MSD outsmarted supply chain disruption to solve problem for fast-food chain

Solution

The client’s engineering team worked with our R&D Manager, Daniel Robinson, to test multiple silicone gasketing materials under all of their conditions. We ultimately determined that the Rogers Bisco BF1000 was the perfect material for the gasket. Bisco BF1000 is an extra soft cellular silicone that is highly flame resistant and ideal for sealing outdoor enclosures and protecting electronics from shock and heat and providing cushioning and vibration isolation. The extra softness in the material allows designers to use less force to seal enclosures while protecting devices from the environment — in this case moisture, grease and harsh cleaners.

Once we selected the gasket, we ran into another challenge. As production kicked off on this product, severe supply chain issues hit the silicone industry. We simply couldn’t get all the gaskets the customer needed. Rogers literally couldn’t get the raw material they needed. So we got creative, and brought our industry expertise into play.

In order to keep our customer’s production line up and running, our R&D Manager, Daniel, worked with Rogers and other industry contacts to locate small amounts of material. This allowed us to keep supplying our customer with partial orders until we could receive the full raw material stock.

Results

This fast food chain has been able to keep up with the demand from their customers. They were never forced to stop production because of the silicone gasket problem. Because of MSD’s industry expertise and our relationships with our suppliers, this hard time with supply chain challenges helped solidify our relationship with our customer as a trusted supplier and business partner.