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IoT and Custom Chemicals: How Smart Sensors Enable Better Manufacturing Outcomes

<p>IoT (Internet of Things) is the name given to a wide range of network-connected devices found in businesses and homes across America. While some people think of things like smart light bulbs and dishwashers when they hear IoT, there are many industrial applications for this networked technology.</p>
<p>IoT “smart sensors” are increasingly common in manufacturing facilities, allowing manufacturers to monitor processes and make data-driven decisions to optimize performance. Smart sensors enable superior quality management by feeding accurate live data back to dashboards and user interfaces. Quality management teams use this info to continually adjust and improve manufacturing performance, efficiency, and ROI.</p>
<p>Today we’ll look at IoT, smart sensors, and their relationship to the custom chemical solutions we specialize in at Americo Chemical.</p>
<h2>Understanding smart sensor technology</h2>
<p>Smart sensors do a lot more than their name may suggest. Sensing conditions like liquid levels or pH is just the first step. Smart sensors collect analog data much like any conventional sensor. Then, they digitize that data—turn it into a value that can be transmitted. This data gets sent to other devices, usually including a centralized computer system, via a wired or wireless connection. Today’s advanced sensors use Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or custom wireless protocols to secure deliver data throughout your facility and beyond.</p>
<h2>Types of smart sensors</h2>
<p>There are as many types of smart sensors as there are types of data to collect. Let’s look at some of the top types of smart sensors found in manufacturing facilities.</p>
<h3>Pressure sensors</h3>
<p>Many industrial processes rely on pneumatic and hydraulic systems where maintaining ideal operating pressure is critical. Pressure sensors use a variety of methods to accurately monitor pressure levels. Many pressure sensors use a diaphragm that flexes or deforms based on pressure levels. The diaphragm’s level of deformation impacts the resistance or capacitance of an electrical component. The degree of impact on this electrical component corresponds to pressure levels in the measured vessel.</p>
<h3>Temperature sensors</h3>
<p>Temperature and pressures are two peas in a pod as they directly correlate to each other. Temperature sensors use a wide range of sensing techniques including purely analog options like bimetallic coils and electrical options like resistance temperature detection, where a metallic component’s electric resistance fluctuates based on temperature.</p>
<h3>pH sensors</h3>
<p>Maintaining appropriate pH is crucial for manufacturing, particularly for metal treatments and coatings. What most pH sensors actually detect is the presence of hydrogen ions. The concentration of hydrogen ions in a substance directly corresponds to its acidity. Using special glass electrodes that develop electrical potential under exposure to hydrogen ions, pH sensors compare the exposed electrode’s potential to a control electrode, deriving a pH value from the resulting difference.</p>
<h3>Conductivity sensors</h3>
<p>Detecting the conductivity of a liquid can determine the presence and levels of dissolved salts and other solids. This is particularly important in industrial wastewater management as dissolved salts contribute to the complexity—and by extension, the cost of disposal—of wastewater.</p>
<p>To calculate conductivity, two electrodes are submerged in a liquid. A current runs through them. The resistance between the electrodes determines the conductivity level, which in turn informs the level of dissolved solids in the measured material.</p>
<h3>Level sensors</h3>
<p>Maintaining appropriate levels in tanks can reduce wear and tear on equipment and prevent damage to cutting tools and manufactured products. Level sensors can work on a number of different principles, from physically detecting the presence of materials at a certain point in the tank to using ultrasonic sound waves to accurate measure even foamy or frothy tanks.</p>
<h3>Flow sensors</h3>
<p>Flow sensors measure the rate of flow of fluids including gases. The simplest method of measurement is to install a turbine or propeller in the pipe or vessel. This measures flow rate mechanically by measuring the speed of the turbine, like a water wheel in a river.</p>
<p>Other methods rely on more complex calculations that calculate flow rate based on thermal mass, ultrasonic waves, or electromagnetic conductivity.</p>
<h2>Smart sensors and quality management</h2>
<p>Smart sensors facilitate quality engineering and quality management in many ways. First, they help to establish baseline performance. Before a process can be optimized, it must be fully understood. Smart sensors validate assumptions and provide clear and accurate data to operators. This means that performance improvements can be tracked and measured against a reliable baseline.</p>
<p>Smart sensors provide granular and timely data to track changes in performance over time. Once smart sensors are installed, the parameters of a process may be adjusted “on the fly” based on accurate data. Testing new methods, including new custom chemical solutions, can be done quickly and with less risk as smart sensors provide immediate feedback.</p>
<h3>How sensor data informs product quality</h3>
