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Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP)

Physical Testing Provides Quick Results for R&D Project

With the help of: Mississippi Manufacturers Association Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MMA-MEP)

About

Avon Engineered Fabrications (AEF), LLC. established in 1986, offers customers a full range of elastomeric coated fabrics as well as state of the art joining/seaming techniques. AEF, formerly known as “Bell Avon” is a major supplier to the U.S. military including the Army, Air Force, Marines, Navy and Coast Guard. With-class leading design and production engineering capability, AEF is recognized as a world class supplier of industrial coated fabric goods. The products are in use worldwide with a reputation for high quality and long life. The company located in Picayune, Mississippi, and has over 40 employees.

The Challenge

The business uses its expertise in elastomeric coated fabrics to produce much-needed military products. To achieve this, the company needed destructive mechanical testing at high temperatures. AEF did not have the capacity to do this testing at their Picayune facility so Engineering Manager Robert Homes contacted the MMA-MEP Center at the Mississippi Polymer Institute, part of the MEP National Network™, for help.

Robert and Sara (with MPI) do an exceptional job assisting AEF with testing that is both a-typical and hard to accomplish swiftly. We are more than satisfied with the support from the MMA-MEP Center at MPI on this and other projects and will continue to use the local resource.

— Robert Homes, Engineering Manager

MEP's Role

Mississippi Polymer Institute performed this testing for product R&D using an Instron 5582, providing ASTM D751 testing of samples at room temperature as well as elevated temperatures.

 

Created October 27, 2022