Surface cleaning technology

Citation

(2005), "Surface cleaning technology", Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, Vol. 77 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/aeat.2005.12777dad.004

Surface cleaning technology

Surface cleaning technology

Keywords: Surface treatment

Univar NV, a major company in chemical distribution, recently announced that its subsidiary Univar Benelux has been awarded the 2004 Distributor of the Year award for its introduction of EnSolv brand surface cleaning technology from Enviro Tech International, Inc. (ETI). The award recognised the close co-operation and technical support of Univar Benelux in working with ETI to build a successful and loyal customer base for EnSolv in the Benelux region.

Univar Benelux received the award for outstanding contributions to sales of EnSolv from ETI president Larry Clark at the last EnSolv distributors meeting in Milan, Italy. In presenting the award, Clark emphasised the seamless co- operation and technical expertise that ETI found at Univar Benelux. “We greatly benefited from Univar’s model rollout approach and its quick grasp of the technical and market issues of our product”, he said. “Univar’s customer base clearly enjoys good working relationships with Univar”.

“We followed ETI’s market strategy closely, working with Enviro Tech Europe to successfully position the EnSolv brand and create a large, loyal customer base”, said Michel Vandermeiren, Managing Director Univar Benelux. “We were happy to share our expertise in technical, toxicological and environmental matters”. Similar successful introductory programs are now in process at other Univar companies throughout Europe.

Based in Melrose Park (Chicago), USA, Enviro Tech International Inc. started research on chlorinated solvent replacement products in the mid-1990s. In 1997 it launched a completely new range of non-chlorinated products under the brand name EnSolv.

EnSolv is a family of high-tech cleaners whose properties closely match those of 1.1.1 trichloroethane, banned from the market in 1995 due to high ozone depletion potential (ODP). When a few years later dichlorofluoroethane (HCFC-141b)- based products where banned for the same reason, EnSolv emerged as an ideal replacement for applications in key sectors such as electronics, aerospace, medical and many more. In addition to low GWP (Global Warming Potential) and close to zero ODP, EnSolv’s other key properties claimed include no flash point, fast evaporation and an ideal boiling point for vapour degreasing.

Responding to heavy demand from customers seeking alternatives to chlorinated solvents, Univar Benelux began distributing EnSolv in 1998 making it the first Univar company to distribute the solvent.

Details available from: Univar Europe. Tel: +31 (0)10 275 7825, Fax: +31 (0)10 413 13 72, E-mail: dirk.rimaux@univareurope.com; web site: www.univarcorp.com or www.univareurope.com