CMP Products is a UK-based manufacturer of cable glands, cable cleats and associated accessories.
With a global workforce of over 450 employees, the company has supplied into a wide range of industries, including transport, robotics and energy conveyance for over 65 years. In the last three to four decades, CMP Products used to rely on water-based cleaning for parts cleaning. However, satisfactory results did not materialize due to inconsistent cleaning performance and challenges of costs and water quality.
“We tried different aqueous cleaners over the years; however, we never really got our hands on anything that would actually take off the oils and give reliable results,” says Suresh Talwar, Senior Production Engineer at CMP Products. “After a period of time, there were always fluctuations. Sometimes, the cleaning results already varied after the second batch.”
However, that is precisely what is important in CMP’s customer industries. Fluctuations in the cleaning result are undesirable and can have serious consequences because the products are not only used in mechanical surroundings but also in the direct environment of people, for example, transportation projects, including London Underground and Paris Metro.
Another major concern is the maintenance of the aqueous cleaner. As contaminants and oils are encapsulated, washed off, and rinsed in water, unless there is a proper facility to treat the used water, it will have to be disposed of on a regular basis. Since water cleaning systems are very often not hermetically sealed systems, the evaporation losses must be monitored, measured, and compensated on a regular basis. This continuous addition of water-based cleaning agents to the cleaning machine required a lot of work and monetary expenditure and was, therefore, uneconomical.
So, the question arose: how can continuity in cleaning results be maintained in an efficient and cost-effective manner?
Dowclene 1601 Modified Alcohol: The Long-Awaited Solution
In 2017, CMP was looking to invest in a new cleaning machine. Despite the challenges they had, they were planning to stick with aqueous cleaning as they thought that water-based coolant used in the manufacture of their products could only be cleaned off with aqueous agents.
With support from Ecoclean, a leading equipment manufacturer for industrial parts cleaning and degreasing, CMP did some test runs with both a water-based cleaning machine and a solvent machine.
After several trials with different water-based cleaners, the results were still not satisfactory. However, when using the modified alcohol solvent Dowclene 1601 in Ecoclean’s machine model EcoCcore, Talwar was quickly convinced of the cleaning performance.
“We never looked back. There was simply no need to look for more alternatives. Dowclene 1601 has been as good as gold for us, and the implementation of the new solvent machine went without any problems or challenges from the very beginning,” Talwar explained.
Dowclene 1601 is a virgin-grade, high-performance modified alcohol solvent. Thanks to its lipophilic and hydrophilic properties, Dowclene 1601 can remove oils and greases just as effectively as certain polar contaminants like cooling emulsions or solids such as particles and abrasives. The solvent also has low toxicity and good biodegradability.
Process monitoring has become much easier as there is no need to observe surfactant and builder concentrations with solvent. “Besides, we were able to free up 10 hours a week of our operator time since they no longer have to clean the water-based tanks regularly,” reported Talwar.
The efficient recycling of Dowclene 1601, thanks to the machine’s distillation unit, enables consistently high cleaning quality, longer solvent lifespan, and lower lifecycle costs – while minimizing solvent residues in the waste stream.
At left, previous cleaning results with aqueous cleaners. At right, cleaning results with the modified alcohol solvent Dowclene 1601.
Added Value Through Customized Chemical Leasing Offering
The new machine plant was commissioned in February 2018, with a first fill of 1600L of Dowclene 1601. The delivery of the solvent in Safechem’s risk management tool, the Safe-Trainer System, ensures safe and sustainable transport, storage and handling of the solvent.
Because of the high stability and nature of the technology, both solvent and stabilizer consumption have been extremely low, meaning much less ongoing cost and environmental impact.
With the switch to Dowclene 1601, CMP also makes use of the innovative Complease Chemical Leasing offering from Safechem.
Instead of buying solvents, customers buy a comprehensive tailored performance package. The service bundle typically covers high-performance solvents, safe solvent delivery and collection of used solvents in the Safe-Trainer System, waste analysis, test kits, and stabilizers, as well as lab services, technical consultancy, and solvent training – all for a fixed monthly rate.
“Another burden is lifted off our shoulders. With Complease, we can order products and services with no hassle,” said Talwar. “And here again, we are on the theme of consistency. We know what we are going to spend in the next 12 months. That creates certainty.”
Visit www.safechem.com. Dowclene is a trademark of the Dow Chemical Company; Safe-Trainer and Complease are trademarks of Safechem.
