BYK Instruments
BYK is one of the world’s leading suppliers in the additives and instruments sector. BYK instruments provide Innovative system solutions for the quality control of color, appearance and physical properties. Contact Us to Learn More about BYK
Appearance Measurement
Uniform appearance is an important quality criterion of multi-component products which are made by various suppliers. The appearance of opaque products is described by terms such as gloss, distinctness of image, orange peel, haze and mottling, while transparent materials are characterized by their transmission properties being total transmittance, transmission haze and clarity. BYK-Gardner offers objective measurement solutions to guarantee reliable quality control:
– Portable gloss meters to test surface reflection
– Orange peel and DOI meters for waviness and brilliance control
– Mottling meter to evaluate mottling of effect finishes
– Haze meters to control transmission properties
Color Measurement
Color harmony has a major influence on the impact of perceptual quality on a product and thus, plays a key role in the purchasing decision. For objective color control solid colors are measured by single angle spectrophotometers whereas effect finishes require multi-angle spectrophotometers that simulate different viewing angles and lighting conditions. For visual color assessment use of a light booth allows to see what the product will look like under different lighting conditions in a controlled environment. Color of transparent liquids can quickly be evaluated with visual color comparators or objectively measured by reliable spectrophotometers.
Dry Coatings & Plastic Testing
Instrumentation to evaluate the physical properties of dry paint film is included in this category. Equipment to test for abrasion resistance, adhesion, flexibility, coating thickness, hardness, drying time, water permeability and impact resistance is available. Microscopes available from BYK-Gardner are part of this section. The impact testers for impact resistance of plastic materials are also included.
Film Application
To properly evaluate coatings and inks tools are needed to drawdown a wet film onto a consist substrate. BYK-Gardner offers a large selection of applicator bars, frames, and wire-wound rods. To improve the consistency of a drawdown several automatic film applicators are available. For a consistent substrate, our byko-chart line of drawdown cards are listed to check for opacity, color, gloss, and film properties. Specialty substrates like black glass and accessory items that include vacuum plates and pumps are available. Applicator bars to assess sag and leveling properties are in this category.
Liquid Paint & Coatings testing
A diverse line of instrumentation to test the physical properties of liquid coatings is described. A wide selection of viscosity measurement devices from flow cups to rotational viscometers is available. The wet film thickness, conductivity, and density measuring equipment are in this category. During the pigment dispersing process BYK-Gardner offers grindometers to check the fines of grind. In North America, BYK-Gardner markets a complete line of laboratory and pilot plant size dispersers.
Temperature Measurement
The temp-gard is a temperature measurement data logger that tracks the temperature variation of a drying oven. A painted product is sent through the oven in a continuous process. The temperature data logger is sent through the oven in the same manner to profile and record the temperature changes. The temperature profile is downloaded to the temp-chart 2 software for a comprehensive evaluation of the oven conditions. The software determines if the paint is fully cured.