Ultrasonic Cleaner for Laboratory, Industry, Medical, Glass, Plating, Electronics
About Elma Ultrasonics
50 years at the cutting edge of ultrasonic cleaner technology
We are a, global, ambitious and reliable business. This is ELMA, manufacturers of quality products for the ultrasonic cleaning of highly sensitive components for over 50 years. Our business focuses on ultrasonic cleaning technology. We lead the world in ultrasonic technology.
Our product range in ultrasonic cleaning is probably the largest worldwide, including bench top ultrasonic cleaning units all the way to specially designed installations. From the smallest table-top unit for the cleaning of glasses; to a 20-stage special installation for the fine cleaning of computer chips in the manufacturing process - ELMA ultrasound technology is the core of every product.
The electronic/physical ultrasonic technology is extensively studied in our own chemical department. Our findings help to round off our product range and allow us to develop and produce cleaning solution suitable for the use in ultrasonic units, both standard and custom made no matter what the applicaiton.
In addition to ultrasonic technology, ELMA follows its tradition and develops, manufactures and distributes a wide range of special appliances for the watchmaker and jeweller.
The satisfaction of our customers is our top priority with all of our 200 staff members so in our process-oriented working style the achievement of EN ISO 9001-2000 certification is a matter of course. The world-wide approval of our customers proves the efficiency of our quality management and is at the same time a challenge for even further improvements.
Elma Ultrasonic: Yesterday
50 years of Precision Machine Fabrication
The "Präzisionsmaschinenfabrik" founded in 1947 by Hans Schmidbauer was the cradle of ELMA. Originally a watchmaker and goldsmith, Hans Schmidbauer started his business in the small town of Singen in Southern Germany, close to the Swiss border and in the vicinity of the south German watch manufacturers. His first machine was a semi-automatic cleaning machine for watches that he had designed himself. In the economically successful years after the war the small business expanded rapidly and soon manufactured other machines for the watch and jewellery workshops. This was also the time when the first export activities started. International awards were proof of the solid quality of the ELMA machines. Soon, watchmakers all over the world linked the name ELMA with the slogan "Made in Germany". This good reputation has lasted to the present day. Even now, machines sold in the very first years of the business are returned to Singen for maintenance and repair.
The ultrasonic technology was introduced to the watch and jewellery branches in the 60s. Formerly laborious and hazardous cleaning methods could now be replaced by new, safer ones. Thanks to ELMA, the ultrasonic technology, combined with branch-specific cleaning media, has found access to many watchmakers' and jewellers' workshops.
The invention of the crystal watch in the early 70s brought a stop to the expansion of the watch business branch. The new watch works require less servicing and so the watchmakers needed fewer service appliances. When Manfred H. Schmidbauer followed the tradition of his father in 1973 and took over the responsibility for ELMA, he had to react to the decline of the watch business and so introduced the ultrasonic technology to other business branches adjusting at the same time both technology and cleaning chemicals to the new requirements. Also, the international distributional activities were aimed at numerous branches, such as the optics, laboratory and dental business sectors. It was in this period that the distributional subsidiaries in Austria and Switzerland were founded. The entrepreneurial concept worked out well. ELMA could stand its ground and - based on their technology - has constantly gained new market shares on an international level.
As the ultrasonic technology expanded, chemical cleaning media specially designed for various branches became more and more important. ELMA now started research and production of special cleaning chemicals on a bigger scale. In 1985, ELMA founded a separate chemical production site.
In the 80s, ELMA profited further from its wide know how in the field of ultrasonic technology and started the design and construction of multiple-stage ultrasonic cleaning installations. Since then, customer-specific cleaning problems have been solved by designing and manufacturing tailor-cut installations. The prohibition of cleaning media hazardous to the environment took its full effect in this stage, so that ELMA was forced to expand its research and subsequently its range of environment-friendly products and installations for the various business applications faster than planned.
As a consequence the construction offices and assembly premises needed much more room, so that new premises had to be searched: the ELMA business site in the industrial area of Singen presented the solution. In 1991, the company moved part of its business to the new buildings. Since then, all assembly and mounting departments, the logistics and the industrial installations departments are housed there.
Ready for the future challenges, ELMA has started the new millenium working in the following business sectors:
- servicing equipment and appliances for the watch and jewellery branch
– ultrasonic cleaning units for various branches
– cleaning chemicals, particularly for the use in ultrasonic cleaning units
– cleaning installations for the industrial fine cleaning
Ultrasonic Cleaners Related Terms
Acoustic/Acoustics – Pertaining to the energy of sound waves and the science and application of acoustic energy produced by ultrasonic cleaners.
