Astro Chemical Company, Inc.

tor/motor, composites, and electrical equipment, the need for specialty products is greater than ever.As these technologies continue to devel- op,Astro Chemical has served as a key partner to its customers, helping to develop their evolving technologies to provide the exact products that fit both their assembly process and desired ‘in-service’ functional properties.” Research and development is a huge part of Astro’s focus.The big- gest investment, by far, in the last 10 to 15 years, has been in the lab; building out internal testing capabilities, processes, personnel, and expanding institutional knowledge. As customer needs have evolved, the typical legacy-type properties specified are now being called for at higher temperatures. Arnold notes,“Higher temperatures fundamen- tally change the waymaterials perform, especially with materials like adhesives and encapsulants. Evolving customer requirements necessi- tate more specialized testing equipment and expertise. Lately, a grow- ing trend in our development work has focused on enhancing thermal conductivity in our products.Over a long service life, higher tempera- tures can be a problem for certain materials, to the detriment of criti-