VALUED PARTNERS
Halco transforms the best of 3M materials and Halco fasteners
We’re a fast growth 3M Preferred Converter with a close partnership and rapidly developing business relationship with 3M. We’re a very unique 3M converter in that our focus is on specialty fastening materials and their application in industry. Working closely with 3M, we help our engineering and manufacturing customers improve their product design by customizing and supplying the highest quality selection of fastening materials, pressure-sensitive adhesives and related performance materials from both Halco and 3M.
Different industries, like automotive, aerospace, medical, defense and construction, have their own unique requirements and specifications. Halco’s sales engineers are immersed in these industries, listen intently and understand those requirements.
We can often quickly customize fastening solutions to meet these needs by integrating a 3M material, like a pressure-sensitive adhesive tape that already meets specific industry requirements, with Halco hook and loop fasteners. We also die-cut and convert 3M fastening materials like 3M Dual Lock and 3M’s medical grade hook and loop and adhesive tapes for medical devices and products.
Because of Halco’s fastening materials expertise, hook and loop product line and dedicated converting processes, Halco is also a trusted supplier of both materials and converting services to other 3M converters.
Value-Added Services
In partnership, Halco and 3M, bring many services and benefits to manufacturing customers:
Materials Expertise
Plastics, metals, foam and fabric —virtually any combination of substrates can be bonded or attached together with the right converted Halco and 3M solution.
Engineering Consulting
Halco can respond very quickly with a drawing or prototype. 3M often provides additional support to Halco and its customers through its own application experience, materials test data and testing capabilities.
Value-Added Converting
Many 3M converters focus on larger projects with wider width adhesive tapes, release liners, films and foam. But hook and loop projects are typically smaller, shorter run with much narrower web widths and heavier mil thicknesses. All of Halco’s converting lines are already set up to convert hook and loop, 3M(TM) Dual Lock and other fastening materials using a wide range of high performance converting processes, including adhesive lamination (for 3M bonding tapes) and die-cutting. The combination of Halco and 3M provides the fastest possible response to the customer who need a hook and loop solution for their project.
Prototyping
We’re able to quickly create engineering drawings and manufacture prototypes. Because we have a broad selection of Halco fastening materials and 3M bonding tapes in stock, we frequently turn around a prototype that meets very specific quality and performance requirements for our customers in a day or two.
3M Products and Adhesive Families
Halco features and stocks adhesive tapes using 3M’s 300MP adhesive family for the rough and uneven surfaces like foam and insulative materials and 300LSE for plastics, powder-coated paints, and other low surface energy substrates.
Bonding tapes from these families have been proven to adhere well to the rough plastic backing of hook and loop and have proven performance in a wide range of industry applications and conditions. Halco purchases specific versions of these tapes that are best suited to its converting and die-cutting processes. Other 3M adhesive tapes, as well as a selection of Halco adhesives, may be selected and tested to meet specific industry specifications, and customer requirements.
Halco also converts and processes 3M MedTech medical double-coated adhesive tapes as well as 3M medical grade hook and loop and films for its many medical customers. Many medical customers relied on Halco during the pandemic to provide materials and converting services for the wide array of disposable medical products, such as personal protective equipment (PPE), that were in very high volume demand.
GOVERNMENT PPE MANUFACTURING
Halco was contracted to rapidly produce 12 million neck closure fastening parts for isolation gowns during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their requirement was that the fastening system be Berry Compliant, withstand gamma ray sterilization and meet AAMI PB70 requirements. Halco identified 3M’s 7336 and 7337 medical hook and loop fasteners. Both Halco and 3M responded rapidly, securing large volumes of material with Halco providing all the converting and die-cutting services to meet the application, volume and timeline requirements of the government.
ELECTRIC VEHICLE MANUFACTURING
Halco has a close relationship with Tesla and provides many custom converted hook and loop components for its carpet systems and insulation attachment. Electric vehicles are unique in that they require specialty insulative materials and specialty fasteners to help mitigate Noise Vibration Harshness (NVH).