News from the IFO

Schwäbisch Gmünd / Aalen

The Institute for Surface Technology (IFO) donated 1,000 euros to the ‘Segeltaxi’ charity campaign. Its organiser, Lothar Schiele from Aalen, was invited to the IFO for the official cheque presentation and met with Managing Partner Michael Müller and senior staff members.

Co-owner Michael Müller volunteers with his family at Segeltaxi and therefore has a first-hand insight into the charity campaign, which has been supporting sick children and their families since 2009.

The idea originated with Hannes Schiele, who died of leukaemia at the age of 9½. It is now supported by 12 clubs and organisations from across the Ostalbkreis district. Since 2012, the donations have been used for their own project, „Segeltaxi – Familien aufs Boot“. This enables several families with sick children to enjoy a leisurely sailing trip under educational supervision. 100 per cent of all donations go directly to the supported projects.

Lothar Schiele is delighted with the generous donation from the IFO, as the next ‘Families on a Boat’ trip is due to take place soon and the money will be put to very good use there. In August, 23 guests, accompanied by three carers, will spend a week sailing on Lake Brombach. Another highlight in 2016 is the lecture event on 3 November at Aalen University. Arved Fuchs, adventurer, environmental researcher and ‘Sailing Taxi’ patron, will talk about his 35 years of experience in Greenland. Advance ticket sales have already got off to a promising start.

Further information is available at www.segeltaxi.com Advance ticket sales www.voice-es.de

Donation account IBAN DE 18 614 500 50 100 009 0710 KSK Ostalb, reference: Segeltaxi

New managing director for the Ifo Institute’s co-leadership structure. Marc Holz is to succeed managing director Hans Pfeifer.

The current Head of the Expert Services, Research and Development Division will be appointed to the Executive Board with effect from 1 August 2016 and, together with Michael Müller, co-founder and managing partner of Ifo, will take over the management of the globally active testing institute. Marc Holz, who holds a degree in chemistry, will thus succeed Hans Pfeifer, who has stepped down from the management of the institute due to reaching retirement age.

„I am very much looking forward to my new responsibilities,“ said Marc Holz. „I am excited about working with my colleague Michael Müller and our staff to further develop and advance our unique network of services for surface technology companies.“

Together with its sister company, Qubus – Planung und Beratung Oberflächentechnik GmbH, and its offices in Dubai, China and the Netherlands, the Ifo – Institut für Oberflächentechnik provides services to surface technology companies worldwide. More than 80 qualified engineers and technicians work in the fields of inspections, certification, expert reports, contract research, laboratory services, plant and factory planning, environmental law and management systems.

In mid-May, QUALISINO, the Chinese quality association specialising in quality assurance for surface finishing processes, visited the Ifo – Institut für Oberflächentechnik GmbH in Schwäbisch Gmünd.
For several years now, the Ifo has been operating a testing laboratory in the Hangzhou region of China. There, it ensures the quality of surface-treated aluminium products that are exported from China to markets worldwide. The five-member delegation has now gained an overview of the services offered at the German site of this independent testing institute.
The engineers at this laboratory service provider work here and around the world in accordance with recognised testing and quality standards, and document production processes and the quality of the components produced on site. This impartial monitoring ensures that companies maintain consistent standards, which are verified by quality marks and certifications.
During his visit, Mr Pan, the quality manager at Guang Ya Aluminium, highlighted the excellent cooperation and expertise fostered by the Ifo Institute locally in China. The Institut für Oberflächentechnik GmbH has been active in China since the late 1990s. Mr Michael Müller, Managing Director of Ifo GmbH, reports on continuous growth and a shift in Chinese mass production towards quality-oriented manufacturing. This is expected to open up further business areas in the future in which the institute will operate with its services.

IFO – Institut für Oberflächentechnik GmbH is expanding its premises with a further extension.

Following the completion of the first extension – comprising a modern corrosion laboratory and a pilot electroplating facility – at the end of 2013, the company’s second structural expansion, the Technical Centre 2, is now due to be completed in 2016. To this end, a modern technical annex with a floor area of 400 m² is being added to the south side of the building in the Gmünd West Technology Park. By the end of the year, Technikum 2 will house new laboratories for determining residual contamination on components, coating tests for gas and oil pipelines, corrosion tests and climatic tests. Walk-in climatic test chambers will be provided specifically to accommodate the testing of larger components and assemblies.

