Outsource Testing

Benefit from:

• Quality – Accreditation to BS EN ISO/IEC 17025:2005 gives you the assurance that results meet the required levels of excellence. Where required Smithers Rapra work in accordance with GMP.
• Capital – benefit from using Smithers Rapra’s facilities, reducing the necessity of capital expenditure or plan your work long term & the investment may be made on your behalf.
• Focus on your core business – Smithers Rapra’s technical excellences allows you to concentrate on developing your business without the concerns of managing technical services.
• Flexibility to changing demands – Smithers Rapra can work with you to prioritise your testing to satisfy your needs.

Solutions include:

• Short-term assistance with rapid turnaround work – As a specialist testing organisation resources can be directed to meet your needs.
• Specialist testing & certification for new product launch/existing products into new markets – Smithers Rapra’s technologists are experienced in bespoke testing programmes to support your development needs.
• Routine Quality Control – Regular testing can be conducted quickly & cost effectively.
• Complete outsourcing to allow customers to focus on their core business – Analytical & physical testing requirements can be managed by Smithers Rapra on or off site.

Using Smithers Rapra as your partner for complete or partial outsource testing or analysis is a source of cost saving benefits. Other areas of added value have become equally important as cost savings to rubber & plastics manufacturers & there end users.

Within the polymer & related industries there are many specialist testing & analytical functions that require a high degree of skill & experience. The intermittent demand for these services makes it difficult to justify keeping the expertise in house. Smithers Rapra can provide these rubber & plastic experts when, & only when, you need them, giving you the comfort of a larger resource team without the cost of unutilised time.

As a specialised testing & consultancy service provider Smithers Rapra allows you to bring in expert services & resources as they are needed. This can range from the skills of a polymer consultant for a one off project, to managing a long term testing programme

Trends in industry over past years have highlighted that companies are seeking to reap the benefits of off-site testing, analysis & product development. Regardless of the approach, outsourcing a company's requirements to Smithers Rapra will lower costs whilst delivering reliable & independent results.

Temporary Assignments

Companies may experience demand for testing or analytical services that exceeds the capability of their existing on site resources. Even when the company has a large support team, it may not have the availability or expertise to take on ad-hoc or demanding projects. Using Smithers Rapra to handle surges or increases in demand for ad-hoc testing tasks provides a practical low cost, high value solution.

Cost Savings

The recruiting costs for qualified technical personnel are extremely expensive. Employing technicians or test engineers involves considerable employment costs & is likely to be a pressure on a business when head count is important. Companies looking to cut costs whilst improving service provision should seriously look at Smithers Rapra as the best value alternative. The cost of commissioning a test programme with Smithers Rapra with their specific testing experience & equipment is a good business decision.

Testing & analysis costs are lower & solutions can be provided at a percentage of the price of an in-company programme. Smithers Rapra has access to a wealth of information & experience that can be adapted & called upon for other testing needs, contributing to lower costs & an improvement in the quality of results.

Special Testing Requirements

Companies often have testing needs that might exceed the capabilities of an in-house department. Smithers Rapra should be consulted when a company is facing validation requirements that its existing test team does not have the knowledge to provide test or analytical coverage for.

Smithers Rapra delivers independent testing, analysis & consultancy relating to rubbers, plastics & other polymers & their applications. Bespoke test programmes, analytical chemistry & polymer failure are particular areas of specialisation.

Reliable & Independent Results

Smithers Rapra can support companies that have separated their testing team & development teams. Development managers often pressure the testing team to sign-off a project so that it can be released to market. Problems compound afterwards if the testing team report issues that were visible after the project had been finalised.

Organisations struggling with how to obtain independent & reliable results can seek help from Smithers Rapra. Objective test results & conclusions are provided as there is no conflict of interest. Companies in notably regulated industries or government projects subject to rigorous & strict audits will find the independent services invaluable.

Inexperienced test engineers can inadvertently miss-report issues, which could cause the project manager to make inaccurate recommendations. Companies that are extremely dependent on accurate & reliable test results should seek the services of Smithers Rapra.

Help with Compressed Testing Schedules

Non-specialised rubber & plastic analytical & testing teams are often asked to validate materials & products when testing began late in the development or validation process. These situations compromise the successful completion of a products launch, its durability & may increase the failure rate.

Under resourced testing facilities often attempt to implement a testing programme in the latter stages of material or product development rushing to complete various testing tasks in an unrealistic time frame.

Outsourcing your requirements to Smithers Rapra can help your company meet tight deadlines by utilising experienced technologists.

Equipment, Facilities, Testing Tools, Environments

Some materials & products require extensive compatibility testing in different environments; other polymer products & materials may need to be examined & tested prior to production. Putting together a sufficient test lab or procuring all the necessary facilities would prove expensive & difficult to maintain. Smithers Rapra solves the difficulty of gathering equipment & test equipment to test & analyse rubber & plastic materials & products in a wide range of operating environments & applications.

"Outsourcing development tasks to Smithers Rapra will provide many benefits to companies seeking to lower costs obtain independent testing results & improve testing expertise. Companies who outsource work to Smithers Rapra are likely to gain a distinct competitive advantage" Steve Vinter, Operations Director

Email the Enquiry Bureau for further information info@rapra.net or add your details to the contact us page.