Hallite Seals International Ltd. has unveiled its refreshed branding and announced that it will expand its UK product testing capabilities. One key strength of Hallite is its ability to build long-term partnerships across the entire supply chain. This was the focus from the company’s beginning in 1903 with the original partnership of the Hall brothers, and it is one of many distinctive competitive advantages underscored on the company’s journey to a new look and feel.
The work involved in refreshing the Hallite brand began with its customers and their feedback which was obtained through a series of qualitative interviews. This led to the development of an in-depth customer decision map, which became the focus of globally-led workshops where multifunctional teams collaborated to align Hallite vision and strategic projects with customer expectations.
These conversations led Hallite to update its website, which was designed with the customer journey in mind. It features and focuses on key elements of the Hallite portfolio, history, and benefits.
With the launch of the new website, Hallite also introduces a new customer and partner exclusive portal — the Hallite Academy. The easy-to-use portal hosts a flexible, shareable fluid power training platform. Trainees gain practical knowledge about hydraulic sealing products based on demonstrations on applying them in industrial equipment.
Topics covered in the Academy include seal and cylinder terminology, seal types and failure modes, common cylinder designs and applications such as agriculture, mining, injection molding, material handling, and more. The intuitive platform allows users to click through components and dive deep into specific Hallite seal types, providing more information on designs suitable for these common markets and uses.
The Hallite Academy also hosts the Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) partnership platform that showcases external testing capabilities. For almost a decade, Hallite has partnered with MSOE to push the boundaries of hydraulic seal product testing and produce repeatable and comparable results that benefit the end-user.
The MSOE partnership will continue to focus on endurance-based testing and benchmark testing against incumbent products or existing or alternative products in the Hallite portfolio. According to Chuck White, Director of Sales and Marketing at Hallite Seals Americas, Hallite has partnered with MSOE for almost a decade for product testing — white papers on these will be available on the Academy, with animations included for some of them to see how they operate.
White highlighted four innovative test methods developed with MSOE, including its piston seal endurance test stand, rod seal endurance test stand, cold cylinder start-up test stand, and its first rod wiper dirt ingression test stand, which allowed Hallite to benchmark current and new, potential rod wiper designs.
White added that Hallite is investing in a U.S. premier distributor program and growing global distribution program. “Distributors help Hallite offer the highest range of service on our fluid power sealing products,” White said.
Hallite is also pleased to announce plans to expand its UK product testing facilities. The plan involves enhancing current test and laboratory capabilities for improved characterization and comparing materials. And it involves moving all equipment into a single state-of-the-art space inside the existing lab at 130 Oldfield Rd in Hampton. Hallite external and internal testing activities will be collaborative and complementary. The company will break ground in January 2021 on phase one of a three-phase facility expansion project expected for completion by the end of Q3 2021.
According to Andrew Iddeson, Global Technical Director at Hallite Seals International Ltd., the current facility in Hampton works alongside MSOE and has been about product innovation. The company has been developing rigs at the current facility which use customer parts to ensure relevance and a look at real-life applications in the field. “Over the years, Hallite’s testing capabilities, whether they were in house or in partnership more recently with MSOE and others, have played an essential role in proving the success and the differentiators in our sealing products,” Iddeson said.
“Hallite are investing significantly in designing and constructing a state-of-the-art product and material testing facility in Hampton,” Iddeson said. “We’re investing in new testing analysis equipment that will provide us a wider range of material and product characterization. We’ll have hardware upgrades and improvements on those rigs and we’ll be installing an enhanced date capture and back end system to deliver, analyze and report those results with much greater efficiency and in a platform that provides live partner feedback.
“Refreshing our brand and expanding our in-house product and material testing capabilities are major markers in Hallite history to drive forward our commitment to innovate into the future,” said John Curtis, Global Managing Director at Hallite. “Significant capital and human resource investment in these initiatives provide a unique opportunity to affirm a long-standing brand legacy and validate our promise to help customers and partners optimize their investment in our products and services.”
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