Inside SMI ©iStockphoto.com/seraficus
2020 ISO/TC227 Meeting Goes Virtual Due to COVID-19, the 2020 ISO/TC 227 meetings were held virtually for the first time from Sept. 16-18, 2020. This included the springs online working group and main committee meetings. The U.S. was well represented by Tom Armstrong, chairman of Duer/Carolina Coil; Richard Gordon, SMI’s technical director; Al Mangels, chief technical advisor, Lee Spring; Don Jacobson III, product development and acquisitions manager, Newcomb Spring; Keith Porter, general manager, Newcomb Spring of Carolina; and Daniel Lewis, quality manager, Newcomb Spring of Tennessee.
More than 25 participants from nine primary member countries (China, Germany, Italy, France, United Kingdom, United States, Japan, Malaysia, and Thailand) were present via WebEx. Online meetings were hosted by the DIN (Deutsches Institut für Normung). The U.S. delegation representing the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is essential to ensuring that the interests of American spring manufacturers, designers, and consumers are represented in international standards development. SMI serves as the technical advisory group to ANSI for TC227.
Working Group 2 is responsible for the development of the new ISO standard “Springs – Measurement and Test Parameters – Part 1: Cold Formed Cylindrical Helical Compression Springs”. This standard is in the final stage of the standards development process with the standard being moved forward to the final approval balloting. Working Group 3 is responsible for the development of the new ISO standard “Springs – Measurement and Test Parameters – Part 2: Cold Formed Cylindrical Helical Extension Springs.” Draft comments were reviewed and the next draft of the standard will be prepared for the next review step. Working Group 4 was established for the development of a new ISO standard “Springs – Measurement and Test Parameters – Part 3: Torsion Springs.” The delegation from China will lead the development of this standard. The status of these projects will be reviewed at the next ISO/TC227 meetings, scheduled for Sept. 30 – Oct. 1, 2021, in Las Vegas, Nevada. SMI will host the meetings at the South Point Resort and Casino immediately following the 2021 SMI Metal Engineering eXpo. Anyone interested in participating in the ISO standards process should contact either Gordon at c.richard.gordon@gmail. com or Armstrong at toma@dccoil.com.
Residual Stress Study Available The SMI study, “Microhardness Residual Stress Study: Effect of Stress Relieving Temperature on Tensile Strength, Residual Stress and Microhardness,” was written by Dan Sebastian and released to the spring industry in 2017. The study details the effects of stress relieving on mechanical springs made from four wire sizes and three different indexes of Cr-Si ASTM 401. Measurements were made using X-ray diffraction and microhardness. The preponderance of data clearly establishes a direct relationship between microhardness and residual stress.
The use of microhardness provides an alternate method to document the effects of stress relieving. Sebastian is a former SMI president and currently serves as a technical consultant to the association. He’s also a regular contributor to Springs through his “Dean of Springs” column. Every SMI member company received a complimentary copy. Additional copies of the study can be purchased at the SMI website, www.smihq.org. The cost per copy is $400 for members and $1,000 for non-members.
SPRINGS / Winter 2021 / 71
