scope:

Introduction

The Ministry of Defence (MOD), a major customer of rubber products which range from rubber flooring to safety critical components, are concerned that quite common tests for density, tensile strength, ageing and others appear to have poor repeatability. This causes problems not only from the testing point of view but has cast doubt on the test limits and the level of requirements contained in British and Defence Standards.

A "round robin" test programme was organized in which seven test laboratories listed in the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Register of Quality Assessed Companies took part. Samples of rubber specified in each of the Defence Standards being examined were manufactured under controlled conditions. Samples that were supplied to the test houses could therefore be identified as coming from the same controlled batch removing the possibility of obtaining different results because of different materials and/or processes.