Different Ways to Use Environmental Chambers

Environmental chambers are used by many industries to help design the perfect products or confirm safety and compliance for ones that are slated to be mass-produced. For almost seven decades now, these chambers have been used to test all types of products from massive aerospace components to everyday consumer packaged goods.

Environmental chambers are an investment both monetarily and time-wise. Sometimes, companies may look to invest in a used chamber rather than a new one for cost savings. If you are going to move forward with any type of used equipment, do so with caution. You would definitely want to have it thoroughly inspected as your customers will be counting on you.  The control systems the most quickly.

Consider the time savings of having a modern reliable controller

1) Reducing the chances of a runaway condition

2) Reducing time investment required using a temperature controller with modern automation 

Features such as:

• Ramp/dwell profiling
• Advanced device temperature monitoring/control
• Logging
• Remote computer access to controller
• Networking features such as email/text alerts and cloud storage of profiles/test data

So, why are using these so necessary for a lot of organizations? It can be very expensive, and dangerous for that matter if products are not rigorously tested in realistic environmental conditions. The reactions to various types of conditions provide key data for further development, tweaks, and finalization before these products hit the market.

Though a multitude of products is tested in environmental chambers daily, there are three main ways in which these chambers are used:

1. Reliability Evaluation
2. Disintegration Timing
3. Material Reactions

Reliability Evaluation

Chambers are often designed to have a variety of conditions they can emulate in a realistic manner to test how reliable the product will be. This testing can expose flaws in how the product is manufactured. Identifying weaknesses right out of the gate can save a great deal of capital in the end. As each tweak is made, the product can be re-tested until any flaws are eliminated.

Disintegration Timing

Environmental chambers can be used not only to test how strong a product is but also how long it takes to be destroyed. By raising the intensity of certain conditions like humidity or temperature, researchers can determine what the lifespan of the product is before it begins to deteriorate. These extreme conditions are certainly ones in which you would not want to try out a new product for the first time in real life.

Material Reactions

Understanding how not only your product reacts to various environmental factors, but also how its individual material components react may be key to its success. The chamber does not only have to test a completed project. It can test products in merely the design phase, or can even be used singularly for research purposes. Finding the sturdiest materials to build it from the ground up can help create a consistent and trustworthy product.

Environmental chambers come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and prices – from ones that are put a large vehicle in down to small table-top devices. There are even hand-held devices that can be transported easily for those who need to do testing on the go. They all are constructed to have different real-world environmental factors that they test. These can include temperature, humidity levels, vibration, photo-stability, and more. These chambers simulate virtually any condition you currently think exists in the real world. Plus, as technology has advanced, so have the testing units. Many now include digital data interfaces and touch screens.

If you’re considering creating a new product, it is important to really do your research and understand what protocols you will need to follow. Use environmental chambers to understand how reliable a product is, how long it will last and how well its individual materials hold up. Once you are armed with this information, you can feel confident in moving forward with your product and taking it into mass production (and the general comfortable will be confident in using it).