<p>The relationship between the temperature of a fluid or the liquid level in a tank and the quality of an end product may not seem clear. Consider the application of a durable coating to a metal part. The quality of that coating may hinge on curing at a specific temperature. If a facility found their curing temperature fluctuated too much based on heating or cooling effects from nearby processes, they could take steps to address temperature fluctuation, thus improving product quality.</p>
<p>Lower than expected liquid levels in a tank of metalworking fluid could result in uneven flow rate, poor cut quality, or expedited equipment failure, all of which can impact both quality and process efficiency. Though these industrial metrics can sometimes seem abstract, their impact on a company’s bottom line can be significant.</p>
<h3>Customized products through data analysis</h3>
<p>At Americo Chemical, we rely on sensor data to enable our Total Systems Approach. By understanding the exact nature of your chemical challenges, we’re able to formulate chemistry that enhances your process.</p>
<p>In some cases, upgrading equipment to address minor mechanical issues like inconsistent flow rate or excess foaming in tanks can be prohibitively difficult or expensive. This is a case where a custom chemical solution—perhaps one with lower viscosity to improve flow rate, or with anti-foaming properties—can maintain product quality at a low cost while preparing for the significant capital expenditure of an equipment upgrade or replacement.</p>
<h2>Enhanced safety through IoT</h2>
<p>Safety in manufacturing should be top-of-mind for any facility. Safety facilitates better profitability through reduced legal risk and less time paid time off for workers due to illness or injury. Safe facilities have fewer production stoppages, improving output and lead times.</p>
<p>Industrial IoT including smart sensors can enhance safety for workers in a variety of ways.</p>
<p>Conventional sensors require workers to check and record their data periodically. This can involve climbing ladders, exposing workers to potentially harmful chemicals, or otherwise putting them in situations with elevated risk factors. IoT sensors can broadcast their data to workers remotely, greatly reducing the number of manual checks required.</p>
<p>Many smart sensors work in tandem with other automation solutions. A smart sensor can be connected to a valve, automatically shutting down a process if the temperature or pressure goes beyond safe limits. It can then log and report the incident, including information on conditions leading up to the incident. This kind of reporting can help facility managers understand points of failure and address challenges before they pose safety threats to workers.</p>
<h2>Future trends in industrial IoT</h2>
<h3>AI and machine learning</h3>
<p>Recent advancements in AI prove promising for industrial IoT. While human analysis is an important component of quality management and process engineering, AI and humans working together may result in even better outcomes. Machine learning models can suggest improvements that humans may miss or never even consider.</p>
<p>AI can also make data insights more accessible to more people. Instead of needing a data science background to interpret results, an AI interface might allow a facility manager to ask questions in plain English, receiving digestible insights from a chatbot.</p>
<h3>“Digital twins”</h3>
<p>Consider a manufacturing process from the point of view of a smart sensor system. It’s a consistent series of actions where various metrics must fall within acceptable ranges. Given enough historic and live data, data experts can create “digital twins” of manufacturing facilities. These are sophisticated digital models of manufacturing processes that can be used to test theoretical changes to the system without impacting production.</p>
<p>A digital twin is a safe sandbox to test ideas. Alternate chemicals with different physical properties can be programmed into the digital twin’s model to see how the new chemicals may impact the process. If the change results in improved metrics in the digital twin, it can be introduced to the real-world facility. Sensors report results from the real-world test back to the model. If the model’s proposed results prove inaccurate, it can be updated and improved based on live data. This cycle of continual improvement ensures the digital twin accurately represents the facility it’s modeled after.</p>
<p>Digital twins can also be used to train new staff on facility operations in a safe way. When combined with AI tools, digital twins may be able to recommend improvements to facility operations without human input.</p>
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>In the dynamic landscape of industrial manufacturing, the integration of IoT and smart sensors has proven to be a game-changer, particularly in the realm of quality management. By harnessing the power of these technologies, Americo Chemical can offer customized solutions that enhance production efficiency and ensure the highest standards of product quality. Our commitment to leveraging cutting-edge sensor data not only optimizes processes but also paves the way for innovative approaches to chemical challenges. Whether you&#8217;re looking to refine existing operations or explore the possibilities of advanced IoT applications, we invite you to connect with us. Discover how our Total Systems Approach can transform your manufacturing outcomes, optimizing your operations for the future.</p>
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Process methods for improving manufacturing sustainability

