J&S Adhesives are a UK based manufacturer of UV curing adhesives for bonding glass2glass and metal2metal for over three decades. They are leading manufacturers and suppliers behind the Safe2Bond and UV-Tek brands including super strength construction adhesives, windshield resins, and other specialised adhesives. All their products require curing under specialised UV light which makes their products particularly suited to the decorative glass industry.
The 2023 ban of UV fluorescent tube lights and lack of a modern alternatives to the out-dated large format curing benches provided a tantalising challenge. Working along-side J&S Adhesives we specified, designed, prototyped and built a brand new product specifically for curing UV adhesives used in the glazing industry. Along with their range of adhesives, these are now available for purchase through their website at www.jandsadhesives.com.
Energy Efficient
The old fluorescent tube light systems were hopelessly inefficient with a limited life-span leading to high running costs. The new curing bench must use long-life energy efficient LED technology whilst maintaining the same or better performance (curing times) compared to legacy systems.
LCD interface
Many older curing benches were developed in the 70's when 7-segment displays were all the rage. A new full colour LCD display which can feedback far more information to the operator would make the product more intuitive and allow additional features and functions. Settings and state must be clearly visible through a front-mounted LCD display.
Doubles as a regular light box
The bench must be able to function as a regular light table to aid in inspection and decorative glass work. A feature missing from most legacy curing benches was the ability to turn the bench into a regular white light box. Our expertise from the BEAM light boxes would be directly implemented into the benches in addition to the UV functionality.
Modern practical design
A strong lightweight and aesthetic design would ensure the product would be practical in various common use cases and also pleasure to use! The modern sleek design of the BEAM light box was the starting point with a toughened frosted glass screen. The brightness of the UV light and the white light must be adjustable.
Easy to clean
A minimal design which resists dust and moisture ingress with materials which are easily cleaned and maintained.
Low voltage architecture
A low voltage system would reduce electrical hazards to an operator and make clean down with water or other conductive fluids far safer.
From the beginning we wanted to work together with J&S Adhesives to help maximise the success of their product launch. We produced a series of videos with them outlining how the curing bench could be seamlessly used alongside their adhesives and also created a user guide and overview video for the curing bench itself. Here is that video.
We also worked closely to produce accurate marking material, images and documentation to support the product. The end result was a complete package from initial idea to a finished final product all in the span of just a few months.
Feedback from the end users has been overwhelmingly positive as this modern and sleek looking curing bench consumes over 80% less power, costs less to maintain and has more features than anything which came before.
"Matt and his team have worked with us to produce a UV LED adhesive curing bench, from start to finish their service and professionalism has been truly impressive, the finished product exceeded our expectations and our distributors have commented it looks like a product produced by Apple." - J&S Adhesives