|
Bailey realized a long time ago that the quality and reliability of our finished Chief® cylinders is directly related to the quality of the raw materials going into them. Therefore, we start our process by only selecting suppliers that can consistently meet our stringent material requirements. In addition to our supplier management activities, Bailey's global supply chain is continuously validated through its receiving inspection process. To this end, we have recently completed our state-of-the-art test laboratory where we have dimensional, chemical, metallurgical, mechanical, physical, contamination, endurance and burst testing capabilities. Only after materials are tested and approved, are they placed into Bailey's inventory control system. Once there, production work orders are used to control the manufacturing and assembly processes/sequences needed to make the cylinder from start to finish.
Each work order is fully traceable back to the raw materials used in it. Our manufacturing and assembly processes/sequences make use of many types of checks and balances, from SPC controlled machining centers to critical/key characteristics being identified and controlled via our control plans and manufacturing drawing packages. Attributes are checked and re-checked by our trained machine operators and QA technicians.
In most cases, especially for critical characteristics, dimensional inspection operations are performed on 100% of the product. Process parameters such as paint thickness, salt spray, welding, torque ranges, and contamination are constantly validated.
To further insure that our products perform reliably, each cylinder is functionally and pressure tested to 1.5 times the normal working pressure in our hydraulic test stand. This pressure test assures that the assembly process, weld joints and over all cylinder integrity is more than adequate. The cylinders are then cleaned, wash primed, and electro-statically painted on our automated paint line. During the packaging process, a final inspection is conducted to assure that the coating thickness, aesthetics, and identification are in full compliance.
|

All cylinders undergo multiple tests for quality, including
cycling, pressure, and stroke measurement. Up to 30
cylinders will soon be able to be tested at once.
|