Meet the ISM Team - Ryan Webber
Employee Spotlight July 15, 2019Ryan Webber – Sales Representative
Ryan has been at ISM for seven years, spending his first two years in the warehouse while learning this unique business before moving to the sales department five years ago. As part of the sales team, Ryan enjoys the challenge of finding solutions for his customers. His role at ISM allows him to use his ...
Meet the ISM Team - Travis Scott
Employee Spotlight June 3, 2019Travis Scott - Marketing Director
Travis, our Marketing Director, a former corporate recruiter for Microsoft, has been with ISM for the past 10 years.
Several years ago, Travis founded RainierDigital. RainierDigital provides insight, education, and training on all things in the world of ...
What is Cracking Pressure?
Check ValvesMiniature Valves May 24, 2019Why check valve cracking pressure is such a critical specification
What is check valve cracking pressure? Cracking pressure is the minimum upstream pressure required to open a check valve enough to allow detectable flow. Detectable flow is when the check valve allows a small but steady flow of liquid or gas to pass through the valve body and out through its outlet port.
A check valve’s cracking pressure is a technical specification and is usually provided as psi or psig (pounds per square inch or pounds per square inch gauge) or bar (the metric equivalent of psi and psig) or ...
About Stainless Steel Materials – The Why and The How
Materials March 6, 2019Why use stainless steel valves?
Stainless steel is a common material option for miniature flow control valves.
One reason for this is that stainless steels, like other metals, tend to be heavier but also stronger and tougher than plastics. Stainless steel materials, in particular, also have great corrosion resistance.
This blend of corrosion resistance and toughness is a ...
What is Kynar® Plastic? — PVDF Plastics for Flow Control Parts
Materials December 11, 2018What is Kynar® Plastic?
Kynar® is Arkema's trade name for their PVDF plastic. PVDF or polyvinylidene difluoride plastic is a tough, stable, very non-reactive thermoplastic.
PVDF is a useful engineered plastic because it has important advantages over other plastics: strength, durability, abrasion resistance, low permeability, recyclable and ...
Stainless Steel Materials for Miniature Flow Control Valves
Check ValvesMaterials Miniature Valves November 29, 2018Why stainless steel?
Stainless steel is a steel and so it is typically very strong. This gives it great pressure and temperature resistance. It is also a tougher, more durable metal than cast iron, ductile iron, brass or copper.
Stainless steels get their name from the fact that they are very corrosion resistant. This plus toughness and strength make them a preferred ...
Three-way Ball Valve Flow Patterns
Miniature Valves September 6, 2018Flow through three-way ball valves
Two-way and three-way ball valves are the most common types of ball valves. Three-way ball valves are especially useful because they can be set up in ways that simplify the control of gas and fluid flow. For example, they can be used to divert the flow of oil from one tank to another.
Our online and PDF flow control valve catalogs provide access to a wide variety of miniature valve types, connection types, materials and ....
Five Tips for Selecting the Right Valve
Check ValvesMiniature Valves August 1, 2018Choose the right valve means answering key questions first
Knowing what makes a valve the right choice
Valves control gas and liquid flow in almost every process and system. As common as they are, choosing the right valve can sometimes be time consuming and confusing.
Begin valve selection by first gathering some basic information on system performance requirements. Knowing this will make it easier to find the right valve. The five tips in this article focus on how to match valve features with these requirements...
Bundling and Sourcing Create Real Value
Customer Services June 21, 2018Supply chain excellence built on collaboration - The ISM Difference
Strategic procurement and supply management
Planning and organizing purchases is vital in business. Purchases affect facilities maintenance, design development and the production of final products. The best suppliers bring specialized experience and technical skills to all these challenges.
Supplier expertise contributes enhanced part sourcing plus it adds options for specialized add-on services. Useful services often include individualized kitting, bundling, parts customization and ...
Extruded, Forged or Cold-Drawn Brasses for Miniature Valves
Materials Miniature Valves June 20, 2018A look at the brasses used to make miniature ball and check valve bodies
Brass miniature valves are useful, reliable and economical
Wrought brasses, alloys of copper and zinc, are frequently used as the body material for metal mini check valves and ball valves. A major reason for this is brass performs well at temperatures ranging from about -325 to 425 °F (-198 to 218°C).
Equally important, the brass alloys used to make valve bodies can be quickly and accurately shaped using automated machining techniques. The result is that ...
