torque measurement solutions, supplied a MultiTest 1-i computer-controlled force testing system, fitted with a 50-newton loadcell. This system, coupled with Mecmesin’s Emperor software, provides fully automated control of all test parameters, removing inaccuracies arising from manual force application.

The tested springs are used in pMDI valves, which are incorporated into handheld drug delivery devices. Source: Bespak
“We have used Mecmesin equipment for some years,” says Haken. “We now estimate that every second more than a thousand people rely on a Bespak device to help them breathe. And as our testing requirements have grown, so too has our relationship with the company. Today we rely upon their advanced test systems to guarantee the quality of our supplied materials.”
Mecmesin
(703) 433-9247
www.mecmesin.com
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