A SPECIAL NOTE ON VIRUSES AND BACTERIA IN RESPECT TO ALUMINUM SURFACES:
At this time of extreme health concern, specifiers must carefully consider how material choices may impact the spread of viruses, bacteria, and infectious diseases in healthcare facilities and other public spaces.
While much about the coronavirus is still under investigation, research has demonstrated significant differences in the longevity of viruses on various surfaces, and there are a variety of treatments that appear to further reduce the growth and survival of viruses and bacteria, enhancing the surface’s ability to destroy pathogens.
A major research study published in the Journal of Hospital Infection tested human coronavirus strains for longevity on various material surfaces and found that the virus lasted only two to eight hours on aluminum, but days on many other materials.
We encourage you to access the full white paper on this topic which can be found at AEC.org.
Are you familiar with Moore’s Law?
It’s an observation made by Gordon Moore, cofounder of Intel. It posits that the number of transistors in a dense integrated circuit doubles every two years. Put simply, this means that computer hardware, as it becomes more complex, also becomes smaller.
You’ve seen it firsthand. Compare the bulky first smartphone you purchased back in 2007 to the shiny new smartphone you have in your pocket right now. It’s thinner, bigger, and packs WAY more energy-per-gram than it did a decade ago.
As tech companies are in a constant race to make things micro-sized, industrial OEMS must seek out new technologies to keep up.
Enter microextrusions – a recent process that delivers features, tolerances, and surface finishes previously believed to be impossible. Advancement in microextrusion allows design engineers the freedom to utilize component designs in microextrusion which enhance functionality and performance beyond normal extruded parts.
Below, we outline some different aspects of consumer electronics that rely on precision aluminum extrusions in their designs.
CPU HEAT SINKS
The CPU (central processing unit) is akin to the brain of the computer – it performs the arithmetic, logic, and I/O operations based on the instructions from other computer components. This heavy workload leaves CPUs prone to overheating, and as such, require a heat sink to disperse heat and keep the component cool.
Advancements in microextrusion technology allow for heat sink designs to disperse heat even more effectively. Keeping your CPU at a good operating temperature is essential for long-term performance!
MOTHERBOARDS
Microextrusions are used in motherboards to create housing for ethernet and USB ports, as well as housing for DVI, HDMI, and sound input and output ports.
Microextrusions are also used for the crucial CPU socket, which often uses a latch to securely house the CPU and attach it to the motherboard.
GRAPHICS PROCESSING UNITS
Graphics cards, such as NVIDIA’s recent Titan V, are often housed in an aluminum shell to keep the internals of the GPU safe and secure (and it looks absolutely stunning to boot!).
HARD DRIVE BAYS
Most modern hard drives come with mounting brackets and are housed in a computer case by sliding them through an extruded aluminum hard drive bay. This keeps them secure during operation – hard drives are very susceptible to damage from physical shock, so keeping them secure is important!
LED PROFILE BAYS
LED lights are often housed in microextruded profile bays – the extremely fine materials and plastics used to create it allow the LED lights to shine through while also keeping them protected from the environments.
EXTRUDED ENCLOSURES
Since consumer electronics often make use of sensitive magnets, aluminum is perfectly suited to house those components. This is because aluminum does not spark, melt, or rust, and can be customized to fit the need of any product.
About Taber Extrusions
Founded in 1973, Taber Extrusions originally pioneered a process for extruding rectangular billet which enables the company to extrude solid profiles up to 31 inches wide or hollows up to 29 inches. Taber expanded with the purchase of an extrusion facility in Gulfport, MS in 1995 which houses a new state of the art cast house and two additional presses, micro-extrusion capabilities, and the fabrication area has been expanded multiple times.
Taber continues to extrude billet in a wide range of alloys and sizes and has diversified its markets beyond military since its inception to include aerospace, automotive, marine, infrastructure, and sporting goods, among many others. For these markets, the company supplies cast and extruded products in a variety of soft and hard alloys.
Today, Taber Extrusions has completed the addition of in-house friction stir-welding capabilities, and carries on their offering of extruded aluminum components, value-added machining services and raw material supply to the North American market – making them a vertically integrated supplier of FSW panels and assemblies never before seen in North America.
Follow Taber Extrusions
LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/company/8843183/
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/taberextrusions/
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/taberextrusions
Interested in becoming a part of the Taber Team?
Submit your resume to careers@taberextrusions.com.