Which is better: welding, mechanical fixings, or adhesives? At CTA, we get asked these kinds of questions a lot, so now we've put together a helpful reference chart to show the advantages of bonding methods at a glance and explain how you can be sure that a structural adhesive will be strong enough to replace welding or mechanical fixing:
To download a high-res PDF version of this comparison chart, visit our website.
Do any of the above results surprise you?
Thousands of industries are choosing high-performance structural acrylic adhesives and replacing standard joining methods such as welding and mechanical fasteners like rivets or bolts, and we agree with them. Performance and economic drivers are compelling users to let go of old methods, which are costly solutions, and swap them for the less expensive and more advantageous options of adhesive bonding.
1. Structural adhesives cut manufacturing costs by reducing the number of mechanical fasteners, spot welds and filler metal required to create a joint or attach two substrates.
2. Adhesives are generally hidden between two substrates, which can offer aesthetic improvements over welding and mechanical fasteners.
3. An adhesive bonded joint results in a smooth, clean surface, which requires minimal surface preparation prior to final finishing. Therefore, manufacturers can eliminate labour-intensive finishing costs, such as sanding off imperfections from spot welding.
4. Adhesives can be pre-applied to parts otherwise inaccessible to mechanical fastening or welding during the assembly process.
5. Welding or installing mechanical fasteners is generally more time-consuming compared to using a structural adhesive.
6. Structural adhesives excel in joining dissimilar substrates and materials with different thicknesses - adhesives compensate for the differences in expansion and contraction in dissimilar materials.
7. High performance structural adhesives can form resilient bonds and maintain strength over a wide range of temperatures.
8. Adhesives have the ability to eliminate stress concentration caused by spot welds, rivers, screws, and other mechanical fasteners, while maintaining surface integrity. Where as a rivet or screw hole in a substrate concentrates the stress at the hole, which can potentially decrease the physical properties of the substrate, adhesives spread the load over the entire bonded area.
9. Using structural adhesives can reduce the weight of a finished product or structure because fewer welding metals and mechanical fasteners are used. Additionally, manufacturers can use thinner, lighter materials without concerns of distortion, splitting, or crazing at the mechanically fastened site, or reduce the chance of rust and corrosion of the metals.
10. Structural adhesives have the ability to maintain the integrity of the bonded materials because there is no metal distortion or weakening due to heat when using adhesives. Structural adhesives increase the stiffness of structures and provide the necessary fatigue and force resistance.
contact us. We have a fantastic range of high performance structural adhesives specifically for product assembly application.