A Chance To Shine

Quasar International Inc. may be on the path to becoming a star.

Its recent acquisition by Illinois Tool Works Inc. should provide Quasar, of Albuquerque, NM, a chance to shine in the field of non-destructive testing (NDT), says Quasar President Jim Schwarz.

“We're a small company, inconsequential, really, in the NDT field,” Schwarz says in an interview. “This gives us credibility. When a major player (such as ITW) identifies you, it shows you have credibility.”

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Quasar will be linked with ITW's Magnaflux division, a leading supplier of magnetic-particle and dye-penetrant equipment used in NDT, while still operating as a separate entity within ITW.

“Magnaflux is the name in NDT — they go back 80 years. It's like Kleenex is to tissue,” Schwarz says, adding that ITW initiated the acquisition talks because it “wanted to get into the 21st century” when it comes to testing technology.

Specifically, what ITW wanted is Quasar's expertise in a field it has invented: process compensated resonant testing (PCRT).

Resonance testing isn't new. For years the sound-measuring methodology has been used to determine whether parts meet quality specifications.

When a part is “excited,” via an electrical charge, it generates a unique sound, with a defective part audibly different than a component that meets specifications.

What's different about PCRT is that the testing doesn't just detect routine defects, it also accounts for variations that occur in the manufacturing process. That means Quasar's processes can root out problems normal NDT can't, while also reducing the number of unnecessary rejects and scrap.

A part that is slightly thicker than normal may resonate differently but not be defective, for example. Quasar's testing will compensate for that; traditional NDT won't.

The testing systems, which evolved from Los Alamos National Laboratory, also lower overall testing costs by a factor of between three and 10, Quasar says. So far the biggest hurdle to penetrating the market has been convincing auto makers and suppliers to buy into the new process.

“People have a level of comfort (with existing technologies),” Schwarz admits. “Generally, (a manufacturer) has to be in a crisis situation (to make a process change). But you still have to have people whose response is to stand up and lead, not hide under their desk. This (acquisition by ITW) means we'll be able to reach people who have the authority to make changes.”

Efforts to prove out PCRT with customers began in the late 1990s. Today, Quasar says its equipment and software is used to test 150 million parts per year.

A big chunk of that involves one supplier's operation in Mexico that produces 21 million rocker arms annually for use in General Motors Corp. engines.

Prior to adopting Quasar methods, the plant's x-ray-based quality controls failed to corral three defective parts out of every million parts produced, equivalent to about 60 failures in vehicles every year.

After 18 months in use, the Mexican operation has had zero failures in the field. The supplier was able to eliminate two magnetic particle tests, cut visual part inspections from five to two and eliminate half of all x-ray inspections. The result was a cost savings of 22 cents per part, making the payoff for the $180,000 investment 812,030 components, or less than four months' output, Quasar says.

Quasar points to similar results with other programs, including one involving a supplier producing 1.8 million cast aluminum rear knuckles annually.

Schwarz will stay on at Quasar as manager of a business unit within ITW. Quasar Chairman Robert Nath will serve as the company's official liaison to OE and Tier 1 supplier customers.