SPRING 2021

112 THE DISTRIBUTOR’S

112 THE DISTRIBUTOR’S LINK LARRY BOROWSKI MEASUREMENT OF NON-STANDARD FASTENERS from page 30 Much of the standard inspection equipment in the marketplace can be used to inspect these non-standard heads, even though the end resultant is different than the standard. For example, an undercut flat head screw can still be measured on a protrusion head height gage to obtain a value to the new protrusion head height value. Most of the time, heads are a feature that can be measured with many different tools that are considered to be multi-functional, such as micrometers, calipers, optical comparators, indicator stands, Height gages, etc. Optical comparators are probably the most versatile piece of inspection equipment used to measure specialty fasteners, simply because there are many options for magnification, work holding, transparent overlays, as well as surface illumination. Measurement of Special Drives Non-Standard recesses or drives often give inspectors problems. Again, this can range from a modified drive to a purposely designed special drive. The majority of the time, these require special tooling because we are not only checking the profile, but also checking the depth. A combination drive is a good example that can be found in some standards. Many times these are standard recesses with a slot placed in them. It works great for serviceability, but confuses many inspectors. As an example, it cannot be expected for a cross recess combined with a slot to pass a wobble test. This is because the slot removes most of the material related to that test. Nor can it be expected that the slot be dimensionally accurate across the entire length, as it is missing most of its material over the central portion of the drive. As a gage designer/manufacturer, we get plenty of requests for special recess gaging, whether it be a special size to accommodate a “pre-plate” condition or a special configuration containing multiple drive shapes, or multiple drive levels. The criteria may be orientation of shapes, depth of the shapes, or size of the shapes either individually or collectively. CONTINUED ON PAGE 148

SEMS AND SPECIALS INC OUR EMPLOYEES MAKE THE DIFFERENCE THE DISTRIBUTOR’S LINK 113 6483 Falcon Road, Rockford, IL 61109 TEL 1-800-888-7367 FAX 815-874-0100 EMAIL sales@semsandspecials.com WEB www.semsandspecials.com Since our early beginnings 30 years ago, our employees have always been our greatest asset. Sems and Specials has grown from one employee in 1990 to over 90 employees today. In March of 2020, Covid-19 impacted our working environment. Our greatest concern was and still remains the health and safety of our employees. We immediately developed new environmental policies and procedures to protect our employees. In May of 2020, we were given the opportunity to produce several million brass machine screws to Ford Motor Company BUSINESS FOCUS ARTICLE to build 60,000 GE/Airon Model A-E ventilators. Our employees accepted the challenge and delivered parts in less than 3 weeks. Having the will and perseverance and practicing safe work habits, we were able to maintain our level of service during those trying times. Fast forward to today; even with the recent demands caused by the global sourcing issues, we have been able to support our all of our customers with the same service we provided prior to Covid 19. At Sems and Specials “it’s our employees that make the difference!“ SEMS AND SPECIALS