Letter from the President
Jeff Beard, MCA President
Hello. Many of you may be using 1- Bromopropane (nPB). Trichloroethylene (TCE), Perchloroethylene (PERC) or Methylene Chloride (DCM) for parts degreasing. You should be aware that the EPA has been evaluating the use of these solvents for associated risk to humans, the environment, and a host of other stakeholders. Do not ignore the work the EPA is conducting. By law, this work will be completed and the fate of these solvents and how or if they are used in the future will be decided.
EPA
“The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), as amended by the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, requires EPA to evaluate the safety of existing chemicals via a three-stage process. The three stages for ensuring the safety of existing chemicals are prioritization, risk evaluation and risk management. The statute also includes a variety of new EPA authorities to drive forward progress on evaluating and ensuring the safety of existing chemicals. The following graphic provides an overview of the process for prioritization, risk evaluation and risk management of existing chemicals, including the key decisions to be made or actions taken at each step:
Once a chemical is in the process, which starts with proposed prioritization of a chemical, statutory deadlines are triggered for EPA to complete each stage of the process.
The EPA has found that these solvents all pose an unreasonable risk in a majority of uses. The agency will now move toward the risk management phase. Notice the terminology used for this phase: “Impose Restrictions to Eliminate the Unreasonable Risk.”
MCA Events
How Clean is Clean- Aerospace will be held March 7 in Huntsville AL. The event will focus on the aerospace industry. While this event is titled for aerospace, the presentations given by industry experts are discussing topics that apply to all precision parts manufacturers:
- EVOQUA will present “Water and Wastewater Management from Aerospace Cleaning”
- Qualichem will present “Metalworking Fluid Residue – Reduce What You Need to Clean Off”
- Hubbard-Hall, Kyzen, Brulin will present “Cleaning Roundtable- Solvent Replacement”
- Jomesa- Standardized Cleanliness Analysis – Automated particle counting
- Glaser- Standardized Cleanliness Analysis – Particle Extraction Methods
Visit the MCA website for more information about the event and how to attend.
The MCA webinar series will continue throughout the year. These informative presentations are given by industry experts. Attendees can participate in a variety of presentations spanning a host of subjects and markets that rely on parts cleaning.
Coming Soon…
PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances). This acronym is a hot topic across the country. It became even hotter when 3M announced exiting the fluoro chemical business by the end of 2025. I will investigate this topic further and dedicate an upcoming article to the subject.
MCA’s Inaugural Event – Registration Open!
Welcome New Members
Safechem, Dusseldorf, Germany
Evident Scientific, Waltham, MA
Featured Article
How to Choose a Debinding Fluid for Metal 3D Printing
By Venesia Hurtubise, MicroCare
Binder jetting and feedstock extrusion depend on binders that are ultimately sacrificial. MicroCare offers factors to consider in selecting a debinding fluid for these metal additive manufacturing processes. Read more HERE!
MCA Committees Need Your Help
Our committees are an essential part of our association. Without them, we cannot function or reach our goals. Please consider volunteering to be a committee member for an exciting opportunity to be a part of a growing and important community!
Technical Committee: Contact Mike Valenti, mvalenti@hubbardhall.com
Membership/Events Committee: Jeff Beard, jbeard@brulin.com
Education Committee: Darren Williams, williams@shsu.edu
Marketing/Communications Committee: Lori Beckman, lbeckman@productionmachining.com
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