In addition to testing coated components, the construction project will also expand the industrial research and expert assessment division. New laboratory spaces are also being created in the extension for this division. In particular, industry-oriented research into process and product development, carried out in collaboration with process suppliers and contract manufacturers, has enjoyed strong growth in recent years. Construction is scheduled to begin in early summer. The entire new building is due to be completed by the end of 2016.

Following the example of Technical Centre 1 (on the right), which opened in 2013, a further wing with new laboratories is now to be built on the left-hand side of the main building.

The 6th Qualisino Meeting took place in China from 27 to 28 October, in collaboration with the IFO Institute for Surface Technology GmbH. Qualisino is the general licensee for the international quality marks Qualicoat (powder coating of aluminium in the architectural sector) and Qualanod (anodising) in China. More than 150 people took part in the two-day workshop, which was held in Foshan, the centre of the aluminium processing industry in southern China.

Riccardo Boi, Technical Director of Qualicoat, and Michael Müller, Managing Director of IFO Institut für Oberflächentechnik GmbH, reported on the latest technical developments relating to quality marks. Further specialist presentations on powder coating and anodising rounded off the event. In China, too, there was particular interest in the topic of chromium-free pre-treatment. According to Ms Li, Managing Director of Qualisino, 45 Qualicoat-licensed companies in China are already using alternative pre-treatment systems.

Our annual summer party is a traditional affair, featuring a barbecue, music and a tribute to those celebrating work anniversaries. This summer event is very popular with our staff and their families, as well as our business partners. At our company party, private conversations sometimes take place, as our staff are able to relax and chat freely with one another whilst the children enjoy the highlight of the summer party.

Smiling faces, a lively atmosphere and a positive vibe amongst the staff send a clear message: at Qubus and IFO, everything clicks – both professionally and on a personal level.

The audit carried out by the German Accreditation Body GmbH (DAkks) on 20 and 21 April 2015 as part of the re-accreditation process was successfully completed.

This confirms that Institut für Oberflächentechnik GmbH continues to possess a high level of technical expertise in carrying out the tests.

The relevant certificate has already been issued and is available in the downloads section.

Under DIN EN 1090, all metal fabrication companies that manufacture load-bearing components from steel and aluminium must have been certified since 1 July 2014. Corrosion protection plays a crucial role in a metal fabricator’s quality assurance. The quality of the corrosion protection must also be assured.

As a neutral and independent body, the IFO Institute for Surface Technology GmbH offers a monitoring service for coating companies, which certifies compliance with DIN EN 1090. This can also be carried out in conjunction with existing quality marks.

Certification of compliance with DIN EN 1090 ensures your competitiveness.

If you have any further questions, please contact:

Ute Brunner-Bäurle

Accredited and notified certification body No.: 2458

brunner-baeurle@ifo-gmbh.de

Mr Marc Holz, a graduate in chemistry, has been appointed as a publicly recognised and sworn expert by the Ostwürttemberg Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK) in the field of corrosion and surface protection through coatings, particularly for metals, fibre-reinforced composites and plastics. Mr Holz has been working at the IFO Institute for Surface Technology GmbH for many years, where he is Head of the Department for Expert Services, Research and Development.

The Institut für Oberflächentechnik GmbH has recently started offering a fruit acid resistance test in accordance with DIN 8985. This standard sets out surface testing procedures for the external and internal surfaces of ready-to-connect refrigerators and freezers. Surfaces and coatings that come into contact with food are subject to specific requirements. Corrosion processes can damage the surface or coating to such an extent that food residues become trapped, leading to hygiene issues. The chemical resistance test using a fruit acid solution demonstrates whether the corrosion protection is adequate and whether the visual appearance remains unaffected.

If you have any further questions or are interested in other testing procedures, please do get in touch. We’ll be happy to help.

Your contact: Dr Benjamin Papendorf | Head of Laboratory | papendorf[at]ifo-gmbh.de