Your biggest enemy when it comes to hardwood floors is water.
Hardwood Floors are both appealing and durable. They add that nice rustic and earthy touch to our homes. Although they can withstand a lot of wear and tear in their lifetime, hardwood floors often need care and upkeep to last. With the right products and regular upkeep, keeping your hardwood floors in pristine condition is no big deal.
Your biggest enemy when it comes to hardwood floors is water. Those wooden panels nailed to floor – believe it or not – are chunks of trees, cut to size and dried. When water begins to make it’s way into your hardwood floors, those wooden fibers begin to expand, eventually warping your wooden floor. Once this happens there’s really no going back, and you’re looking at an expensive and time-consuming floor replacement.
Wooden floors are sensitive, so it’s important to be cautious of any kind of moisture – from simple spills, abundant humidity, and water seepage from under the floor. In it’s most rudimentary form, water damage is simply the appearance of stains. There are a couple of home remedies to remove these stains. Using toothpaste or a combination of oil and cigarette ash will buff these white stains away. For a more severe stain, you may have to remove the finish on your floor.
In order to prevent small amounts of damage, be sure to coat your floors in a water-resistant finish before installing them. This will help prevent water from soaking in to the grains. You can also wax with a waterproof seal to shore up your defenses. In order to keep your floors in good shape, its ideal to re-apply water-resistant stain every 12-18 months.
If your wooden floors are suffering from major water damage, many professional cleaning services such as Service Master Solutions offer special drying services that can greatly reduce water damage to floors.
Plastic injection molding offers many benefits to the buying public. Lightweight durable plastics are designed to enhance the American way of life. The challenges facing plastic injection molders today involve not only keeping up with demand and staying on top of advanced techniques, but also making sure that molds are kept clean and in good working order.
Most injection molds are still cleaned the old fashioned way with labor-intensive hand scrubbing and solvents. Molds become contaminated with grease, hydraulic oil, rust, grime, carbon, aluminum shavings and material gassing. Molds that are not properly cleaned generate waste product. Cleaner molds are easier to run and maintain.
A mold before being washed in an Omegasonics ultrasonic cleaner
One such plastic injection molding company is Kaysun Corporation which is headquartered in Manitowoc, WI. Kaysun was established in 1947 during the early years of injection molding, and some of their first products were model airplanes parts, cookware, and commodity items.
Recently, Kaysun’s business has been expanding rapidly because of their willingness and desire to invest in cutting-edge technologies to solve a variety of customer needs from automotive to industrial to military markets. Kaysun’s program manager, Gordon Schwartz, attended a lean manufacturing certification course and was tasked in finding a solution that would streamline their plastic injection mold cleaning process. At the time, Kaysun employed three technicians in the mold maintenance department, but because business was expanding, they were going to bring on a fourth individual to handle the increased volume. After extensive research, Schwartz found his solution in ultrasonics. Then, after testing very ultrasonic units, Schwartz determined that Kaysun could avoid hiring that fourth technician, and save a considerable amount of money, by purchasing an Omegasonics ultrasonic parts washer.
After implementation, Schwartz reported to us that, as a result of ultrasonics, molds at Kaysun were being cleaned exceedinglywell. The company began to realize:
A decrease in start-up time;
Less waste;
Fewer labor hours dedicated to trouble-shooting required by the mold technician; and;
A reduction in line downtime.
The same mold after being washed in an Omegasonics ultrasonic cleaner
In addition, another benefit of a properly cleaned mold is the increased ability for the plastic injection molder to pursue more profitable, highly-energized projects. Because of deeper crevices and cracks, an injection molder that is confined to only hand cleaning cannot effectively and profitably compete in this arena. Thus, they are hamstrung by being confined to lower profit, highly competitive projects that involve mainly flat surfaces.
Omegasonics helps Kaysun Corporation stay on the cutting edge of the plastic injection mold industry by helping them reduce labor costs and product waste, all the while boosting efficiency and product quality. Their wise investment in ultrasonic technology has given Kaysun a distinct competitive advantage in the marketplace.
