Standards and certifications are important. For Apple Rubber, they ensure that our o-rings and seals are manufactured to exacting standards that deliver consistency, reliability, and safety in sealing applications. We’re proud to highlight a few certifications we’ve achieved.
ISO 9001 and AS9100
Apple Rubber earned ISO 9001 Registration, the most comprehensive standard in the ISO 9000 series, from TUV Rheinland of North America, Inc. This means we’ve developed a quality management system to design, manufacture, and sell rubber sealing components for industries like aerospace and medical, among others. Meeting this standard shows that we excel in testing our o-rings and seals through quality and process control. ISO 9001 was established by the International Organization of Standardization (ISO) and is widely used in the European Union (EU).
AS9100 is a standard that builds on and enhances the requirements of ISO 9001. It is the new quality standard of the aerospace industry that emphasizes rigorous expectations. Meeting this standard is important because many original equipment manufacturers will only work with a handful of suppliers, like Apple Rubber, that meet it. AS9100 shows that we consistently provide high-quality products for the aerospace industry, from o-ring and seal design to production. AS9100 was developed by SAE International (Society of Automotive Engineers) and is widely used in the United States (US).
AS568 and ISO 3601
AS568 and ISO 3601 are both the Aerospace Size Standards for o-rings; the former is used in the US and is measured in standard sizes, while the latter is used in the EU as well as internationally and is primarily measured in metric sizes. Both standards specify o-ring inside diameters, tolerances, side identification, and cross-sections to ensure o-rings can handle a variety of factors, such as different temperatures.
The versatility of both AS568 and ISO 3601 standards is used for o-rings in the oil and gas industry for valves and pumps; in industrial applications for manufacturing processes; and, as mentioned by SAE, in automotive applications for fuel systems. Our o-rings are categorized by three characteristics: size, hardness, and material. Our o-ring size search allows you to find common AS568 standard sizes and ISO 3601 metric sizes to help you find what you’re looking for. Our in-house capabilities allow us to create and fine-tune AS568 and ISO 3601-compliant o-rings and seals for the fields mentioned above, as well as in the military and medical areas.
Class 10,000 ISO 7 Certified Cleanroom
What is a cleanroom? It’s a specific room designed to limit product exposure to environmental pollutants. For the medical industry, o-rings and seals need to be thoroughly tested, accurate, and developed in an environment with contamination control. ISO 7 is a strict cleanroom classification, while Class 10,000 refers to the maximum allowable number of airborne particles 0.5 micrometers in diameter. Class 10,000 is strict to match the requirements of the medical field.
Our certified cleanroom facilities reflect our commitment to meeting demands for cleanroom processing, medical liquid silicone rubber (LSR) molding, heightened quality assurance, and full lot traceability. Our cleanroom features a washer capable of force cleaning rubber parts, a water purification system, and a fully automated ultrasonic parts cleaning system. For some (technical) specifics, our Hot Topic goes into more detail about our cleanroom.
We’re Certified to Help You
You’ve read about how we meet standards, so let us meet yours. Reach out to us today for your next project.