Selecting the right adhesive equipment can improve your company's efficiency and productivity whether you work in the automotive, appliance, bookbinding, circuit board assembly, electronics, food and beverage, furniture, medical, metal finishing, packaging and kitting, semiconductor, life sciences or many other industries. Additionally, adhesives leave your product with a cleaner look that doesn't show a lot of drilled holes or visible screws and nails.

Fortunately, you'll find plenty of adhesive equipment suppliers, manufacturers and distributors to choose from. Depending on the amount of adhesive work you routinely accomplish, the materials you bond together and your available floor footprint for equipment, make sure you check out several options before you purchase your new equipment:

1. Locate equipment manufacturers that specialize in adhesive equipment.

2. Consider purchasing hand-held adhesive equipment for small jobs.

3. Go to distributors and suppliers of adhesive equipment to purchase your spare parts and accessories.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Locate manufacturers of adhesive equipment

Equipment manufacturers will work with you to ensure you get the right industrial adhesive equipment for your company.

I recommend: To save space, purchase the Datco Mini Roll for the most affordable gluing equipment around. The portable adhesive application equipment weighs in at a mere 16 pounds and can work in a number of applications that range from packaging to woodworking. If searching for adhesive equipment manufacturers that build adhesive melters, look no further than Nordson, a business that formally originated in 1954. The company's ProBlue Melters use piston-pump technology to deliver top-notch performance and user-friendly daily operation. The melter's tank capacity ranges from 4 to 50 liters, and you can select a two-, four- or six-gun operation using plug-in hose/gun modules. Consider any of the adhesive spreaders and hot melt roller coaters from The Union Tool Corporation when you need glue equipment. Their rollers coat in roll widths from 6 to 120 inches.

Order hand-held adhesive equipment for small jobs

If you consider your adhesive work to be on the small scale and you're working with a really tight budget and/or really limited space, consider a hand-held glue gun or some other hand-held system to accomplish the task.

I recommend: For a hand-held bulk adhesive applicator, go to the PAM Fastening Technology website. This fastening and adhesive equipment supplier offers both extrusion and spray tools. Order the hot-melt bonding system from Fastenal, an industrial supplies and adhesive equipment distributor. Their 3M Polygun LT Applicator with Quadrack Converter provides speed, convenience and economy for manual carton sealing and other operations.

Locate adhesive equipment distributors, manufacturers and suppliers for spare parts and accessories

Ensure your equipment performs at peak levels by relying on the most precise, effective and efficient accessories and spare parts you can find.

I recommend: Alleviate the potential for messy drips and run-ons with No-Drip, Snuf-Bak and Tip-Seal dispense valves from Sealant Equipment & Engineering, an adhesive equipment manufacturer since 1967. This company provides a two-year warranty to all its customers. Visit the Vita Needle website to order needles designed for dispensing and applying adhesives that typically clog or drip. This fourth-generation company started up during the Great Depression and serves Fortune 500 companies and start-up businesses in more than 50 industries. Go to HAECO to purchase aftermarket Valco-compatible applicator heads, valves, seal kits and other miscellaneous parts for your adhesive equipment. By purchasing after-market parts, you can save up to 30%.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  If adhesive application comprises the bulk of your business and you want to invest in expensive equipment, but your budget won't allow it, consider leasing the adhesive dispensing equipment you need. Perform your due diligence to see if leasing will allow you to conserve your working capital, keep your credit line open for other needs, save on taxes and avoid rapid obsolescence of the adhesive equipment you operate.