Unveiling the Top Reasons to Choose CGR Products for Your Sealing Solutions

CGR Products is renowned for its commitment to quality, expertise, and innovation in the realm of gaskets, seals, and custom fabricated sealing solutions. Choosing CGR Products as your gasket provider can be pivotal for various industries and applications. Here’s why sourcing gaskets from CGR is so crucial:

Unparalleled Expertise

CGR Products boasts extensive expertise in the field of gasket manufacturing and fabrication. With decades of experience, our team possesses in-depth knowledge of materials, manufacturing processes, and applications across diverse industries. This expertise enables us to offer tailored solutions and recommendations to meet specific customer needs, ensuring optimal performance and efficiency.

Customization and Precision

One size does not fit all when it comes to gaskets. CGR Products understands this and excels in providing customized solutions. Our commitment to precision and customization allows for the creation of gaskets that perfectly match unique specifications, ensuring a tight seal and optimal performance in various environments and applications.

Wide Range of Materials and Capabilities

CGR Products offers an extensive selection of materials suitable for different industries and applications. From rubber and foam to specialized materials like silicone, 3M VHB, and Rogers Poron, our catalog covers a broad spectrum. Additionally, our diverse manufacturing capabilities enable the production of gaskets in various shapes, sizes, and complexities, meeting the demands of even the most challenging projects.

Quality Assurance and Compliance

Quality is a hallmark of CGR Products. We adhere to stringent quality control measures throughout the manufacturing process, ensuring that each gasket meets the highest standards. Moreover, we comply with industry-specific regulations and standards, providing gaskets that are certified and suitable for use in industries with strict compliance requirements, such as automotive, and medical sectors.

Commitment to Customer Service

CGR Products prioritizes customer satisfaction. Our dedicated team works closely with clients, offering technical support, guidance, and assistance at every stage of the process, from material selection to product delivery. This commitment to exceptional customer service fosters strong, long-lasting relationships built on trust and reliability.

Innovation and Continuous Improvement

Staying ahead in the industry requires constant innovation and evolution. CGR Products invests in research and development, continuously exploring new materials, technologies, and manufacturing techniques to enhance gasket performance and efficiency. Our commitment to innovation ensures that customers benefit from cutting-edge solutions.

In conclusion, CGR Products stands as a leading authority in the gasket industry, offering unparalleled expertise, customization, quality, and customer service. Choosing CGR Products as your gasket provider ensures not just a product, but a partnership focused on delivering high-quality, tailored solutions that meet your specific needs and exceed expectations.

Speaker Gaskets for OEM Manufacturers

CGR Products works with many manufacturers die cutting speaker gaskets.  Our gaskets are used in several markets including, marine speakers, automotive speakers, home speakers, and more.  Our die cutting capabilities allow us to cut virtually any size and pattern for large volume applications.  This article will describe a variety or materials and cutting methods used to produce speaker gaskets.

Materials

CGR Products stocks several raw materials used for speaker gaskets.  Materials such as closed cell sponge, cross linked polyethylene, and urethane foam are commonly used.  Closed cell sponge is the most common material used by speaker manufacturers. In the case of rear mounted speakers, a material such as closed cell sponge, or cross linked polyethylene (XLPE) is highly desired to make an airtight seal.  Later in the speakers life, if rear mounted, the speaker can easily be removed with no damage to the enclosure.

For conventional speaker mounting, the gasket is used to make a seal to a mounting ring, or to give the speaker better esthetics.  Material such as closed cell foam or urethane foams is typical for these applications.

Die cut gaskets from the above-mentioned materials allow for an easy installation.  CGR Products die cuts gasketsfrom all of these materials plain, or with adhesive. Materials laminated with adhesive on one side provide an easy installation by the OEM.  The gaskets will have a removable liner on the mating side, allowing for a quick peel and stick application.

CGR Products die cuts dampening or batting material for all types of speaker enclosures.  Typically, this material is either a non woven polyester batting or 2lb open cell urethane foam.  Depending on the cabinet design, we will die cut panels for the whole cabinet, or critical pads that are mounted strategically for dampening.  The dampening is critical in automotive applications to keep rattles and vibrations to a minimum.  These materials can also be laminated with adhesive if desired.  With polyester batting, CGR can add a heat activated glue web.  Urethane foam can have adhesive with a removable liner for peel and stick application.

