BCI Customer Testimonials
Dyersville Die Cast
Dyersville Die Cast specializes in custom aluminum and zinc die cast manufacturing. Their priority is making quality American made parts and delivering them on time. In 2018, they added a new, six-stage wash system to keep up with demand. During this process, they were facing challenges passing 1,000-hour salt spray on 383 aluminum castings so they decided to take a look at their pretreatment system.
“We were in a bind. BCI came in and introduced their chemistry recommendations specializing in aluminum castings,” said Jesse Peters, Paint Line Manager for Dyersville Die Cast. “We immediately ran parts on 383 alloy and tested to well beyond 1,000 hours. Once they passed, we began testing our other alloy castings. Before BCI’s products, we would pass 2,000-hour salt spray on 413 aluminum castings. With BCI’s products in use, we were able to surpass 5,600-hours of salt spray testing on 413 aluminum castings. Our productivity increased by 35% due to not shot blasting before cleaning,” Peters said.
Dyersville’s six-stage wash system consists of Bulk Kleen™ 835A and Bulk Kleen™ 640LF, which effectively remove hard to clean mold release agents used during the die casting process. The E-CLPS® 916 and 930 pretreatment process helps achieve their salt spray requirements. BCI’s chemicals clean and pretreat the castings, saving both time and labor, which in turn, saves them money.
“We’re able to produce more product, and able to paint on one shift instead of two,” Peters said.
“It’s a great partnership,” said Emily Clark, BCI’s technical service representative for Dyersville Die Cast. “It’s nice to offer customers quality products that create a solution.
Wirerope Works
In today’s volatile industrial climate, companies come and go, and not every company remains in business for decades. And it is almost unheard of for two companies to have a four-decade collaboration, as is the case with Bulk Chemicals, Inc. and Wirerope Works in Williamsport, PA.
“We’ve been using Bulk Chemicals’ products exclusively for 40 years,” said Eric Holzapfel, Production Supervisor for Wirerope Works. “When times were tough and business was down, Bulk Chemicals has always been there for us in every way. We’ve always looked out for one another,” Holzapfel said.
Wirerope Works, Inc. has a long history, dating back to 1886. Over the past 100 years, they have evolved from a local wire rope mill to a fully integrated wire and wire rope manufacturer recognized internationally for its craftsmanship, innovation, and performance.
Over the years, Wirerope Works has used a number BCI of products, but they currently use Bulk Draw® 480RLX, Bulk Neutralizer™ 14, Bulk Heat Seal Layer™ 42, Bulk Phos™ 1, and Bulk Draw® ZAP. In some cases, BCI has created and tweaked products exclusively for Wirerope’s needs. “BCI has never stopped improving their products. They always stay one step ahead,” he said. “We have never had a delay in production because of a Bulk product not performing, and that alone is why we would never switch to anyone else’s products.
“We have an annual review with BCI, where we go over everything: costs, product use, energy use, recommendations for products, or anything that comes up. Because 2020 was a challenging year, and we were unable to meet in person, Brian Korecky, our technical sales representative, still managed to stay in touch regularly and meet up so we can drop off samples for testing,” Holzapfel said.
Wirerope Works has also taken full advantage of the lab services BCI offers. “BCI’s lab services have done testing on other products when we’ve asked. They’ve also provided training for our operators on how to do in-house testing,” Holzapfel said. “BCI always goes above and beyond. It’s truly been a pleasure working with everyone, and a terrific collaboration that’s lasted for decades.”
Awning Factory
Daniel Gendron had no idea that walking into the Powder Coating Institute’s annual conference in February 2020 would change the direction of his company. Gendron, the owner of The Awning Factory in Orlando, FL, was introduced to John Anderson and Paul Umfer of Bulk Chemicals, Inc. (BCI), and the rest, as they say, is history.
“I was looking to start my own paint line in-house, and with the help of John, Paul, and Bulk Chemicals, we were able to build the 4-stage immersion line, and by May of 2020, we were up and running,” Gendron said. “They helped me with the homework, and we built it the right way from the start,” he said.
Gendron worked closely with BCI to identify the chemicals needed to ensure a quality immersion system, and determined Bulk Kleen® 690, an industrial metal cleaner and E-CLPS® 2100HD, a chrome-free pretreatment for multi-metal substrates, were ideal for the line. Together, they designed the tanks to create a vortex, which increases circulation and pushes and pulls solutions.
“I knew that I wanted to move to an immersion system. I know that every part that comes out of the wash is 110% perfect,” Gendron said. “My employees are more inclined to meet and exceed production because everything is done correctly the first time, it’s automated with conveyor belts and remote controls. BCI provided resources and training to me and my employees, which is extremely valuable. Their customer service is top notch,” Gendron said.
The Awning Factory’s forecast for 2021 is promising. “We’ve never quoted so much work or had jobs so big,” Gendron said. “If you have a project for us, let’s get it on the books now, or you may have to wait. It’s a good problem to have.”
Fairlawn Tool
When Fairlawn Tool Inc., in Westminster, MD, ran into a problem with their 3-stage wash system on their automated powder coating line, they called in Bulk Chemicals, Inc. for a solution.
“The biggest benefit of using BCI was a solution to our washing problem; however, the continued support to make sure things continue working well is very much appreciated,” said Steve Mitchell, FTI’s General Manager. “Their customer service is definitely a strength.”
BCI recommended the products Bulk Kleen® 842HP and E-CLPS® 1700, which eliminated the need to rewash or recoat during production runs. Additionally, by not flushing the full system as frequently has FTI using less chemicals, and they’ve saved money by reducing rework.
“Introducing these BCI chemicals enabled FTI to clean heavy mill oils off their parts using less product and applying an environmentally safe dry-in-place pretreatment. The combination boosted production by eliminating 99% of failures and rework,” said Brian Korecky, BCI Technical Sales & Service Representative.
“We no longer have water break issues, and parts are consistently clean and ready to coat,” Mitchell said. “Our downtime for maintenance on the system has been greatly reduced,” he added.
Mitchell said he and Korecky have developed a great working relationship. “Their customer service is excellent. Brian is very responsive and proactively stays in contact. Routine visits to make sure things are working well, reports on findings and recommendations are all an added benefit to using BCI,” Mitchell added.