The Challenge: A Tier I supplier to various leading OEMs approached DECC with a problem: Ford had challenged them to come up with a solution to an NVH issue they were facing. The problem at hand was excessive noise and squeaks caused by friction between the brake-pad and brake-pad clip in their brake assembly. Specialty grease was currently being applied to the brake-pad clip, but this process was not repeatable, was messy, and still did not entirely eliminate the NVH issue.
The Solution: DECC was instructed by the Tier I to apply a coating they thought would perform better than the grease. DECC was given the green light to select a coating of their own choosing that they thought could solve the problem, as well. DECC applied the two different coatings via their electrostatic line and submitted the brake-pad clips for testing.
The Result: Both sets of brake-pad clips were submitted to rigorous testing conditions, above and beyond what is normal, to determine just how well they could perform. It did not take long before something was glaringly apparent: the coating DECC chose was substantially outperforming the Tier I suggested coating. DECC’s coating was then tested against grease for side by side comparison and performed better than the grease by a significant margin. In fact, DECC’s suggested coating performed so well, the testing machine was actually shut off after over two million cycles with no sign of failure apparent.
Due to DECC’s extensive application experience they were able to select a resin that far exceeded their customer’s expectations. As a result, the coating is now specified on other Ford and GM brake-pad clips, making it a “new industry standard.”