<p>Climate change and pollution pose direct challenges to the viability and profitability of manufacturers worldwide. The recent supply chain woes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing geopolitical events demonstrate how upstream challenges including extreme weather can severely impact downstream manufacturers. <a href="https://info.microsoft.com/WE-DIGTRNS-CNTNT-FY21-10Oct-05-SustainabilityGoodforBusinessExecutivePlaybook-SRGCM3881_01Registration-ForminBody.html">Microsoft’s sustainability report for executives</a> highlights $54bn in insured losses in the manufacturing sector in 2020 due to “secondary perils.” These perils include extreme storms, flooding, and forest fires. Up to 60% of all insured losses in the sector resulted from this category. Such challenges are anticipated to increase through the next century and beyond.</p>
<p>Despite this, manufacturers lag behind other industries when it comes to thinking and talking about sustainable practices. When manufacturers <em>do</em> think about sustainability, they tend to focus on innovative new materials, potentially ignoring opportunities to optimize their processes.</p>
<p>No amount of sustainable practice will undo the effects of climate change, but they can contribute to lower operating costs, more efficient processes, and more competitive products in a market increasingly sensitive to social good value adds.</p>
<p>Americo Chemical specializes in providing beginning-to-end solutions for physical and chemical processes in manufacturing. Our Total Systems Approach considers product quality, total productivity, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability in equal measure. Let’s explore how Americo Chemical approaches sustainable manufacturing.</p>
<h2>What do we mean by “sustainable?”</h2>
<p>When you hear the word “sustainable,” your first thought is probably something about the environment. This is the most common way to use the word in a business context, but sustainability extends beyond just the environment. There are also social and economic contexts for sustainability.</p>
<p>For example, changing market conditions including more costly labour and materials can make an otherwise-profitable business unsustainable to operate. Bad workplace culture or poor compensation can make a business socially unsustainable, as its core workforce may leave for better opportunities.</p>
<p>Americo considers sustainability across all three of these dimensions: environmental, economic, and social. Let’s explore how Americo Chemical implements sustainability in its own practices, as well as ways we help clients improve their own sustainability.</p>
<h2>Americo’s sustainability commitment</h2>
<h3>Zero discharge facility</h3>
<p>Americo’s production facility is Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) compliant. This means that during production, no wastewater gets discharged to the environment. Waste materials are collected and handled appropriately. Where possible, water and other materials get cleaned and re-used in other processes.</p>
<h3>PFAS-free products</h3>
<p>PFAS substances are a group of chemicals used in a range of coatings and surface treatments. These chemicals—of which there are millions—typically provide non-stick, water resistant, and stain resistant properties to products. Think of Chemours’ well-known Teflon anti-stick pans. That’s PFAS in action.</p>
<p>While PFAS substances are useful, they’re also harmful to people and the environment. They are so-called “forever chemicals” that don’t break down naturally in the environment. Instead, they persist in ecosystems and even within organisms—humans included—contributing to a range of chronic health conditions including breast and testicular cancer, low fertility rates in men, and various hormonal disruptions.</p>
<p>PFAS and other forever chemicals are targets for regulation and restriction. Recently, the EPA set an official limit on PFAS levels in drinking water. Companies like 3M have made commitments to cease PFAS production by 2025.</p>
<p>Americo is a PFAS-free facility. We have elected not to offer PFAS products as part of our commitment to reducing our environmental footprint.</p>
<h3>Input and output analysis</h3>
<p>Americo operates its own business with the same quality management techniques we apply to each client. By understanding our manufacturing inputs, outputs, and processes inside and out, we’re continually working to improve our efficiency, safety, and environmental sustainability.</p>
<h3>Commitment to long-term employee satisfaction</h3>
<p>We’re proud of the number of long-term full-time employees at Americo. Superior processes are core to our offering. Maintaining a healthy, safe, and happy workforce who know our methodology and can effectively execute our processes ensures customer satisfaction, consistent product quality, and strong company culture. By putting people first, we address both social and economic sustainability.</p>
<h2>How can Americo help make manufacturing more sustainable?</h2>
<h3>Safe and sustainable alternatives to hazardous chemicals</h3>
<p>Safety and sustainability often go hand-in-hand. Safer and more convenient to handle chemicals are easier to use and dispose of properly. No employee wants to risk life and limb dealing with harsh chemicals if an alternative is available. In this way, safe chemistry contributes to social and economic sustainability, as reducing the risk threshold in your facility may increase worker satisfaction and employee retention.</p>
<p>Safer or less polluting alternatives sometimes carry a reputation for lesser efficacy or higher costs. While this may be true in some cases, customization and process adjustments can often mitigate these concerns. A consultation with our team may uncover safer options that don’t hamper your productivity or eat into your margins.</p>
<h3>Phosphate discharge monitoring and management</h3>
<p>While not all municipalities and regions have the same stringent requirements concerning phosphate discharge, it’s become a focus area for wastewater management.</p>
<p>When discharged, phosphates add phosphorus to the local environment. Phosphorus is an important building block for plant life, often acting as a limiting factor in plant growth rate—hence the use of phosphorus-based fertilizer in agriculture.</p>
<p>This becomes a problem when waterways become oversaturated with phosphorus. Disruptive and even deadly algae blooms can occur as a result. These explosions in algal growth result in “dead zones” where oxygen levels drop too low to sustain fish and other aquatic lifeforms. They can clog drains and other infrastructure, ruin recreational areas, and generate noxious odors.</p>
<p>As a result of these challenges, more and more local and state governments demand strict limits on the amount of phosphorus discharged from facilities of all types. We help manufacturers upgrade their wastewater management process, using precipitants, physical filtration, and other methods to reduce wastewater complexity before discharge. This not only protects local environments; there are significant cost-savings associated with decreasing the complexity of your industrial waste in the form of reduced disposal fees and less risk of fines.</p>
<h3>Bath life optimization</h3>
<p>Another way we assist companies in reducing their environmental footprint is by reducing their overall waste output. Many manufacturing processes rely on chemical baths. These baths may require frequent changeover for a variety of reasons: sludge formation, depletion of reactive chemicals, or other forms of contamination.</p>
<p>In many cases, we can increase the so-called “bath life” of your process. That may mean advanced filtration techniques, the use of coagulants or clumping agents to make sludge and debris removal easier, or the introduction of additives that prolong the reactive life of your baths.</p>
<p>By reducing bath changeovers through superior technology, your facility can squeeze more out of every dollar spent on process chemicals while lowering your waste output.</p>
<h3>Counterflow/chemical &amp; heat capture</h3>
<p>While waste is inevitable in manufacturing, there are ways to recapture a great deal of otherwise lost heat with the right planning and setup. In this way, companies can effectively “double dip” on some of their resources, reducing their overall consumption.</p>
<p>A counterflow setup exposes hot process water to cool intake water (or vice versa, depending on the process) in an efficient way, facilitating highly efficient heat transfer. By configuring a counterflow setup instead of a parallel setup, we can help facilities achieve significant utility bill savings by reducing heat waste.</p>
<h3>Equipment rehabilitation</h3>
<p>In many cases, newer equipment offers greater efficiency, including better water and energy efficiency that results in better sustainability. However, equipment changeovers are expensive, disruptive, and have a “pay-back period” before their up-front environmental footprint gets outweighed by more efficient operation. Consider the environmental footprint of an electric vehicle. Replacing a gas-powered car with an EV is a good long-term strategy to reduce emissions, but it may take thousands of miles of driving before the EV “breaks even” versus maintaining the older gas vehicle.</p>
<p>With these practical considerations in mind, rehabilitating equipment can improve its efficiency and extend its life, allowing facilities to budget for an upgrade on a schedule that works for them. By providing a longer runway for companies to upgrade their equipment, we can help make the transition to sustainable technology easier and more affordable.</p>
<h2>Conclusion: a path to sustainability for every manufacturer</h2>
<p>Whether due to a desire for cost-savings, out of a need to avoid costly fines and disposal fees, or stemming from a genuine personal commitment to sustainability, there are strong business cases for any manufacturer to consider optimizing their chemical processes.</p>
<p>On whatever scale you plan to improve your manufacturing sustainability, Americo Chemical is a valuable and experienced partner. Interested in learning more? Contact us today to schedule a free consultation.</p>
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Americo Chemical Achieves Prestigious TT-C-490 Military Certification for Surface Treatment

