Introduction to Rubber Technology

R. J. Del Vecchio (Technical Consulting Services) founded a fulltime consulting service in late 1990 after a career in the rubber industry with companies like BFGoodrich, Lord, and Barry Controls. Much of Del's work is based on his long experience with engineering applications of rubber, and the normal technical skills involved in compounding and processing a wide variety of elastomers. He is a user of, and instructor in, SPC and Design of Experiments, as they apply to the polymer industries. He has published numerous technical papers at ACS meetings, appears in the trade literature both here and overseas, and authored several chapters in technical books. His consulting practice was originally based in the molded goods field, including materials development and process optimization, but he expanded his services into the areas of statistical analyses, test development, failure analysis, acting as an Expert Witness, and giving courses in DOE methodology. His book on practical application of DOE in the rubber and plastics industries, sponsored by SPE, was released by Hanser Press in 1997, and was reprinted several times. He published A Beginner’s Guide to Rubber Technology (October 2001) and edited Fundamentals of Rubber Technology for the Rubber Division (March 2003), and is working on an expanded revision of his text on DOE.