Building Trust Through Innovation in Materials Testing: LTI and Tinius Olsen’s Collaborative Journey

Introduction

In the world of materials testing, precision and reliability are paramount. Companies in high-stakes industries such as aerospace, nuclear, and additive manufacturing depend on advanced technology to meet rigorous standards.

Based outside of Philadelphia, PA, Laboratory Testing Inc. (LTI) has been at the forefront of materials testing for over 40 years, ensuring that its clients receive the highest level of accuracy and efficiency. Its long-standing relationship with Tinius Olsen has played a crucial role in fostering innovation, streamlining testing processes, and enhancing overall efficiency.

A Relationship Built on Collaboration

LTI’s partnership with Tinius Olsen is more than just a customer-supplier relationship — it is a dynamic collaboration. Over the years, LTI has provided valuable feedback to Tinius Olsen, influencing the development of new and improved testing systems.

As Mechanical Testing Manager Paul Szczepaniak from LTI shares, “Being part of the actual product development is an interesting experience. There’s a good back and forth between the companies, because we see what we need, and Tinius Olsen is always willing to accommodate.” (Figure 1)

This direct engagement has resulted in tailored materials testing solutions that address real-world challenges, allowing LTI to optimize its operations, while contributing to the continuous evolution of Tinius Olsen’s technology.

Supporting Industries Through Innovative Solutions

To maintain an industry leadership position in the diverse range of industries it serves, LTI relies on sophisticated test systems that seamlessly integrate into its workflows. Tinius Olsen’s Horizon test system has been a game-changer for LTI, providing a streamlined and customizable platform that enhances data acquisition and usability.

“The ability to use that system and have it constantly updated has been invaluable,” says LTI’s Mechanical Testing Coordinator, Nathan Moyer. “Even if we request a specific feature, unless it’s an extremely complex demand, they generally implement it within a day or two.” This level of responsiveness and agility sets Tinius Olsen apart from its competitors, ensuring that partners like LTI can maintain its competitive edge.

Efficiency and Innovation with Non-Contact Extensometry

In high-volume materials testing environments, efficiency is key. LTI has significantly enhanced its operations with Tinius Olsen’s Vector Extensometer, which eliminates the limitations of traditional contact extensometers. The digital extensometer integrates adaptive AI capabilities with optical hardware to reduce test throughput times and complexity, automating the process of capturing strain and improving measurement accuracy, data consistency and operator safety. (Figure 2)

“Since it is non-contact, we could continuously run sample after sample and never have to re-verify the calibration of the extensometer,” Nathan explains. “And because it gives us digital, data-driven materials test processing, we have access to synchronized data in real-time, with virtually no lag.”

These advancements have minimized downtime, reduced costs, and improved throughput. The combination of Tinius Olsen’s precision hardware and sophisticated software has enabled LTI to optimize its testing processes like never before.

Reliability: The Backbone of Testing Operations

In a fast-paced and demanding industry, equipment reliability is non-negotiable. At LTI, almost every mechanical testing process involves a Tinius Olsen test system, from universal testing systems (UTMs) and hardness testers to impact test systems and melt flow indexers. Tinius Olsen systems form the backbone of LTI’s daily operations. This level of reliability ensures that LTI can meet the high standards required by its clients, while maintaining operational efficiency.

Driving Industry Innovation Together

Beyond advanced and innovative system offerings, Tinius Olsen’s active participation in ASTM standardization efforts further underscores its commitment to industry advancement. Paul shares, “If I receive a request from a customer that falls outside normal scopes, I can reach out to them and say, ‘Here’s what I’m trying to do. What can we do?’” This open collaboration has led to the development of custom instruments and unique testing setups that cater to LTI’s specific needs.

Moreover, Tinius Olsen’s commitment to swift customer support ensures that LTI experiences minimal downtime. “We just had a long-standing system go down, and Tinius Olsen had us back up in three days, whereas with another company, it could have taken weeks,” Paul highlights.

Conclusion

LTI’s decades-long relationship with Tinius Olsen exemplifies what true collaboration in materials testing looks like. Through constant innovation, responsive customer support, and advanced technology, Tinius Olsen has not only helped LTI optimize its processes, but has also played a pivotal role in advancing the materials testing industry as a whole.

