Reid Industrial Graphic Products can produce antimicrobial Graphic Overlays and Membrane Keypads, these products are suitable for environments where cleanliness is essential.
The material used is Autotex AM, which is a hardcoated Polyester that has a built-in Microban® antimicrobial protection that inhibits the growth of mold, mildew and bacteria.
The material can withstand harsh cleaning chemicals typically used in the medical industry.
Some applications where these products can be used include medical environments (Hospitals and Nursing Homes) and areas of high traffic (Shopping Centres, Airports, Hotels and Fitness Centres).
Badging Solutions. Domed Labels are a great way of branding your product. The ‘domed’ resin finish is extremely tough and enhances the printed image.
Some of the applications for these labels are:
Clubs (RSL Clubs, Surf Clubs, Sport Clubs)
Retailers
Service Station Chains
Hospitals and Health Care Industry
Fast Food Chains
Transportation (Airlines, Trains)
The features and benefits of Membrane Switches make them the most common construction for custom flexible Membrane Keypads.
When compared to costly electromechanical switch assemblies, Membrane Switches or Keypads stand out for a host of features and benefits:
Extremely thin construction saves the all-important design space
Cost, especially when compared to electromechanical switch assemblies
Low-profile surface is cleaned easily
An easy, one-piece, one-operation assembly
Offer a variety of design options
Design Options offered by Membrane Switches
Tactile and non-tactile with either Metal Domes, Polydomes or Capacitive
Pillow or rim-embossed custom Graphic Overlays
Embedded LED’s
Sealed Construction depending on custom designs with wide variety of adhesives.
Backlighting options; EL Electro Luminescence, Fiber Optic Mat, LED backlighting
Rigid backing can be added such as aluminum, PETG or acrylic
EMI/RFI and Antistatic shielding options
Graphic Overlays that can be digitally printed, screen printed, or a combination of both methods
The graphic overlays can incorporate transparent and tinted display windows, as well as selective textures these can also incorporate custom and corporate colours as needed.
Standard 2.54mm Nicomatic connectors or an array of ZIF connection options.
Chemical, Fire resistant, Stainless Steel Textured or Antimicrobial materials can be used.
Choice of adhesive is important when designing a Membrane Keypad. There are many factors to consider including material type and surface finish and the operating environment of the product.
Typical applications for Membrane Keypads use 3M 467, however, many different adhesives are available which meet a variety of application specifications.
- Adhesive options include:
- 3M 467 (standard applications) – For general industrial bonding between substrates and typical surfaces
- 3M 468 (double thickness 467) – For general industrial bonding that need a
slightly thicker adhesive than normal nameplates etc - 3M LSE (low surface energy applications) – Excellent bond to low surface energy
plastics, such as polypropylene, powder coatings or lightly oiled surfaces - 3M VHB (very high bond) – VHB adhesive is suited for when high bonding
strength is needed for industrial bonding with high shear or pull force
Of course with any adhesive that you may choose, the most important step to maintain
adhesive, is to ensure that the bonding surface has been thoroughly prepared by
cleaning and making sure it is dry and well unified. Typical cleaning solvents are Isopropyl alcohol/water mixture (rubbing alcohol) or Heptane.
At Reid Industrial Graphic Products, we offer various embossing and material options for your Graphic Overlays and Membrane Switches.
We have several methods including Rail Emboss, Pillow Emboss, Dome Emboss, Multi-Level Emboss, 3-Dimensional Lines and Text and Concave Emboss.
We have multiple machines capable of both Cold and Hot emboss, including our Projecon Hot Embossing machine.
As we face steep rises in electricity prices, managing energy use plays an increasingly important role in business operations. Aware of the rising costs and impact on the environment, we decided to engage Assurance Consulting to undertake an energy audit/assessment of our site. Our goal was to identify energy savings, but more importantly, reduce our carbon footprint. In an effort to do our part and contribute to preserving the environment any way that we can for future generations, we’ve made some changes to the business that we’re proud of.
The outcome of the audit was suggestions to make cost-effective recommendations. The on-site survey analysis indicated electrical usage data of 129,104 kWh per annum. The total electricity costs for this period came to a total of $46,019 with an average monthly spend of $3,835. Our site’s greenhouse gas emissions represented 102 tonnes of carbon dioxide released per year. Something had to be done.
By taking action and implementing the integrated recommendation, Assurance Consulting estimated Reid Industrial’s new annual electricity bill to be approximately $12,537, down from $46,019 for the first year – with the predicted savings increasing as future price rises occur. This involved replacing the majority of Reid Industrial’s existing lighting with high quality LED technology, implementation of an on-site generated renewable energy power source – solar panels. We’re excited about this change and reducing our Carbon Footprint.
By now most people know how great EL lamps can be, and how they can be utilised in almost any Membrane/Capacitive Switch design.
But what we don’t talk about often is the inverters used to power them.
Well there are two different types, SMD chip style inverters which are great for small compact designs where size really does matter. The second type are transformer based where there is more room in the design and a simple power solution is required.
The transformer based inverters are usually the most powerful type and can either be integrated into existing PCB design, or even plug and play where they simply get plugged into the el lamp and nothing more than a simple 9-12v DC power supply is needed.
Thinking that you need a large Inverter because your interface panel is quite large?
Think again, we design the lamps utilising only selective areas and use the latest ink technologies from the UK, the lamps are not running on high frequency and are long lasting. We supply to Aerospace, Automotive, Medical and Super Yauchts applications to name a few.
Our “best in class” El lamps are an easy option to include in any switch assembly where back-lighting is required.
If you need more details when planning your next project, just get in touch with one of our Product Specialists and we will have a workable solution for you in no time.