“It’s the best. All the big companies in aerospace, (or medical devices or telecommunications or….) use this fantastic cleaning agent.” You hear claims in advertising, from sales reps who come to your shop; from people at trade shows.
Is it the right cleaning chemistry for manufacturing your product? Learn more about the product than the fact that it cleans “real good.” The basic approach is: ask, listen, verify, and make a decision.
Here are a few questions for suppliers of cleaning agents so you can better determine if the product is likely to be a good fit for your production requirements.
What is it?
The first step is to find out more about the chemistry of the product. You don’t need to become a formulations chemist, but learning a bit about the physical and chemical properties of the product is essential to putting together a good cleaning process.
What kind of cleaning agent is it? Is water-based or solvent based? If it’s a solvent, is it a single solvent? A blend? Is it an azeotrope? A true azeotrope? What’s the boiling point? If it’s high boiling, can it be water-rinsed or solvent rinsed? The boiling point influences the cleaning agent performance in that, as a rule of thumb and all other things being equal, for every 10 degrees Celsius increase, the rate of cleaning doubles. A solvent or solvent blend with very aggressive solvency characteristics but with a low boiling point may not perform as well as a more mild solvent with a higher boiling point. If you’re trying to match solvency with a cleaning agent you are currently using, ask for the Hansen parameters or at least for a Kb number, so that you can do a comparison. If your product is sensitive to high temperatures, a high boiling cleaning agent may not be a viable option.
If it’s water-based, is it basic, acid, or near-neutral? What is a typical dilution? For critical or precision cleaning, does it need to be rinsed? Does it contain rust preventatives?
Evaluate the response
Too often, you get a “deer in the headlights” response. Or, you get an overly- confident assurance of superb product performance, without any technical details. In either event, ask for a technical data sheet and an SDS. If you still have questions, ask for a referral to a chemist or a technical specialist. Particularly for formulated aqueous or solvent blends, cleaning agent suppliers are, perhaps justifiably, reluctant to give out detailed information because of competition-sensitive issues. However, if you continue to be offered a mystery mixture made in a bubbling cauldron, it is wise to stop considering the product.
Regulations
How do you manage the cleaning agent? Can it be filtered or recycled? How do you dispose of the used cleaning agent? Is it a VOC? Please explain what you mean by that. Is it exempt at the Federal level? What about in your area? What is the VOC level of the product as sold? (Then, of course, you have to consider the VOC level at a typical dilution.) Is there a flashpoint? Is there a flammability range? What is the worker exposure level? What group or governmental agency set that level?
The adage “trust but verify” applies. Listen to what the rep has to say; and take notes. It’s a good idea to get independent corroboration either from your own advisors, by going on-line, or even by checking with the regulatory agencies themselves.
The process
Cleaning is a process, so the cleaning agent must be coordinated with the cleaning equipment. Even if a vendor tells you the offering provides the same performance as the cleaning agent you currently use, obtaining that performance may require a different cleaning machine than you are accustomed to.
Ask about the cleaning equipment that is used with this product. If you do not plan on replacing your current cleaning equipment and the rep tells you it will work “just fine,” investigate further. Your current cleaning equipment may be perfectly acceptable. Or, perhaps it could be modified or adapted with some degree of effort. Would you have to add more rinse cycles? Would drying or a more aggressive drying step be required? Would seals need to be changed? If your current system uses a filtration system, is that same system appropriate for the newer cleaning agent under consideration? For lower-boiling solvents, would solvent loss be higher in your current equipment than in newer, perhaps more well-contained models?
Choices
One way of learning more is to say you are considering purchasing new cleaning equipment and ask for suggestions. If the rep volunteers information about one supplier only, investigate further. With rare exceptions, we are wary of having clients adopt a chemical that can only be used in one model of cleaning equipment offered by one vendor. In general, it’s better to have choices.
There are a few reasons why a single cleaning supplier might be recommended. One possibility is that there really is only one supplier who actually sells suitable cleaning equipment. Try to figure out why there is only one source. Is it a newly-developed process? Is it a very niche application? Why hasn’t the approach to cleaning caught on? A second reason you might be offered only a single choice in equipment is that the cleaning agent rep has a financial affiliation with a particular cleaning equipment supplier. Affiliations between cleaning equipment and cleaning agent vendors can provide advantages in terms of product support, including testing the product in their applications laboratories. Vendors that work together may develop an understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of their respective product lines. However, a single source of cleaning equipment leaves you with very little room to negotiate price, to select your optimal equipment design, or to arrange for employee training/education. Therefore, we encourage our clients to make their choices based on coordinating the features of the cleaning agent and cleaning system, not on affiliations of the sales rep.
Decide
As you find cleaning chemistries that are suitable for your product line, start to evaluate the entire cleaning process. This includes cleaning equipment, chemical management, and regulatory issues. Critical cleaning is a process. Asking the right questions puts you in a great position to make a productive, cost effective decision.