For companies looking for a trusted partner in materials testing, the success story of LTI and Tinius Olsen speaks volumes. When precision, efficiency, and reliability matter most, Tinius Olsen delivers solutions that stand the test of time.

Hear it direct. Check out this video from Nathan and Paul at LTI about their experience working with Tinius Olsen.

Challenge the Naysayers in Engineering Design

The engineering design field has witnessed a multitude of profound changes and emerging trends in the past decade with digital transformation in full swing. As companies harness available technologies and leverage design innovation and products to enhance business capabilities and customers’ experience, engineers are facing new and complex challenges to adapt processes and ensure product reliability.

This rapid growth of technology is reshaping the way engineers design and develop equipment as they look further into the future to ensure compliance for quality testing of products to meet both existing and evolving standards.

Thanks to this, the role of engineering redesign and quality testing has become more crucial than ever. And while some may think these new challenges merely pose stumbling blocks, we see them as ways to improve the role of materials testing across all applicable industries.

Maintain Design Integrity

Engineers are confronting more instances of solving design problems due to the rapid speed at which technology is advancing. For materials testing, this presents some unique challenges, as engineers also must meet specific industry standards for safety, quality and production requirements. There is a careful balance between the innovation happening within their production environments and the need to adhere to existing industry standards.

Lexi Patania, mechanical design engineer for Tinius Olsen, noted, “Some may believe that, with new technologies comes new machinery, and that is true to an extent. But many aspects of the development and testing process can be redesigned and adapted to meet new technical challenges.”

She goes on to explain, “There are often scenarios, where the dimensions of a specimen, or it’s expected force, may fall outside the range our normal test fixture accepts. That involves adapting the current fixture to meet the required dimensions and load capacity, as well as any other design constraints. We do a lot of that, but we’re also very involved with developing new designs to meet the growing complexities we see in our customers’ applications, while maintaining much of the existing test infrastructure.”

New Challenges Mean Opportunities

Patania explained a recent project for hardness testing, which typically uses a flat or v-anvil fixture when testing typical Rockwell specimens.

This particular application, though, involved a specimen with complex geometry and several different testing locations along its length and rotational axis, all of which needed support, directly through each of the test points. Because each test point had different geometric attributes, and the sample must be fixed when load is applied, the fixture needed to be adaptable in one linear and one rotational motion, and lock in place at all 16 positions.

She continued, “We were able to develop a fixture that tests 4 points, turns once to accommodate testing of the other 4 points, and is interchangeable with a similar fixture to obtain the remaining 8. This design requires minimal operator effort, pinpoints exact test locations, and provides the results needed across the entire specimen in a way that had not been done before. It’s exciting to solve these challenges for our customers.” Identifying and solving testing problems according to set industry standards is a large part of the innovation at Tinus Olsen. (Figure 1)

Consistency Ensures Reliability in Innovation

Standards are essential to fueling innovation as well as maintaining a level of confidence in products. The integrity of broad-based frameworks establishes accurate and workable principles for technology adoption and interoperability. The research and development (R&D) stage, especially, plays a key role in meeting the constant innovation of engineering as well as adjusting standards to meet changes.

As ASTM notes, testing standards provide guides for the proper procedures employed in the determination of the physical, mechanical and metallographic properties of certain materials…to allow metallurgical laboratories, manufacturers, and other producers…to examine and evaluate such materials for strength and quality to ensure safety towards their end-use.

Adopting Reengineered Solutions

The critical role that standards from organizations like ISO and ASTM play in the materials testing industry is undisputed. For decades, these standards have served as our barometer of product quality and customer assurance. Our next step as an industry is to facilitate the alignment of the standards with the engineering redesigns being developed that are solving the new challenges we are seeing in manufacturing and product testing. (Figure 2)

Engineering redesign has become more prevalent in the past few years as supply chain issues have grown more prominent. By practicing engineering redesign tactics, the industry can keep up with growing technologies, while still providing quality products to consumers. Have an engineering challenge you want us to take on? Check out our Service & Support page for your local contact.

