July 26, 2016 High Wired

Volume 6 | Issue 1

If you’re near the century mark you deserve respect. National–Standard leads the market in the production of wire and wire-related products.

National-Standard Company, founded in 1907, is a leading manufacturer and distributor of a broad range of wire and wire-related products, including tire bead wire, carbon steel and stainless steel welding wire, wire cloth, filtration materials, fabricated air bag inflator filters and components primarily for the automotive industry. The company is the largest supplier of bead wire in North America and one of the top four providers of welding wire.

The company takes seriously its mission to provide products and services that establish the standard of quality and performance in the markets it serves and to consistently improve every aspect of its business. National-Standard is a continuous improvement company focused on total customer satisfaction. Headquartered in Niles, Mich., National-Standard has approximately 600 employees located in five manufacturing facilities in the United States and England, and consists of two business units, the Wire Division and the Engineered Productions Division. Two years ago, facing troubled economic times, National-Standard was bought by HEICO Companies LLC, an investment firm that owns companies around the world, divided into nine different segments; National-Standard is part of the wire group. Following the acquisition, National-Standard saw a multi-million-dollar revitalization of its two major wire production facilities, and while consolidation of smaller plants also has occurred, the injection of resources has helped the company to retain its status as a leader in the manufacture of a broad range of wire products.

National-Standard operates under two divisions: The Engineered Products Division and the Wire Division. Engineered Products manufactures components and materials for the automotive airbag market. With a decade of experience manufacturing filtration components to the exact requirements of the manufacturers of airbag systems, the company operates to strict standards through QS 9000 certification. Available services include custom manufacturing of filtration components; Fibrex® non-woven metal fiber mat customized to requirements; woven wire cloth in custom configurations; custom stamping and forming of filtration materials, and application engineering.

The Engineered Products Division also provides filtration materials, fabricated filters and tubular inflator housings to the major air bag system manufacturers in North America and Europe.

Welding
National-Standard produces a variety of carbon weld wire, copper-coated and copper-free wire used for car and truck frames. The company also produces stainless steel weld wire also used in a variety of frames.

The list of welding products includes:
• N-S CopperFree® and copper coated mild steel and low alloy weld wire. The absence of copper coating means no copper flaking and reduced downtime/replacement costs because of clogged tips and liners. Because of National Standard’s wire surface technology, N-S CopperFree wire means improved weld uniformity and arc stability and, of course, fewer weld defects, less scrap and improved welding productivity.
• N-S CopperFree® solid wire manufactured with no copper coating to eliminate copper flaking and reduce copper fumes
• Satin-Glide® stainless steel weld wire, a unique wire coating that provides feedability up to 75 percent better when compared with “bright” wire. This is a solid stainless steel weld wire developed specifically for gas-metal arc welding applications. Drawing, cleaning and finishing processes are all coordinated to produce a unique surface that works for you – not against you.
• Tru-Cor™ flux/metal core weld wire has good wetting action, low spatter, and minimum fumes that provide good operator appeal with this full line of cored wire products. Tru-Cor wire’s consistent performance over an unusually wide range of operating voltages gives customers increased control. Wires have all the qualities needed in a cored wire, such as high deposition rate, low spatter, excellent feeding, smooth bead appearance and easy slag removal.
• Tru-Trac™ 300-, 600-, and 1000-pound bulk packages offer tangle-free, reverse wound bulk packages of welding wire designed specifically for robotic and fully automatic applications.

Tire bead wire: leaders in the industry
National-Standard has more than 90 years of North American bead wire technical leadership, with a current bead wire diameter range of 0.038 inches to 0.080 inches. Tire bead wire, carbon steel weld wire and stainless steel weld wire are manufactured in the Wire Division. The company’s range of services includes customer bead testing, mechanical properties of beads, failure analysis of beads, comparative analysis, and comprehensive wire testing. National Standard also offers bead production analysis/support, on-site review, tutorial on bead making and bead geometry analysis.

Specialty wire
The company has specialized in wire and metal products since 1907 and continues to provide products that meet the demanding performance requirements of the diverse market for stainless steel and nickel based alloys. Specialty wire is used in applications from helicopters, to hold the blade to the motor, and in the control rods in nuclear power plants. The company also has introduced carbon specialty wire for use in areas such as fencing and concrete reinforcement. Specialty wire products include banding wire, flat wire, brass-plated hose wire, safety lock wire, stainless steel spring wire, stainless steel stitching wire, and Super alloy spring wire. Packages include cast automatic wire, straightened-in-coil reels and spools as well as a variety of finishes for intermediate and spring tempers. In offering such a comprehensive product line National-Standard has been able to keep ahead of its competition during the last 90 plus years in business. In the future, the company will continue to lead the way in innovation and expertise, finding new and more diverse applications for its high-end wire product line.

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