October 20, 2020 What Are the Uses of Industrial Magnets

A review of the many purposes and applications of industrial magnets.

Magnets are a great invention. They can be used for so many things, such as sticking something on the door of your refrigerator or holding together two ends of a piece of jewelry. They are commonly found in classrooms, in offices, on white boards, and in most kitchens.  Anywhere you need to hang something up, you will generally find a magnet.

Magnets also come in different sizes and shapes. There are small ones, large ones, long ones, and some that come in the form of a tape. Their usages are just as expansive as the imagination. Many of them can be bought at any department store or in craft specialty shops. These magnets are your common, everyday-usage kind.

However, there are magnets that have a much larger purpose. Those are the kinds that are used industrially, like in construction sites, oil rigging, and coal mining. These types of magnets are completely different than those sold commercially. They still have the same push and pull that a magnet possesses, but industrial magnets are magnetized beyond compare.

Companies all over the world have been producing magnets for the success of many industries. Not only do industrial magnets vary in their shape and purpose, they vary in price and composition as well. If your business is searching for the production of a strong and durable magnet, there are vendors, such as Magnetized Specialties Inc. who can help you with your questions and purchases.

Magnetic Differences

To understand the difference between a household magnet and an industrial magnet, it is important to recognize their properties. Most household magnets are made from two metals – iron and nickel. These substances both have a special quality that enable them to magnetize with a certain precision.

Industrial magnets are a bit different from your normal everyday magnets used to hold pictures on your refrigerator. Their strength is multiplied for their intended purpose. For them to be completely successful, they are generally made up of an assortment of magnetized materials which complement each other. Basically, industrial magnets operate by using a magnetic field which can repel or attract other kinds of material to it. The only difference is in the amount of pull in which it holds. The stronger the magnet, the greater the magnetism.

For an industrial magnet to be useful, it must be comprised of a variety of different metals. These include neodymium, ferrites, cobalt, and samarium. Their individual components, combined into one, lead them to the vital properties that are exclusive for industry usages.

1. Neodymium comes in the form of iron. Iron is the basis of all magnetic fields. The stronger the iron form, the stronger the magnetic field. In some industries, the magnets must be forceful and be able to bear up weight beyond the human capacity.
2. Ferrite can also be known as ceramic. Their purpose is to keep the magnet from being demagnetized. They also share in resisting corrosion, which is highly necessary for industrial magnets.
3. Cobalt is used for extreme temperatures. It helps the magnet to perform in temperatures above 180º and in low temperatures beyond freezing.
4. Samarium is an earth metal that helps with slowly oxidizes the air around it. It is moderately soft and silver in color.

These industrial magnets come in many forms as well. They may be shaped in bars, strips, rings, or sheets. It all depends on their purpose and their function, such as for production line assemblies, or environmental intentions.

What are the actual usages for industrial magnets? The list is endless, but there are a few that are particular in their manner.

Assembly Processes

Magnets in this field are used primarily for lifting and welding. Flat sheets are needed for fabrications and assembling of various parts and pieces. However, this industry is filled with all kinds of technology which require assorted magnets of varying strengths and sizes. These may include drum separators, which remove contaminated metal from other materials such as ceramics. Magnets also facilitate plate separators that hold and suspend other equipment.

Automotive

It may seem strange, but magnets play a very big role in the automotive industry. Beginning from the production line to the various aspects of the finished vehicle, magnets hold the various parts together ranging from the outer shell to the doors to the steering wheel.

In a garage, magnets are responsible for lifting and holding large equipment or engines, assisting in the repairs, fixturing assorted pieces, and especially tooling for construction lines.

Automotive magnets are often used in providing and aiding sensors in assorted vehicles as well.

Welding

Welding magnets are for increasing your quality and productivity of work. They are used mostly to clamp pieces of ferromagnetic materials in proper position so they may be aligned and welded together from smaller bits to larger substances. The magnets help to bond it together before the final weld is accomplished.