New Extensometer Technology Facilitates Better Materials Testing

With tight timelines and even tighter budgets, the pressure to deliver high-caliber products has never been more important. In a world where quality and reliability can make or break a company’s reputation, cost-effective testing techniques that improve testing efficiency and benefit from modern technological advancements are the ones that will give R&D, engineers and test facilities a distinct advantage.

Since the standardization of extensometry in the 1950s, the use of an extensometer—a sophisticated ruler used to measure displacement or strain on the surface of a test piece—has not changed significantly. However, it has become evident that this testing methodology needed a boost to keep pace with modern applications, where other computing mechanisms have been built into materials testing systems.

Increased Test Efficiency

The introduction of new optical extensometer technology has made traditional, mechanical tools nearly obsolete. It uses intelligent non-contact, high-accuracy measurement techniques to eliminate the common challenges of traditional contacting and non-contact extensometers, while also offering some distinct advantages.

For those looking to take an easy, first step toward automating their existing materials testing process in order to maintain consistency in test performance, the new Vector Extensometer (Figure 1) reduces operator involvement, decreasing manual errors in calculation or calibration as well as simultaneously measure longitudinal and transverse strain.

This self-contained, plug-in-and-power-up precision system eliminates all the tricky and cumbersome set-up options associated with other optical extensometers and removes the need for multiple PCs and interface equipment.

Using adaptive Artificial Intelligence (AI) coupled with optical hardware, Vector reduces testing time and is ideal for complex environments, such as assessing extremely fragile specimens as well as small and non-uniform specimens, measuring strain through failure or operating in harsh or dimly lit applications.

Tackling Common Trouble Spots

For each trouble area that extensometry has encountered in the past, now there’s an easy solution.

Poor grip on a specimen? Vector is non-contact. Worn edges? No problem, Vector is laser-enabled. Improper length? It is compliant with ASTM E83. The need for manual calculation? Measurements are now computerized. Worried about accuracy and the possibility of improper data collection? AI-based capture eliminates that risk.

Vector addresses it all, clip sensitivity, dulled edges, physical marking, manual calibration fluctuation, non-uniform specimens, synchronized force and strain data. It delivers quality results in every test. (Figure 2)

Adoption and Usability

Setup is straightforward, so adding it to existing equipment is simple. And what is even better, there are no special skills required to run it. Everyone from new hires to company veterans can set up the machine and start running tests in no time.

Vector reduces risk because it is very hands off and streamlined, with processing power contained within the unit itself. Users don’t need a separate PC to process and manage the data. The system pre-processes it and sends direct to the main PC.

This cutting-edge technology is the very latest in digital extensometry, enabling synchronized force and strain data in real-time, with no lag.

Optimal ROI

This step-change in digital, data-driven materials test processing is seen across a wide range of industry sectors, with Vector meeting or exceeding ISO 9513 Class 0.5 and ASTM E83 Class B1 standards. Vector provides optimal overall ROI, thanks to its streamlined testing process, accurate results in every test scenario and the elimination of consumable parts that need replacement.

Accuracy, resolution, data rates, control, precise adherence to test standards, calibration, measurement of uncertainty and traceability – this new advancement in extensometry can handle them all.

To learn more about available Vector models and how new optical extensometer technology facilitates better materials testing, download our whitepaper Modern Extensometry for a Data-driven World.

Integrated Data Analysis Improves Efficiency in Materials Testing

You Will Learn How To:

Make data more actionable and accessible
Speed up testing and reporting capabilities
Ensure adherence to the latest industry standards
Facilitate better operational efficiencies

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By creating a holistic approach to material testing, intuitive software platforms are cohesively managing the complex data sets generated by today’s material testing equipment. Instead of siloed environments, comprehensive software suites are driving business value and operational efficiencies through greater visibility within test results.

A testing infrastructure that uses a modern software platform provides enhanced data analysis to enable critical insights, such as statistical analysis, trend identification and predictive modeling, as well as help improve how material properties and behavior are evaluated.

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This white paper reviews how Tinius Olsen’s user-friendly, universal Horizon material testing software platform improves overall manufacturing operations through shared data principles and advanced analytic capabilities. It also outlines the benefits of simplified reporting and an easy user interface to provide improved testing analysis and actionable intelligence.

