Carlisle Motion Control debuts research center Carlisle Motion Control Industries has opened a technical research and development center in Charlottesville, Va. In addition to providing research on new brake lining technologies, the facility helps to run quality control support for the company's manufacturing processes, which have received QS-9000 and ISO-9001 certification. The location of the new tech center has enable Carlisle to form a cooperative research agreement with the University of Virginia.
The 25,000-sq.-ft. center houses three single wheel-end inertia dynamometers and one double wheel-end model. Other machines can remove the influence of brake hardware in testing friction materials, as well as test the stability of the friction materials. A pilot and materials laboratory is also housed in the new R&D center.
In fact, work on new disk pad formulations and longer life materials is set to proceed in this lab, says Rod McLellan, formerly with BBA Friction in Europe, who is director of research and development for Carlisle. Look for the company to come out with a new lining that combines a highly elastomeric backing stock with a traditional abrasive front stock that will allow the pad to compensate for drum damage.
Linings will continue to be manufactured out of Fredericksburg, Va., and Ridgeway, Pa.
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