For more information about what kind of ultrasonic cleaning technology is the best fit for your company’s needs, we invite you to check out www.Omegasonics.com or give our team of ultrasonic cleaning experts a call toll-free at (888) 726-3130.
It’s a new year of great opportunities within the ultrasonics and disaster restoration industries. We believe that our success as a business depends upon your success. That’s why we are dedicating more time than ever before to assisting you with good information, education, and training.
For example, through LinkedIn, we are randomly asking insurance adjusters we’ve connected with the question: “Are restoration contractors giving you an honest and accurate assessment on contents claims?” The answers that we have privately received have run the gamut from being very positive to very negative.
In 2012, we know that if we can assist restoration companies with quality training and education, then they will learn ways to improve efficiency and increase productivity. This will translate into more certified restoration companies and more first class operations that will have competitive advantages in the marketplace. Ultimately, this will lead to better service for the customer, which indeed is the goal of both the emergency service provider and the insurance company/adjuster.
In case you weren’t aware, we’ve started a group on LinkedIn called Ultrasonic Cleaning – Tips, Strategies, and Ideas. There are currently over 120 industry professionals involved, and we’d like to see that number grow. The goal for this forum is to share information that can help benefit your company, as well as the restoration industry as a whole.
We, at Omegasonics, want to be the first company that comes to mind when you think about quality ultrasonic and contents restoration equipment. It is truly an honor to serve you.
May you, your family, and your company have a wonderful and prosperous 2012.
Have you ever tried to impress your friends? Try doing something with no hands! Have you ever tried to really impress your potential or existing clients? Show them how you can lower their cleaning costs… with no hands!
But how can you clean something ultrasonically with no hands? Ultrasonic technology already significantly reduces the number of employees and labor time required to clean dirty industrial parts. We thought, “Why not take it a step further and help our clients lower cleaning expenses even more?”
Our latest product, the Autosonic Q1, cleans, rinses and air-dries without any operator assistance whatsoever. Think of it as your new employee that human resources doesn’t have to fill out any papers for! Did we mention this employee never eats or sleeps? It is just a cleaning, rinsing and drying machine… literally!
The Autosonic Q1 will drastically reduce manual hand cleaning labor costs by up to 80% and “hands-on” ultrasonic cleaning costs by 15%. The Q1 delivers a proven automatic workstation that enhances the workflow and provides manufacturers with a piece of equipment that dramatically increases production and profitability.
Unfortunately, this machine isn’t equipped with “Siri” and it cannot talk to you and tell you the status of a cleaning cycle. But if you want to check the status of your current wash, it is as simple as reading a traffic light.
There actually is a green, yellow and red light that lights up allowing you quickly detect what stage the product is in. Along with high precision ultrasonic cleaning, the blow-off nozzles inside the Q1 remove excess moisture to speed the drying process.
Want more information about the Omegasonics Autosonic Q1? Feel free to contact us toll free at (800) 669-8227, or visit our website at www.Omegasonics.com to learn more about ultrasonic cleaning!
We, at Omegasonics, want to be the first company that comes to mind when you think about quality ultrasonic and contents restoration equipment. It is truly an honor to serve you.
Are you an insurance adjuster dealing with an insured client recovering from a fire, mold, or water damage claim? Or, are you in need of a restoration company to properly handle the insured’s contents claim?
If so, here’s a few questions that you should ask to help identify restoration companies that use the latest technology and training, allowing them to save you the most money by eliminating virtually all cash outs.
More information can be found at www.Omegasonics.com, or by calling an Omegasonics ultrasonics and contents restoration expert toll free 1-800-669-8227.
To see a list of certified contents professionals in your state, click here.
The global demand for base and precious metals continues to climb in today’s vast economy. Heavily specialized machinery is needed for mining development and exploration. Bulldozers, explosives, and drills are all used everyday in different mining ventures. Because of the extreme nature mining commands, safety has always been a long and controversial issue.
One of our clients, Joy Mining Machinery, has implemented safety procedures and programs that constantly monitor the assurance of workplace safety. Not surprising to us, the basis for this program stems from the use of ultrasonic technology to clean and maintain safe and effective mining equipment in the field.
Joy Mining Machinery is effectively using ultrasonic technology to safely clean and maintain mining equipment in the field.