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Automotive OEMs Improve Materials Testing ROI With In-house Infrastructure

Materials testing is an integral part of the automotive industry. It provides quality assurance by ensuring that vehicles, including all their components, are safe and reliable, while also meeting the regulatory standards required by the federal government. Although third-party testing centers are a popular choice among OEM suppliers, implementing an in-house materials testing system can quickly provide a better, and more significant, return on investment.

Recent Effects of Recalls and Safety Concerns

While maintaining profitability is a key area for the stability of any business, in automotive component manufacturing, trust among the consumer and the automakers themselves is worth more than its weight in gold. Recent years have seen an increase in high profile instances of recalls, defects and unsafe operating environments that have eroded consumer confidence, putting more emphasis on the value of a company’s reputation and ability to provide reliable, safe automotive systems. (Figure 1)

Sending parts out for third-party inspection and verification is one method of quality control, but more OEM suppliers are evaluating the benefits of an in-house materials testing system that affords them the opportunity to better manage yield and inventory, with speedy responses to production defects and better oversight of the actual production process.

Improving ROI and Consumer Confidence

Investing in an in-house materials testing system empowers OEMs to improve product quality, innovate effectively and maintain competitiveness in an industry that is not only extremely demanding, but also regulated by standards, including ISO, ASTM and ES. While the initial investment may seem higher than a weekly shipment to an off-site testing facility, the long-term savings can be substantial, with a return on investment seen quicker than one might think:

Reduction in Testing Costs: OEMs avoid immediate recurring costs, like testing fees, associated with hiring third-party testing services. Over time, in-house testing equipment reduces the cost and time associated with sending parts out for testing.
Faster Time-to-Market: An in-house infrastructure allows for rapid testing and prototyping, in turn creating faster product development cycles. OEMs can respond more rapidly to design changes or new requirements, reducing delays in the production process. Turn-around times are faster, too, since materials can be tested as needed.
Custom Testing Capabilities: Developing testing methods that specifically address unique materials and performance needs, like harness, metal and corrosion testing, means OEMs also have the ability to experiment with new materials and technologies that could lead to new and more innovative products. Continuous improvement is possible when testing in-house because it allows OEMs to focus on specific materials and processes, refining testing strategies over time while working to enhance product development and innovation.
Data Ownership: With better control over testing data, the analysis and integration OEMs can implement into the development process helps to improve product quality and performance. Software-based management tools, like Tinius Olsen’s Horizon platform, provides computer-assisted data acquisition and machine control that collects, analyzes, graphs and stores data. It can also provide control over testing operations. (Figure 2)

A Streamlined Process: In-house testing encourages collaboration between a variety of different departments, including testing, engineering, and production, to create a more efficient workflow as well as help avoid delays and scheduling conflicts that often happen when using an outside testing facility.
Quality Control: Maintaining consistency and direct oversight of the testing process and protocols ensure that testing standards are adhered to, an important factor in the automotive industry. This leads to higher quality materials and components with fewer defects and recalls, which significantly impacts profitability. It also can lead to longer-lasting components and parts, which improves a brand’s reputation and customer satisfaction, translating into increased sales.
Ease in Scalability: Today’s materials testing systems are designed to scale with the needs of an OEM quickly and efficiently. This allows manufacturers to accommodate increased testing and production demands without a significant increase in cost. Some systems even perform multiple test scenarios within the same compact system footprint.

Before you look to invest in an in-house testing system, take stock of your most critical testing parameters. Equipment, like the Tinius Olsen universal testing machines, are designed to perform quality control tests on raw materials, like metals, polymers, textiles, rubbers and adhesives. A horizontal tensile testing machine tests for tensile strength, along with elastic modulus and corrosion resistance, in materials like alloys, composites and plastics and an indentation hardness materials testing machine can quickly and accurately determine the hardness value of metals, components, large parts and small precision parts used in cars. (Figure 3)

While the upfront costs of purchasing materials testing machines can seem overwhelming, the benefits and long-term advantages, including greater quality control, speed, flexibility, customization and security, align closely with an OEM’s goals of quality, efficiency and innovation. This can lead to a more favorable ROI in the long run and helps maintain a competitive advantage in this demanding industry.