<p>Americo Chemical is proud to announce its inclusion in the Department of Defense Qualified Products Database under the TT-C-490 certification for surface treatment for military approved paint coatings.</p>
<p>Achieving this certification is no small feat. Americo’s coatings were subjected to thousands of hours of testing under extreme simulated and real-world conditions, meeting the highest standard for surface treatment quality and durability. After 5 years of rigorous testing, Americo was approved as a qualified military supplier on 2/18/25.</p>
<p>The TT-C-490 standard covers surface treatment for steel, aluminum, and steel/aluminum combinations. A product must be approved for use with at least one metal type under at least one application method. Americo’s AMB 5147 product is approved for steel, aluminum, and steel/aluminum combinations (Classes A, B, and C), mill-finished or blasted. It is approved for seven of eight possible cleaning methods.</p>
<p>This broad approval makes Americo’s product the category leader among TT-C-490 approved coatings–approved for more metals and methods than any similarly certified product.</p>
<p>The TT-C-490 certification reflects Americo’s commitment to technical excellence and innovation in surface treatment systems. Its leading performance is a testament to the hard work and talent of our team, and a validation of our total systems approach to continual product improvement. Americo is one of few chemical companies with surface treatment products approved by the Department of Defense, joining the likes of Henkel and Chemetall as world leaders in surface treatment technology.</p>
<p>Americo Chemical is owned by the Missouri-based Harbour Group of companies and headquartered in Elgin, Illinois. We are pleased to offer a wide range of quality, made-in-America metal surface treatment products for nearly any application.</p>


