Clean Source Newsletter Archive

Changing to a new product cleaning process costs time and money. Do it correctly, and manufacturing becomes more productive – quality improves, customers are happy, defect rate decreases, the company makes more money. Fail to consider the scope of the effort, and process change is likely to be a frustrating, […]

When we see clients, one of the first questions we ask is: Why? Why are you cleaning the part or component or product? How did you come to choose the cleaning process and cleaning chemicals? Why are you changing the process? Why are you looking at a particular type of […]

After a recent program, a concerned attendee wanted to know: “Is there perchloroethylene in my aqueous cleaning agent?” Barbara’s first thought was to respond that it’s like asking “Is there chicken soup in my cupcake?” Perchloroethylene (PCE), an organic solvent, used in liquid/vapor degreasing, has a different skill set – […]

[This article first appeared in the November 2013 issue of Clean Source] Yellow, Orange, Gold – Rust! Beautiful as autumn colors, desirable as a patina on some sculptures, terrible on manufactured parts. Corrosion compromises product quality, both by direct impact on surface quality and by contributing to contamination. In critical cleaning, […]

It’s an emergency! Regulators decide that the cleaning agent is unsafe for workers, neighborhoods, and/or the environment. Manufacturers are faced with the capital costs, testing, and performance verification associated with finding a substitute chemical and changing an established effective cleaning process. Within a few years, there’s another emergency. Regulators decide […]

Professor Darren Williams, Sam Houston State University Barbara Kanegsberg and Ed Kanegsberg, BFK Solutions LLC Manufacturers are exploring critical cleaning processes that use a modified alcohol, or an iso-paraffinic blend. There are a number of reasons. Some manufacturers find that aqueous cleaning does not provide the appropriate cleaning efficacy. Many […]

Manufacturers are exploring moving to new critical product cleaning processes that use either organic solvents or water blended with a bunch of chemicals, including organic chemicals. We’re going to get to know a little about molecules. Why bother? Perhaps you are reading product literature that asserts superlative cleaning performance of […]

“May you live in interesting times” is a thinly-veiled curse, one that no doubt resonates with manufacturers involved in critical product cleaning. In the United States, current interesting times arise from a confluence of multiple factors. One set of factors is the regulatory activities at the Federal and State level […]

To clean effectively, the cleaning agent must access the surfaces of the product. In contrast with flat surfaces, it is very difficult to reach all the surfaces of complex, ornate, or miniature products. Electronics assemblies with spacing below 0.005” (125µ) are not as readily cleaned. The more surface area, the […]

The Cleaning Lady and the Rocket Scientist were LIVE and in person at the recent Parts Cleaning Conference in Chicago. The refrain of the new normal goes something like: “Yippee! We’re talking to each other face-to-face, in person.” Was the conference useful?  In our opinion, yes. The Parts Cleaning Conference […]

We all know that “oil and water don’t mix,” that like dissolves like. We’ve heard statements that solvents (organic solvents) work for non-polar soils while water works for salts. Critical product cleaning, like life, is complex; and the range of soils even for a given manufacturing situation are more varied. […]

If you are involved in manufacturing, if you are part of a supply chain, rugged critical cleaning processes will improve your productivity and profitability. You may be an OEM, a job shop, even a repair/rework facility. You may be the ultimate customer and have little or no direct contact with […]