Two Test Systems, One Software Platform

Technology innovations in materials testing aren’t just providing better data analytics, they are also providing improved testing efficiencies. In an industry predicated on long-standing industry standards that dictate the parameters of test results—including precision, repeatability and accuracy—we’re still finding ways and opportunities to improve testing efficiency across the industry and focus on improvements, where it makes sense.

Because the standards themselves don’t change much from year to year, we can seek other methods of process improvement. Digitizing test information using updated tools, like enhanced software packages, has allowed users to collect, manipulate, analyze, graph and store data in ways that previously were just not feasible. This ability to make testing data more actionable gives us deeper insights into our materials testing operations.

Streamlined Process Through Software Advancement

Prior to the use of intuitive software platforms, a computer system was typically needed for each testing set up. That also meant space was needed for each machine, test system, etc. Moving data analysis into a streamlined software process not only helps move our industry forward, but it’s also transforming how we can do things with better data insights and more efficient reporting, while enabling a smaller test system footprint on the testing floor. (Figure 1)

Fig. 1: Advancements in software platforms are providing a more holistic materials testing environment that both improves production and saves floor space within a facility.

Where space is at a premium, like in a lab where there is already quite a bit of existing infrastructure and the constant need to upgrade, with limited space to do so, materials testing software has completely changed how things are done. In the case of Horizon software from Tinius Olsen, there’s more than just space-saving benefits; it has the ability to manage both the test procedures and the automation, making data easily accessible, for everything ranging from R&D to charging and analysis functions of QC testing.

A Gamechanger On the Testing Floor

A recent application at a global polymer matrix composite manufacturer put Horizon’s capabilities to the test. An automated materials testing system using the software was built so that two independent automated tests – tensile (ASTM D638) and flexure (ASTM D790) – ran simultaneously on the same machine. The reduced scale of the system in footprint alone enabled a more efficient testing environment, and the physical assembly was complemented by enhanced digital data exchange across internal processes, which included a bar code led data flow, customized results, alerts and system status. (Figure 2)

Fig. 2: Running one software platform across multiple test environments can reduce the materials testing footprint needed, especially critical for upgrades in existing facilities.

Key to this testing set up is the robotic arm, which accesses the specimen rack and test frame for both machines, all running on a single Horizon software platform. Through just one automation cell, the two tests are performed, streamlining data, reducing latency and improving materials testing results.

Overall Operations Improved

Whether you’re controlling and gathering data from multiple melt indexers, hydraulic tensile testing machines, or electromechanical testing machines that are performing tensile, compression, flexural, tear, peel or other tests, Horizon can run all the tests and gather all the information in one place. In addition, the software features a recall function that enables you to add key data that is either not available or missed. All digital data is streamlined and easily accessible.

Once all data has been gathered, the software’s result editor and output editor can consolidate all data that has been generated into customizable reports, depending on what type of analysis you or your customers may need. Multiple graph types can be applied per test, like stress vs. strain, or load vs. time, and reports can be distributed across one PC, multiple PCs, or across a network for easy multi-team access, keeping everyone on the same page. (Figure 3)

Fig. 3: Intuitive software platforms, like Horizon from Tinius Olsen, enable streamlined data processing and more advanced results and analysis.

Confidence In Your Testing Methodology

If your testing regime follows a quality control analysis to a variety of international standards, be sure your software includes a built-in test method library built that enables you to select test methods that have been written in accordance with your applicable industry and international test standards.

The ability to customize the test setup using a standard as a template and a configurable database that facilitates sharing across several computers on a company’s network are also important aspects to consider, as this will allow the testing programs and testing data to be used by multiple systems.

As part of the software’s development process, Tinius Olsen took the best features of its existing software, including Test Navigator, QMat and EP600, added a host of report writing and data manipulation capabilities and created Horizon, now one of the most advanced software platforms for materials testing.

As we move forward as an industry, we should continue to develop the means to innovate the materials testing process by focusing not only on testing machines, but on the holistic process of our testing environments.