BRM Turns 55 and Predicts Continued Surface Finishing Successes

What is the future of surface finishing? For 55 years, Brush Research Manufacturing (BRM) has been answering that question by supplying innovative brushing technology to manufacturers, metalworkers, and mechanics. Founded in 1958, our American-owned company has a long and distinguished history of solving difficult deburring and parts finishing challenges in a wide range of industries.

As company founder Steve Rands once said, “Keep an open mind. Experiment. Nothing improves until someone stops and questions an accepted assumption.” Today, BRM remains true to Rands’ vision by providing flexible honing tools and a full line of industrial brushes, including NamPower nylon abrasive brushes for automated deburring and surface finishing.  

Plateau Finishing and Cylinder Wall Deglazing
Thanks to Steve Rands’ pioneering spirit, manufacturers from around the world have long benefitted from plateau finishing, a surface finishing technique that removes harsh peaks and creates oil-retaining valleys. As Rands explained, a substantially flat surface or plateau finish provides a greater bearing area while optimizing lubrication in critical components such as engine cylinders.

The Flex-Hone® tool, BRM’s signature product, is the standard against which all other plateau hones are compared. During our company’s early years, flexible hones were popular mainly in the automotive market. By deglazing the walls of engine cylinders, Flex-Hone® users extended the service life of diesel engines while reducing oil consumption and lowering emissions.

Cylinder Honing and Automated Deburring
Today, auto parts manufacturers and aerospace companies are also using cylinder honing tools for inner diameter (ID) surface finishing. For example, when Sikorsky Aircraft needed to remove scale from a carburized bearing surface, the helicopter maker tried carbine reamers and diamond laps. These tools didn’t work well with 9310 alloy steel, however, so Sikorsky switched to BRM Diamond Flex-Hone® tools. 

Built with a stiff metal stem and flexible nylon abrasive filaments, the Flex-Hone® removes cut, torn, or folded metal while leaving the base metal undisturbed. Versatile and easy-to-use, this brush tool can be used in a handheld electric drill, or with automated production equipment. As the new Flex-Hone® In-Machine Setup video shows and the Flex-Hone® Resource Guide explains, innovative manufacturers are automating operations with cylinder honing and in-machine deburring.

Versatile Surface Finishing
BRM surface finishing solutions are also helping customers in industries such as aluminum extrusion, fluid and power, hydraulics, oil and gas, and earth moving equipment. Available in a variety of sizes and abrasive grits, the Flex-Hone® tool is used to surface finish everything from big diesel engines on ocean- going boats to small brass tubes in musical instruments played by the high school band.

“All of those developments came from listening carefully to the marketplace”, says Jonathan Borden, BRM’s National Accounts Manager. “That means working directly with customers to provide customized solutions to their application requirements,” he adds. “Whatever those parameters are, we’ll meet their application in the most affordable manner.”

High-Performance Nylon Abrasive Brushes
Today, BRM is building upon its 55-year history of surface finishing success with NamPower nylon abrasive brush tools.  By automating their metal finishing and deburring operations with NamPower technology, parts manufacturers are reducing labor costs and speeding high-volume operations in industries such as automotive, aerospace, and appliance manufacturing.

As Mike Miller, BRM’s Vice President for Sales explains, “NamPower disc brushes are easily integrated with automated machinery, CNC machine centers, transfer lines, and robotic cells”.  By allowing coolant to flow from the brush center instead of supplying lubricant only from the outside, NamPower brush technology also provides improved cutting action and longer tool life.

For more information about NamPower abrasive brushes, download the NamPower Resource Guide and watch this video. The BRM website offers a wealth of free technical information, including application guides for the many industries that Brush Research Manufacturing serves.