Articles

<p>A more efficient line starts with the right partner. With Americo’s hands-on expertise, optimized chemistry, and ongoing support, you can reduce energy use while improving quality. We look at everything that affects energy consumption and help build a system that exceeds performance expectations without driving up utility costs.</p>


Working Together for More Efficient Cleaning

Improving Energy Efficiency in Cleaning and Pretreatment Systems

<p>Energy is a significant, but quiet driver of cost in any cleaning or pretreatment system. When energy use creeps up, it affects everything from throughput to bath stability to coating quality.</p>
<p>Most facilities don’t notice the issue until something becomes impossible to ignore. The good news is that with the right adjustments, cleaning and pretreatment systems can run far more efficiently without sacrificing performance.</p>
<p>At Americo Chemical Products, we help our customers pinpoint where energy is being lost and make practical improvements that deliver quick results.</p>
<h2><b>Why Energy Use Keeps Increasing</b></h2>
<p>Cleaning and pretreatment lines are demanding systems. They rely on heat, flow, and chemical balance to perform well, and each of those elements has an energy cost behind it. Over time, small changes add up.</p>
<p>Here are some of the common reasons energy efficiency is subpar in cleaning and pretreatment operations:</p>
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">Tanks lose heat faster than expected</li>
<li aria-level="1">Overcompensating for process issues</li>
<li aria-level="1">Pour maintenance</li>
</ul>
<p>Each of these factors increases energy consumption, and each increase has a cost. Over time, issues add up to operational and financial losses, all from a system that simply isn’t running as efficiently as it could.</p>
<h2><b>How Americo Helps Improve Energy Efficiency</b></h2>
<p>Our goal is to help you get better performance while using less energy, without slowing production or requiring major system upgrades.</p>
<p>Here’s how we make that happen:</p>
<ol>
<li aria-level="1"><b>Optimized Cleaning Chemistry. </b>We design and recommend cleaners that work effectively at lower temperatures, reducing your heating demand while still delivering strong cleaning performance.</li>
<li aria-level="1"><b>Optimized Pretreatment Chemistry. </b>We tailor pretreatment solutions that perform reliably at ambient or lower temperatures, helping reduce heating demands while maintaining consistent surface preparation and coating performance.</li>
<li aria-level="1"><b>Support for Operators and Maintenance Teams. </b>We work directly with your operators to help them understand how temperature and chemistry interact.</li>
</ol>
<p>The result is a cleaning or pretreatment system that performs better, costs less to run, and supports a more consistent coating process.</p>


Improving Energy Efficiency in Cleaning and Pretreatment Systems

Why Energy Use Keeps Increasing

How Americo Helps Improve Energy Efficiency

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IoT and Custom Chemicals: How Smart Sensors Enable Better Manufacturing Outcomes

Process methods for improving manufacturing sustainability

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