Die Cut Gasket

CGR Products can die-cut products up to 75″ wide x 84″ long in a single stroke. For segmented parts, we can incorporate “dovetailed” or interlocking parts.  For supplying high volumes of speaker gaskets, this method of die cutting is the most desired for cost savings.  CGR Products will design the stamping tool to allow for the best material savings plus maximize throughput to reduce cost.  Cutting high volumes of parts are what we do best and set us apart from our competitors. Our large format cutting operation has its own dedicated shipping dock with 7 bays.

CGR Products also uses a variety of waterjet machines for cutting speaker gaskets.  Waterjet cutting offers excellent material yield and the ability to cut a multitude of materials. The CGR waterjets require no tooling or tool maintenance, lowering your initial set up charge.  We use custom made waterjet machines with multiple cutting heads to allow for multiple cuts at the same time.

Knife cutting is another exceptional option for fabrication tasks that require precision cutting without the use of waterjet machinery. Our state-of-the-art knife cutting machinery utilizes a serrated (dentated or toothed) blade in the Z-axis. This ensures the production of a precise end product, every time, no matter how intricate the details. The machine is powered by advanced control software and a powerful, versatile cutting head.  CGR’s knife cutting machine eliminates the need for cutting dies and increases yields to enable quick turnaround and higher precision.

Learn More

CGR Products is capable of producing custom speaker gaskets for a variety of applications.  With over 170,000 square feet of manufacturing and warehouse space and over 100 top-quality machines, CGR serves a diverse range of clients, including those in the speaker industry.  To learn more about how CGR Products can help with your die cut speaker gaskets, Contact Us today. Ready to get started,  Request a Quote for your die cut parts.

CGR Products is Helping To Fight COVID-19

Just a few months ago, we would have never imagined we would be fighting the pandemic that we’re now facing.  CGR Products is currently classified as an “essential business”.  We die cut critical engineered parts that go to other essential businesses.  The amount of inquires we’ve received has been both overwhelming and a blessing, including companies that range from major automotive manufactures making ventilators to high school students 3d printing face shields in their homes.

The president of CGR Products recently gave an interview with our local news affiliate regarding how we are helping fight COVID-19 which you can find Here

Helping in the Fight

A few products that went into production extremely fast are gaskets used for ventilator timers, die cut face masks, and die cut foam strips used on face shields.

Ventilators

The ventilator gaskets are a specialized neoprene rubber that have a 3M high temperature adhesive on both sides.  We used to cut these gaskets years ago but the company moved the production overseas.  Within 10 days we were able to locate the tooling which we still had, ordered the specialized material, and started die cutting the parts.  The parts were then rushed to a major USA based automotive manufacturer where the ventilator is being produced.

Face Masks

A local company reached out to us about die cutting their own material to make face masks in a rush.  This customer brought us a prototype of the mask and the material to be used. The face mask design is a closed cell material that is washable and reusable. From the sample, we created the tooling in house and started die cutting the masks.  We were able to create a die to maximize the customers’ material utilization and start cutting immediately.

Face Shields

Face shield foam strips have also been in huge demand.  We have been supplying these strips in materials that range from open cell polyurethane foam, to closed cell sponge.  With closed cell sponge, CGR Products can split these materials to any specific thickness.  We have seen thickness requests that range from .500″ to 1.25″ for these strips.  We then apply adhesive to one side of the materials and either die cut to the finished desired strip or supply the materials in roll form.

A student from an area high school reached out to us looking for a material to use on face shields.  The school has 3D Printing as part of their curriculum and they started making the clear plastic portion of the face shield.  Here at CGR Products, we stock a wide variety of closed cell sponge and offered the school Armacell 3091 to use as the foam strip.  We supplied them strips die cut 1.00” thick x 1.50” wide.  The completed face shields were then supplied to medical staff in the local hospitals.  Attached is a link from Armacell, regarding materials used for face shields.  Foams for face shields.

We Are Ready to Help

CGR serves a diverse range of clients, including those in the medical equipment industry.  To learn more about how CGR Products can help with your die cut parts, please Contact Us today. Ready to get started,  Request a Quote for your die cut parts.

Making Things A Little Easier – Using Pull Tabs and Split Liners

Sometimes removing the liner from a die cut part can be difficult and when it comes to high volume applications, saving time can add up to dollars in the bank.  One way of achieving a simple time saver is adding a pull tab or split liner to the die cut part used during assembly.  In this blog, we will highlight a few of the ways CGR Products achieves these added benefits.

Pull Tabs

A pull tab in its simplest form is an area of the adhesive release liner that is kiss cut adjacent to the part to allow for easy liner removal.  Kiss cutting is a process where the die cuts through the part but stops short of cutting through the liner.  The greatest benefit of pull tabs is ease of liner removal during assembly.  A pull tab creates a better grip and allows for faster and more consistent processes.

