Mon, 07/27/2020

A Quality-Focused Commitment to Serving Customers’ Sealing & Flow Control Needs

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, SFC KOENIG® has worked to protect health and safety, adapting processes to best serve customers while providing solutions for new medical applications.

As a global organization with manufacturing locations in Switzerland, Germany, the United States and China, SFC KOENIG has actively supported customers as the effects of COVID-19 spread across the globe.

“All of our manufacturing locations remain open,” stated Tom Ryan, Head of Product Management at SFC KOENIG. “We are so proud of the dedication shown by our team, who quickly adapted to these unprecedented times and continually maintained our complete commitment to quality and excellence.”

The company has modified some of its processes during recent months to help protect the health and safety of employees and visitors, as well as to provide support to customers who have new, remote working situations.

While customers are able to visit SFC KOENIG facilities, and company staff continue to be able to visit customer locations when necessary, the organization has increased its usage of video conferencing for product development support, application reviews, testing and more.

“We’re adapting and remaining flexible,” noted Ryan. “From using shared, interactive 3D CAD models that show our KOENIG EXPANDER® seals in new designs, to presenting testing results for flow control products via video conference, we have been pleased at the customer response. In everything we do we work to serve our customers with superior quality. Usually that is driven by the unsurpassed value of our product line, but now, we are adding to our value even more by working to support people in new ways that are best for their requirements and their preferences.”

As a unit of IDEX corporation, the company has benefitted from guidance on how to maintain operations, adjust process and remain compliant to standards as the pandemic evolved.

Like many modern and technology-driven manufacturers, SFC KOENIG also quickly reacted to the needs of a changing market in recent months.

“While we serve a wide variety of applications, automotive and fluid power is historically a significant portion of our business,” noted Ryan. “However, with COVID-19, there has been an increased demand for medical equipment solutions. It is part of our company’s core value system to prioritize health and safety, and we are always guided by a commitment to act as a responsible global organization. Our team has worked tirelessly to rapidly serve customers with medical application requirements, and I am proud to say that our products were used in critical applications around the world.”

With more than 5 billion parts installed and failure rates less than 1 PPM, SFC KOENIG components are recognized for unsurpassed reliability. This level of quality was an ideal fit for new medical designs and applications, in which performance was critical and operating conditions were often unique.

The company provides expander seals, check valves and flow restrictors for a wide variety of medical assemblies and devices including ventilators, respiratory devices, stretchers, hospital beds and more.

“Quality is at the core of everything we do at SFC KOENIG,” stated Ryan. “It’s in our products, the way we care for others, and how we do our jobs. Customers can continue to rely on our team and our parts for unrivaled excellence, and we look forward to working together to solve every new challenge.”

Wed, 03/18/2020

Changing requirements and on-going advancements in seals, check valves and flow restrictors.

Engine design is in the midst of a revolution. Battery-powered electric motors are replacing internal combustion engines, and support systems are adapting to new requirements. As 2020 marks the 50th anniversary of the KOENIG EXPANDER®, and the invention of the one-piece expansion seal design by the company, SFC KOENIG® is celebrating how engine and automotive design has progressed over the past five decades, and its role in innovations.

“Compared to 50 years ago, design and performance requirements are much more precise,” noted David Ramirez, Application Engineer at SFC KOENIG. “We are proud to have been involved in many significant advancements while maintaining the safety, reliability and engineering ingenuity customers expect from our products.”

In the past five decades, the number of systems viewed as “critical” has expanded. Braking applications and powertrains were often a focus. In contrast, modern designs and electric vehicles (EVs) have strict requirements for sealing and flow control products, which now serve critical roles in motor cases, transmissions, cooling systems and vehicle suspensions.

Installation reliability has always been a requirement. In the 1970’s production lines involved a number of manual operations. A seal or flow control product had to be correctly installed to prevent failure. With SFC KOENIG’s one-piece design, parts have always been easy to install, providing repeatable quality and dependable seating.

“Our expansion design securely installs and requires no chemicals or sealants,” stated Ramirez. “Components feature a serrated expansion sleeve that expands evenly into bore walls, permanently setting into the base material. There is minimal risk for the contamination and leakage common with commodity-type seals, like cup plugs and threaded screws, which are often-misaligned.”

To meet the needs of today’s operations, SFC KOENIG has adapted its part designs to easily integrate into high-speed and automated assembly lines. Without affecting reliability or effectiveness, parts have been modified making them easier to grab and position in robotic environments.

Parts also require no additional machining processes – such as threading, milling or honing – which not only eliminates manufacturing steps, but also keeps production lines free of debris.

Requirements on part positioning, performance and control have also increased for seals, flow restrictors and check valves since 1970.

“During installation, our parts are distance and force-controlled, have flexible tolerance allowances, and exert even pressures,” stated Ramirez. “That, combined with unrivaled part performance, provides precise flow control and a wide range of sealing capabilities for even highly-unique needs.”

While the company originally developed parts using various steels, lightweighting initiatives require new materials. The design of SFC KOENIG components effectively supports many composites as well as systems produced with additive manufacturing. In addition, aluminum components are now available, and the company is continually developing solutions for new materials, thin walls and complex geometries.

In the past, safety was commonly viewed by the performance of critical systems. SFC KOENIG has one of the industry’s best performance records, with field failure rates less than 1 PPM and over 5 billion parts installed.

As today’s EVs have a number of high-voltage and sensitive assemblies, seals now play a new safety role, preventing access to housings and fluid systems. SFC KOENIG components are tamper-proof and limit access by untrained users without significant, and visible damage, protecting people and preventing false warranty claims.

“At every stage of the industry and in so many innovations, SFC KOENIG parts are there,” noted Ramirez, “and we are actively working with some of the world’s largest manufacturers on cutting-edge designs. While our products and applications have advanced during the last 50 years, we remain committed to supporting customers with unrivaled performance, safety and reliability. We are excited for the future, and to be part of it.”