Almost three years ago, Triscan became co-owner of one gas spring factory in Latvia. The influence on the development of new references is given high priority, but also the insight into the production technology and processes, and access to detailed knowledge of commodity and producer prices have great value. The influence and insight is actively used in Triscan’s continuing work to offer the widest programme and the best ability to supply on competitive terms.
Annually, the factory produces more than 1 million gas springs for vehicles and industrial / universal use. Triscan’s programme of gas springs for vehicles comprises 1,330 references and the industrial / universal programme includes 336 references (see online catalogue).
The 60+ employees work in three shifts in the 1,300 m2 production hall where the production is approved in compliance with the ISO 9001: 2000 (quality and traceability) and ISO 14000 (environmental) standards.
Own development and tooling department
In our development, new references are designed according to OE specifications and in 3D CAD (Autodesk Inventor) from which the traditional manufacturing drawings are generated. The development department's expertise also covers the development of special fittings, which many gas springs are equipped with and which are also always fitted onto Triscan’s gas springs and part of a complete delivery.
In the toolmaker department the necessary punches for the special fittings are produced, which adds a great flexibility and independence and reduces the development time of new types of gas springs considerably.
"The requirements for complete and fast deliveries increase and we expect through this step to be even faster to get new references into our European markets," says Sales and Marketing Director Steen Ray Pedersen and continues: "We want thus to help our customers to increase sales and reduce costs for product management and inventory financing. The achievement of this goal has made us one of the largest in Europe in several product areas, including gas springs ".
Extensive testing and quality assurance of new products
Before a new type of gas spring is put into production, it undergoes a defined function test. The gas spring is activated 40,000 times and for each 10,000 times of activation, the cycles of opening and closing force is measured, which must only decrease by maximum 10 percent. In addition, the gas spring is exposed to a climate test in order to document that the gas spring is operable in temperatures from +80 to -50 degrees Celsius.
Flexible production and fast delivery
The manufacturing process is as far as possible fully automated, but parts of the production - including the assembly of the piston is done partly manually. The gas springs are stored empty and not filled with gas until immediately prior to shipment. After filling gas in the cylinder, a gas spring sample is tested to ensure that the opening and closing force is in accordance with specifications.
This ensures a great flexibility and speed in relation to the supply capacity, which of course is essential for Triscan’s achievement of a 97% delivery performance towards the customers.