Monthly Archives: April 2012

Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Honors AIN Plastics with Distributor of the Year

Photo - Mike Farran with the TYGON Award

Mike Farran, AIN Plastics Corporate Buyer for TYGON® with the Distributor of the Year Award. Mike recently took over for Lydia Gonzalez who has moved to a new position within AIN. Mike says he plans to continue the success begun by Lydia and to bring home the award to AIN again this year!

AIN Plastics awarded 2011 TYGON® Elite Distributor of the Year by Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics

We carry a lot of different kinds of plastic products as well as ancillary items. But we don’t just toss things on our shelves and look for buyers. We really enjoy what we do and to that end we strive to be experts when it comes to the products we sell. We want to find the best products out there and deliver them at the best possible prices. We also want to be able to answer customer questions when they need help with products so that we offer the best product and service experience all the way around. This year we received a great honor from Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics for our support and sales of their TYGON® products. The Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics, “Distributor of the Year” is awarded annually and is based on meeting the criteria of the TYGON® Elite Channel Partner Program sales and marketing objectives.

Mike Block, Channel Manager at Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics stated, “Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics is pleased to present our TYGON® Elite 2011 Distributor of the Year award to AIN Plastics, for their outstanding achievements in the promotion of the TYGON® brand over the past year.  As one of our “Elite” channel partners, AIN Plastics continues to remain a major contributor to the advancement of the TYGON® brand name. AIN Plastics continues to play an important role in our marketing efforts by providing technical expertise, new business development, comprehensive stocking programs and customer service support for TYGON® application specific tubing. We value the relationship, the motivation to achieve results, and the professionalism we enjoy in working with these fine people.”

“AIN Plastics is honored to be named Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Distributor of the Year,” stated John Shepherd, President at AIN Plastics. “Our partnership with Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics has provided many opportunities for both of our organizations over the years, and we are excited for the future growth we foresee with this quality solutions manufacturer.”

Saint-Gobain Performance Plastic’s partnership with AIN Plastics supports many business to business sales transactions in focus markets throughout North America. AIN Plastics, Division of ThyssenKrupp Materials NA is based in Madison Heights Michigan and has locations all across the United States. Our network of locations allows us to easily service customers throughout North America.

AIN Plastics, Division of ThyssenKrupp Materials NA and TYGON® Products
TYGON® is a brand of application specific tubing, manufactured by Saint-Gobain

Saint-Gobain Performance PlasticsPerformance Plastics. These products are used in Food and Beverage, Chemical, Industrial, Habitat, Micro Electronics, Document Processing, Pharmaceutical, Bio Technology and Medical applications for the worldwide market. For more information on TYGON® Products from AIN Plastics visit the TYGON® pages on our site or for more about AIN Plastics, Division of ThyssenKrupp Materials NA visit our website at www. ainplastics.com 

About Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics
Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics manufactures standard and custom TYGON® tubing, engineered thermoplastics and flexible hoses worldwide for diverse markets, including chemical, industrial, food and beverage, habitat, and medical. The company is headquartered in Aurora, Ohio, and has manufacturing facilities in France, Germany, China and India.  For more information, visit us at www.processsystems.saint-gobain.com

When Saving a Little can Cost you a Lot!

…aka why it’s Important to Choose Authentic DuPont™ Vespel®


In business we are always looking for ways to save money and ways we can take that savings and turn it into making more money and better profits. While there are a lot of good ways to do this, like shopping online and comparing prices to get the best deal, when you add up all the costs, sometimes those dollars aren’t worth the savings.

In fact, at times there can be serious consequences. This is actually from a blog post we initially published some time ago. But it’s so important that we like to be sure the information stays out there.

Authentic DuPont™ Vespel®

Authentic DuPont™ Vespel®

Machine Shops Beware!
Over the years there have been reported instances of DuPont™ Vespel® shapes being machined into smaller diameter counterfeit rod from larger diameter rod by unauthorized resellers.  In these instances, the unauthorized resellers attempt to sell the product as Authentic DuPont™ Vespel® shapes to unsuspecting machine shops.  Instances of altering the original Certificate of Conformance (CoC) to reference the smaller diameter have been discovered as well.  These altered CoCs do not contain the correct lot number information intended to match product size and composition for traceability purposes.