Agriculture

Magnets in this field are used for purification against metal contamination. They also provide protection from damage of other equipment and calamities. They are used for separation purposes to keep all contaminants from usable food resources.

Pharmaceutical Industry

The most important purpose for an industrial magnet in the pharmaceutical industry is eliminating any risk of medical proportions. It’s all about safety. The magnets used here help to increase the quality of the product. They also help to keep damage claims at a low rate and prevent recalls of medications and prescriptions. For such businesses and hospitals, this provides great relief and peace of mind.

Mining

The mining business requires many industrial magnets. Their conveyor systems are dependent upon large and small magnets for the retrieval and success of their endeavors. These magnets are extremely powerful and work as separators which assist in the sorting of the aggregate resources. Separating metal from ore is one of their most prominent jobs. Without those magnets, it would be null and void.

Unique Uses

Do you or your family enjoy chicken nuggets? How many times have you opened a bag of potato chips this past month? Did you know that neither of these products would be around if it weren’t for the development of an industrial magnet?

Most restaurants serve chicken nuggets now. They are little bits of chicken all proportioned for eating with your fingers. In order for those nuggets to be consistently shaped, they need to be chopped into a particular size. Over the course of time, those machines that chop the chicken lose some of their metal. These fragments sometimes drop onto the conveyor belt. With an industrial magnet, these particles help to get rid of this threat and ensure that there is no metal contamination in the product.

Potato chip manufacturers also have the same problem. The industrial magnets used on the conveyor belts help to keep the product line free from any adulteration of unsanitary and metal parts. All of these machines and their magnets must also be made of stainless steel so that it is approved by health inspectors and the government.

Industrial magnets are also used by airlines, but not in a way you would suspect. Did you ever wonder what happens to the dirty forks, knives, and spoons that incur after an airline meal? Who exactly cleans up? The answer lies with an industrial magnet. When an airplane has landed, all the dirty trays and silverware is removed. There is a conveyor belt that moves the used cutlery away from the plane to a more appropriate location. The industrial magnets ensure that all that dirty silverware and trays are transferred away quickly and completely.

Industrial magnets have even helped law enforcement solve cases, or at least find evidence. Using magnetic brooms or underwater magnets, police have found missing guns, vehicles, and people. They use them to dredge up valuable pieces of information from canals and other hard to reach places. Because of their incredible strength and power, the industrial magnets can attract bigger objects, assisting law enforcement officers when conventional ways aren’t possible.

Conclusion

The list for the purposes of industrial magnets goes on and on. Besides the industries here, magnets can help facilitate medical applications, improve safety on various equipment like forklifts, cranes, and automobiles, and prevent excess damage to automobiles regarding wheel alignment etc.

They can remove scrap metal that impair and damage tires. Magnets are used by airports to clean the runways from any foreign debris. They are a vital part of all electric motors, transformers, and amplifiers. Industrial magnets are the basis of many pieces of equipment used for building, demolishing, or recycling.

Although usually found working in large machines for assorted companies or franchises, industrial magnets can be used in many common items as well that are used on a day to day basis. If you hear an electrical bell, that occurs because of an industrial magnet. When a train goes by, industrial magnets are in use. Your refrigerator door, the one with all the pictures on it, is kept closed due to an industrial magnet. They are used in your television screen and computer monitor. Magnets convert sound energy from electrical energy for your speakers to work properly. It’s actually an industrial magnet that keeps that little compass needle to constantly find “North.” Industrial magnets don’t have to be huge to make a big impact. They just have to be extremely strong.

It’s amazing that a few components all grafted together can literally bring together so many pieces of this gigantic world.

Julian Hickman

Julian Hickman loves to write and publish articles about business on his blog. Julia covers a wide range of business-related topics on his blog – from how to start a business, learn more about a specific target audience, and how to retain employees.

Julian also submits business-related content to other websites to expand his reach.

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