Traditional methods for cleaning mining parts involved hours of soaking parts in petroleum-based liquids to remove rock shavings, oils, and dust. Ineffective machines led to broken gears and drills causing an unstable or unsafe environment for employees. By using ultrasonic cleaning, a growing number of mining companies have been able to to eliminate the need for workers to come into direct contact with these harsh and toxic chemicals. Ultrasound creates microscopic vacuum bubbles that remove residue from surfaces not reachable by brushes or picks. By switching to ultrasonic technology, mining companies are able to significantly reduce overhead costs by decreasing labor and inspection times.
For this type of industrial parts cleaning, we recommend using OmegaClean, our water-based cleaning soap that handles the widest range of metals and dirt. OmegaClean also contains a rust inhibitor to prevent flash rusting on ferrous metals.
Mining companies that are using ultrasound systems across the globe aren’t necessarily searching for gold these days, but they’ve sure found it with ultrasonic technology! For more information about OmegaClean, please check out our selection of industrial cleaning soaps. Also, if you have further questions, feel free to contact one of our ultrasonic cleaning experts toll free at (800) 669-8227.
Recently released in theaters, Moneyball is the true story of Billy Beane, the general manager of the Oakland Athletics. The movie focuses on Beane’s attempt to assemble a competitive team for Oakland’s 2002 season, despite unfavorable finances and resources. What the trailer doesn’t mention is that the premise for Moneyball is actually partly based on the true story of ultrasonic cleaning technology.
While, we are still trying to sign Brad Pitt to star in our movie, the ultrasound story begins in the early 90’s when disaster restoration cleaning jobs required buckets, sinks, untrained employees and crude cleaning tools. Many contents restoration companies in smaller markets were losing processing jobs to bigger restoration businesses with more resources. If you aren’t familiar with Moneyball, Oakland was losing their star players (in free agency) to large-scale teams, such as New York, since they couldn’t price match with the Yankees.
To combat this, Billy Beane began to manage his team with a non-traditional ideology called “sabermetrics”. Rather than relying on traditional statistics such as home runs, average, and RBIs, sabermetrics approaches the game with a new way of thinking. This is essentially what ultrasonic technology did as well. Essentially, ultrasound revolutionized its respective industry. Companies of any size could now compete and even exceed the cleaning capabilities of their larger competitors.
While the Yankees and Red Sox were stocking up with high priced free agents, restoration companies were using traditional, inefficient cleaning methods. With ultrasound, you use water-based soaps, safe for products and many electrical appliances. Likewise, the need for specialized picks, brushes and other tools were eliminated, another cost cutting measure.
Previously, in the restoration industry, it literally took a “team” of employees to effectively wash many basic items such as figurines, electronics, collectible items and more.
With an ultrasonic assembly line system, you can reduce your team size and get more production because the system does much of the work for you! This could be the biggest way to reduce your payroll!
Labor day has passed, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still enjoy a great day out on the lake or in the mountains. Activities such as boating, riding, and jet skiing are a lot of fun for friends and family. But what isn’t fun is the teardown and maintenance process. If you own one of these types of “fun vehicles”, then you know what I am describing. Cleaning and washing dirt, carbon, and road grime from outboard motors, engine parts, etc. from motorcycles, ATVs, snowmobiles or jet skis by hand requires a lot of work. If you clean these parts professionally, your employees are also using up valuable energy and resources that could be used to improve customer satisfaction and, possibly, additional sales and service.
In the power sports industry, carburetors, suspensions, inner primaries, fuel injectors, heads, cases, and pistons are only a few of the complex parts that need to be cleaned thoroughly after heavy usage.
Ultrasonic cleaning technology eliminates the need to spend precious hours washing expensive power sport components that usually require harsh and toxic chemicals. In the power sports industry, carburetors, suspensions, inner primaries, fuel injectors, heads, cases and pistons are only a few of the complex parts that need to be cleaned thoroughly after heavy usage.
With ultrasound, minimal disassembly is required. Just put the parts in the tank and let it do all the work, not your employees. Ultrasound is able to clean the oil and grime found in the tiniest crevices, a very difficult task for brushes and other types cleaning tools. Along with safety and environmental benefits, ultrasonic technology also ensures customer satisfaction on every job.