Why Is This Important?
Unlike Authentic DuPont™ Vespel®, these counterfeit altered rods do not meet ASTM D 6456-99, MIL-R-46198 and OEM Specifications.  In fact, the characteristics of these counterfeit rods differ from rod made to the original size in the proprietary DuPont™ isostatic molding process.

It is important to note that when your customer qualifies a material they are not only specifying the grade of resin. They are also qualifying the process in which the material is formed. When  it comes to DuPont™ Vespel® testing has shown that smaller diameter rods ground down out of a larger rod are not the same. SP-1 data indicates that smaller diameter ISO rods have a statistically higher tensile strength and elongation than larger diameter rods. Similarly, testing on rods ground out of DuPont™ Vespel® Plaque show differences from ISO rods.
So, in the long run, shopping around and finding that great deal on something that says it’s DuPont™ Vespel® could cost you far more than the dollars you saved by going with something that appears to be close enough to do the job.

But if it’s Made from DuPont® Vespel® Material What’s the Problem?
To answer that, let’s take a look at ASTM Standards and the organization that creates the standards – The International ASTM organization was founded in 1898 and with more than 30,000 members it is one of the largest voluntary standards developing organizations in the world. They strive to maintain a no border policy meaning the organization is made up from people all over the world (over 100 countries) and all walks of life from industry, to government, to just regular people in the private sector.

What Exactly Is an ASTM Standard?
According to the ASTM website: “As used in ASTM, a standard is a document that has been developed and established within the consensus principles of the organization and which meets the requirements of ASTM procedures and regulations. Full consensus standards are developed with the participation of all parties who have a stake in the standards’ development and/or use.”

Voluntary Organization? If  it’s Voluntary What’s the big Deal?
Although the standards are voluntary many governments, including the U.S. cite ASTM standards in laws giving them much greater power. In 1995 the U.S. passed the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (Public Law 104-113). This law requires government agencies to use privately developed standards instead of investing taxpayer dollars to create their own. The law saves tax payers a huge amount of money and it also means more ASTM standards have become part of U.S. laws. To read the Law in it’s entirety click on this link: Public Law 104-113 pdf

What Does This Mean for Machine Shops and DuPont™ Vespel®?
ASTM Standards are used in numerous industries including aerospace, automotive, petroleum, even sports and recreational equipment. Large manufacturers use ASTM standards to guarantee product quality. ASTM standards hit us in our daily lives too. Sports organizations are making certain participants in their events use protective gear that meets an ASTM standard. In the aerospace industry the ASTM Standard states that only DuPont™ Vespel® may be used. So, any altered product such as ground rods, or any similar product does not meet their standard and therefore using it in what you do for an aerospace company means you are going against the rules they have set in place to ensure the highest quality products are used when building aircraft. Supplying them with a product that is anything less than their standard sets you up for being liable should anything happen. We all know what that means – potential law suits and possibly even worse.

Still Worth the Money Saved to get a product that almost meets the standard?
If not, how do you know you’ve got the real deal? Contact AIN Plastics, Division of ThyssenKrupp Materials NA. As the authorized distributor, AIN Plastics will provide you with the lowest possible price for authentic Dupont™ Vespel® shapes such as rods and plaques. In addition to being the most cost effective source AIN Plastics is the most reliable because they are required by DuPont to maintain a robust inventory of all grades and sizes of Authentic DuPont™ Vespel®.

Learn More About Authentic DuPont™ Vespel® and thyssenkrupp Engineered Plastics
For technical assistance on working with Vespel® or about purchasing Authentic Vespel visit the AIN Plastics website: Authentic DuPont™ Vespel®.

For more information on DuPont™ Vespel® visit our online catalog: onlineplastics.com

  • SP1
  • Vespel SP21
  • Vespel SP211
  • VespelSP22
  • Vespel SP3
  • Vespel SCP5000
  • Vespel SCP5009
  • Vespel SCP5050
  • Vespel SCP50094
  • Vespel CR6100
  • Vespel SP202
  • Vespel ST2010
  • Vespel ST2030

For more information about ASTM Standards visit: ASTM.org

We hope you find this information helpful. If you have any questions about DuPont™ Vespel® feel free to call thyssenkrupp Engineered Plastics as well. They have a toll free number that will put you in contact with the location nearest you. 1.877.246.7700.