I will explain this using the photo to the right as a reference and how it is used.  This particular fastener is 3M™ VHB™ tape used to hold a mud flap on a vehicle.

• This material comes in master rolls and has the factory red 3M™ film liner on one side (left)
• We laminate the 2nd brown Kraft liner to the backside of the 3M™ VHB™ tape  (right)
• During the die cutting process, the part is cut all the way through both liners and the tape around the exterior dimension.  The tab at the top of the part is created by kiss cutting to the red liner and removing the VHB tape, thus creating the “tab”.
• The die cut VHB™ parts with the pull tabs as shown are then shipped to the manufacturer making the plastic mud flap, typically a tier supplier.  The tier supplier will remove the brown Kraft liner and apply the VHB™ part to the mud flap. The Kraft liner is a heavy board stock and removes easily by hand. Once applied these assemblies are shipped to the automotive OEM.
• During assembly at the OEM, the associate (or robot) simply grabs the pull tab and removes the film liner which exposes the adhesive, then adheres the mud flap to the automobile body.

Sometimes depending on the material, the excess material of the pull tab does not need to be removed.  A material such as closed cell sponge will allow the sponge to stay on the tab, giving the user even more area to grab.  In this case with VHB™ tape, the excess material has to be removed because the adhesive can fuse back together.

As shown in the example above, the pull tab is basically external to the VHB™ part. The pull tab is created by removing the extra material.  This extra material is wasted and factors into the part cost to some degree.  A rather easy analysis can be made between the added costs of the pull tab versus the cost of a standard die cut part, along with the associated cost of labor to remove the liner.

Sometimes when designs allow,  pull tabs can be internal.  Internal pull tabs will be used where scrap is already present thus not adding to the material cost.  The example below will show this best.  This gasket is a typical id/od rectangle.  The center will be scrapped regardless.  This pull tab is kiss cut down to the red liner and the pull tab is exposed when the waste is removed.

Tabbing Tape Pull Tab

When gasket designs or lower volumes prohibit a pull tab from being created, an alternate method known as “tabbing tape” may be used.  Tabbing tape is typically a specialized adhesive film that is supplied in rolls.  The roll will consist of small rectangles of a special adhesive that will stick to a silicone treated liner.  There will also be a “dry edge” portion of the tab where no adhesive is present to allow for the grab point.  The tab is placed on the die cut part liner, then using a heat bond gun, the tab is bonded to the liner using heat and pressure.

When done properly, the tab will make a permanent bond to the liner.  Many factors have to be considered when using tabbing tape such as liner type, accurate placement, surface cleaning or buffing, temperature, pressure and dwell time.

Analyzing the differences

Adding a pull tab to a die cut part will take into account several factors, such as volumes, shape, layout, material selection, thickness, and adhesive types.  Understanding these factors will determine if a pull tab can be external, internal or none at all.   An external pull tab will typically be preferred due to the ease of use.

Die cut parts with pull tabs can commonly be produced on high volume runs where extra costs can be absorbed.    Typically the cost of adding a pull tab increases the cost of the die cut part due to extra processes or run times during manufacturing.  Depending on volume, these costs versus a standard die cut can be proportionate.  These extra manufacturing processes are also why it is not feasible to add pull tabs on low volume parts.  Set up times and run rates for low volume parts would inflate the price substantially.

Split Liners

Split liners are another way to save time and money during assembly.  Split liners come into play when very high volumes are being processed.  A commonly seen example of split liners is the liner used on most band aids.

Processing split liners involves precision die cutting machinery and high precision tolerance rotary dies.  Typically the adhesive is applied to the material first, and then at the die cutting stages, the part and split liner are cut in sequence.  The dies used in this die cutting stage are machined to very high precision allowing just the liner to be cut alone.

The costs in tooling are typically more expensive than standard steel rule dies; however, being used in high volume applications the cost is absorbed over the life of the program.  The tooling is a one-time cost, and a quality high precision tool will cut for several years afterward.

Just as when analyzing a pull tab, a rather easy analysis can be made between the cost of the split liner, versus the cost of a standard die cut part along with the associated cost of labor to remove the liner.  In the case of end user applications such as band aids, it becomes a matter of ease of use for the individual.

Learn More

Consider CGR Products when you are developing your next high volume die cut parts.  With over 170,000 square feet of manufacturing and warehouse space and over 100 top-quality machines, CGR serves a diverse range of clients, including those in the automotive industry. To learn more about our capabilities, visit our High Volume Rotary Die Cutting Page or feel free to Contact Us today.