Testing Sandwich Elements with a Modernized Universal Testing Machine
Sto SE & Co. KGaA in Stühlingen, Germany is an international group of companies and a worldwide leading provider in the field of thermal insulation composite systems.
High demands on technical safety with simultaneous high stress demand reliable test results for components and materials. Construction materials are subjected to continuous mechanical stress throughout their service life and must therefore be diligently researched and tested. During the development process and throughout production, tensile, compression, flexure and shear tests are performed on facade components (sandwich elements) for this purpose.
Up-to-date technology through modernization
For future-proof and state-of-the-art testing, a 250 kN floor-standing testing machine from 1995 was modernized and mechanically overhauled. During a modernization, the testing machine is dismantled down to the load frame, it is then freshly painted, re-assembled with the latest components and equipped with the most current testing software. With that said, the testing software was upgraded from testXpert to testXpert III, ensuring important Windows 10 capability for the future.
Equipped for any test task
If after a modernization project the testing machine has been updated with the latest technology, any accessory and test tool in our portfolio can be retrofitted. Any changing or new test requirement can be addressed.
In this testing machine we installed a swiveling multiXtens extensometer—the most versatile of extensometers—as the new displacement measuring system. Pneumatic grips were chosen for the specimen grips, which are operated using a foot control unit, thereby meeting all legal requirements, such as inching operation.
Based on a long-standing and strong partnership, ZwickRoell was chosen by Sto for the modernization of this testing machine. ZwickRoell provides expert consulting and support services far beyond the modernization project. Our testXpert testing software and the multiXtens feature easy and intuitive operation.