Acoustic Streaming – Currents flowing in one direction through a fluid because of sonic waves, like the action of transducers in ultrasonic cleaners.
Agitation – Rotation of components that allows cleaning solution and cavitation to remove contaminants.
Amplification – Mechanical amplitude rising from both ends of an acoustic element. Amplification within ultrasonic cleaners can be negative or positive.
Aqueous Cleaning – The use of water-based solutions for the cleansing process.
Basket – Small-parts container comprised of mesh or containing holes.
Blind Hole – An air pocket in a component where the cleaning solution cannot reach and the cavitation process cannot occur.
Cavitation – Cleansing bubbles caused by ultrasonic waves in liquid, which create negative pressure.
Cascade Rinse – The succession of rinses used for the washed part(s). Water flows in a direction opposite of the flow of the parts, which allows for exposure to cleaner water throughout the process.
Centrifugal Drying Ultrasonic Cleaners – Use a basket that spins to enable the water and contaminants to separate from the surface of the cleansed part(s).
Cleaning Chemicals – Water-based detergent or organic solvents that provide an intense amount of cavitation energy.
Cleanliness Check – A water break testing process used to determine if the components are free of oil and other contaminants. A surface quality monitor takes measurement for thin films of contaminants.
Closed-loop System – A system in which wastewater is recycled once it has been treated and purified so it can be re-circulated through the wash and rinse tanks in aqueous cleaning systems.
Continuous Wave – Acoustic wave used in many ultrasonic cleaners. Parts exposure to this wave occurs throughout the full process.
Critical Cleaning – The cleanest stage possible for the components to experience. Cleanliness is essential for the uses of the product.
Diaphragm – A device used in ultrasonic cleaners to generate vibrations.
Dryer – The device used in the process of removing moisture from components.
Electrode – The ultrasonic cleaners component that provides electrical energy at the preferred ultrasonic frequency to the transducer. Electrodes are typically thin metal plates.
Generator – Also known as the "power supply," it is the ultrasonic cleaners component that provides energy and control to the converter or transducer of an ultrasonic device or system which is electronically run.
Hertz (Hz) – A measurement unit for frequency equal to cycles per second (cps). One Hertz is the same as one cps.
Horn – A common element of amplification that is equipped with a tip in a probe of ultrasonic cleaners.
Kilohertz (KHz) – A unit of measurement for frequency equal to one thousand cycles per second (cps).
Immersion Cleaning – Cleaning components by submerging them in an aqueous cleaning solution.
Load Requirement – A factor that affects the construction of the tank, generator choice and cleansing solution volume.
Loop – Point of maximum amplitude.
Node – Fixed point of minimum amplitude.
Piezoelectric Transducer – A ceramic crystal between two strips of tin. Voltage taken through the tin will displace through the ceramic crystal, and the diaphragm attached to the transducer then creates a pressure movement that makes a wave through the aqueous solution in the tank.
Probe – Specific to ultrasonics only, it refers to the converter, horn and tip system that receives power from a generator and performs work.
Rinse – Using clean water or solution to remove residual detergent.
Somewhat Critical Cleaning – The cleaning level that is lower than critical cleaning. Aesthetic or quality problems could occur if not cleaned well.
Somewhat Industrial Cleaning – Not as imperative as the cleanliness of critical or somewhat critical, but still poses an aesthetic or quality problem if not cleaned well enough.
Sonic – Pertaining to the velocity of speed of sound in contrast to ultrasonic. Labeling ultrasonic cleaners or devices within as sonic does not indicate that they are ultrasonic with cavitation, just that they vibrate components.
Surface Quality Monitor – Measures film depth of contaminant left on cleaned part.
Ultrasonic Cleaning Tanks – Containers to hold the solution and part(s), usually rectangular in shape and manufactured in almost any size.
Transducer – Component of ultrasonic cleaners that receives electrical energy from the generator or power supply and converts it into mechanical vibrations.
Ultrasonic Generator – Converts the frequency of standard electric into high frequency needed to create ultrasonic vibrations.
Vertical Agitation – An up-and-down motion in an aqueous solution, in which spray blasts clean the submerged parts. Ultrasonic cleaners offering vertical agitation provide a powerful cleaning method for parts containing blind holes or intricate passages.
Water Break Test – Determines if oil is no longer present on the cleaned part.