Specialty Marine in Oxnard, CA has recently switched to ultrasound and uses our specialized water based cleaning agent, OmegaClean. This skin friendly soap removes oil, grease, carbon and other contaminants much better than aerosol chemicals previously used by hand.
Power sport vehicles can be very exciting to ride, but very expensive to own. With ultrasonic technology on your side, you can help decrease costs, allowing you to focus on the ride! For more information on the benefits of ultrasound in the power sport industry, please see: www.Omegasonics.com/PowerSports or feel free to contact one of our ultrasonic cleaning experts toll free at (800) 669-8227.
High gas prices are often a touchy subject for most people, especially those who drive gas-guzzlers. Can you believe the price to fill up your car these days! A barrel of oil is over $90 this week. The gasoline used to fill up your car comes from thousands of oil rigs and offshore platforms. Primarily, Americans get most of their oil from the Canadian landscape, not from the Middle East as most people believe.
Over $1 million dollars is spent each year just on the research, evaluation, and repair of damaged drilling parts.
Offshore oil rigs are similar in construction despite being located in different parts of the world. Since access to them is limited, drilling equipment is prone to high productivity loss if maintenance cannot be performed in a timely manner. Significant downtime can impact output, which can, of course, cause oil prices to rise. Thankfully, there are measures that oil rigs can take to avoid, or at least limit, many unnecessary costs.
One of these measures involves the use of ultrasonic cleaning. The functionality of an ultrasonic cleaning machine is endless when it is used to clean components used on an oil rig drilling machine in the middle of the ocean. The two primary causes of productivity loss and machine maintenance are fatigue and corrosion to metals due to high pressures of deep-ocean drilling. Over a million dollars each year is spent on research, evaluation and repairs for damaged drilling parts. In addition, costs are always magnified on an oil rig because everything must be done self-sufficiently on the platform.
Having a portable ultrasonic cleaning unit on board an oil platform can instantly (and significantly) reduce the amount of time, labor, and cost spent on maintenance and repairs. In most cases, in order to fix something, it must be cleaned first. However, cleaning supplies must be limited on off shore platforms, and solvent chemicals are virtually extinct in order to protect the ocean.
That’s way ultrasound is such an attractive option in these types of situations. Ultrasonic cleaning eliminates unnecessary costs associated with chemical cleaning products because it only uses soap and water. In other words…ultrasonic cleaners do all of the work for you! Research has shown that using ultrasonic technology can also extend parts such as oil rig cooling systems by a factor of 6-8 times.
If enough off shore platforms begin to use ultrasonic cleaning technology to lower their costs… who knows, maybe the price to fill up you car won’t be so high next time!
For more information call Omegasonics toll-free at 1-800-669-8227 or visit our “Utilities” page on our website.
Winds reaching 115 miles swarmed the East Coast last weekend in what was known as Hurricane Irene. With much fortune, the damage was far less severe than what was initially expected. With a storm this size, the flooding of homes and business is typically one of the lingering effects.
In combination with insurance companies, restoration companies play a significant role in restoring water-damaged contents.
In combination with insurance companies, restoration companies play a significant role in restoring water-damaged contents. Because ultrasonic technology is routinely used in the cleaning process, important household items such as keepsakes, computers and toys to name a few can now be completely restored.
In years past, an insurance company’s flood analysis would show that only 65-70% of damaged contents could be restored. These items would then be cashed out. However, when ultrasound is used, that same percentage increases to over 90%… saving both money and memories.
“Our goal as a restoration contractor is to return items back to homeowners, not have the replaced,” said Adam Weigand, owner of Paul Davis Restoration of Columbus, OH. “Omegasonics has given us the ability to accomplish this at a very high rate of success, which not only validates our participation in the restoration process, but also leaves the homeowner blown away with what we can save for them.”
Ultrasound utilizes environmentally safe cleaning soaps, heat, water, and sound waves. Restoration professionals across the country have found ultrasonic cleaning technology to be more cost effective and less labor intrusive. Most importantly… it does a better job of cleaning.
