New SMART wrench takes quality assurance for safety-critical joints to the next level

Giving manufacturers real-time quality assurance analysis of manual safety-critical joints is the primary benefit of a brand new digital smart wrench, launched by Atlas Copco Tools and Industrial Assembly Solutions.

Wi-Fi enabled with the largest touch screen interface in the industrial tools market, that’s also designed to be used with safety gloves, Atlas Copco’s new STRwrench Advanced delivers precision residual torque and breakaway torque checks.  Featuring an integrated controller, STRwrench Advanced enables joint check analysis in real time, reporting data to Atlas Copco’s bespoke quality assurance platform, QA Supervisor (QAS), that provides manufacturers with full assembly traceability. This software can be integrated into customer QA systems for auditing even the most challenging assembly processes.

Consistency of critical joints is essential to ensuring product quality and safety.  Incorrect tightening and torque checks can lead to product failure, resulting in costly rework. Research by Atlas Copco has found that a single minute of downtime due to a safety-critical joint failure can cost up to £10,000 in lost production.

With enough data storage for 50,000 checks and a built-in selection of different quality strategies for specific product types, STRwrench Advanced can still collect data in the event of a network shutdown. Durability on the assembly line is assured, thanks to Atlas Copco’s rigorous product testing process, which includes drop tests.

Commenting on the introduction of the new STRwrench Advanced, James McAllister, General Manager, Atlas Copco Tools and Industrial Assembly Solutions, said:

“Our new STRwrench Advanced is a key component of Atlas Copco’s Smart Integrated Ecosystem, that’s been developed to support manufacturers across all sectors,  in a collective journey to smart factory production. STRwrench Advanced provides a flexible and scalable QA process to ensure product quality and safety, whilst minimising the financial impact of assembly line shutdowns and product rework.”