Clean Source Newsletter Archive

Successful manufacturers make it a point to look at cleaning options from new perspectives. They picture how those options can improve production – whether or not they plan an immediate change in critical product cleaning. There are lots of ways to gain new perspectives, including actual travel to programs, webinars, and virtual travel. This past fall, we gained inspiration from […]

If battling COVID-19 involves new strategies, doing so in a manufacturing environment demands coordinated brilliance. Manufacturers are adding emergency protocols to protect employees, including the way they clean work surfaces. For many manufacturers involved in critical product cleaning, precision cleaning, and surface preparation, the concern is with removing soils that interfere with coating, assembly, or product performance. The soils might […]

Imagine that you manufacture medical devices. As a final step, the devices are placed in an autoclave; and sterilized using an approved, validated method. Next, you open the autoclave. What do you see? A mouse on top of the devices! YUK! The mouse may have been sterilized. The devices may have been sterilized. However, you darn well better physically remove […]

Cleaning agents have truly amusing trade names! However, the name is not the molecule; and mixtures with similar trade names may behave very differently. I’ll give you some tips to understand the chemicals or mixtures behind the trade name. Choose the right cleaning agent, and you make critical product cleaning faster, more effective. This makes for reliable production and higher […]

We were helping a client set up cleaning evaluations at a provider of cleaning equipment; and the client received a questionnaire asking for details. The first question: what manufacturing steps occur before the cleaning process to be evaluated? The second question: what’s the next step in manufacturing after the cleaning process to be evaluated? These are two reasonable, logical questions […]

To achieve and maintain world-class manufacturing, many of you ask how to become a Cleaning Lady. This is not surprising, because critical product cleaning is essential for successful assembly, for effective coating, and for product quality and reliability. In Part 1, I covered ideas ranging from articles and podcasts to conferences and trade associations. Read on for more ways to […]

Manufacturers ask how they can become a critical cleaning expert. I am not aware of college major called “Cleaning Lady.” Therefore, in this two-part feature, I’ll show you how to find good resources. I will explain the benefits and limitations of those resources and show you how to use them effectively. The goal is to develop your best cleaning strategy […]

You are in charge of improving the cleaning of your company’s product. You think ultrasonic cleaning is needed but need to know which frequency is best. In this two-part article, we will explore aspects of ultrasonic cleaning to make it easier to choose; in some cases, a system with more than a single frequency may be optimum. High-frequency sound is […]

Dr. Darren Williams and Ethan Debrosky, Sam Houston State University And Ed Kanegsberg and Barbara Kanegsberg BFK Solutions LLC If you put a few drops of a water-soluble metalworking fluid on a metal surface, it wipes right off. After machining, removing residue of that same oil often requires aggressive cleaning. Why? Because heat, force, and time can change the chemical […]

Residue is the enemy of a properly-functioning product. Manufacturers demand a “perfectly clean” surface. We are experts in critical cleaning – but critical cleaning is not the same as achieving zero residue. Rather than aiming at a perfectly clean surface, aim for the right cleanliness relative to subsequent storage, assembly and/or coating processes and to the performance requirements of the […]

Twenty-five years for BFK Solutions LLC. Neither “The Cleaning Lady” nor “The Rocket Scientist” have run away from home. We continue to fantasize about that remote beach with the refreshing beverage adorned with tiny umbrellas. That won’t help you. What will help you is to discuss trends, problems, and opportunities we think you as a manufacturer are likely to encounter […]