Gaskets Blog
EPDM vs Neoprene for Fungus Resistant Gaskets: Material Comparison
Why EPDM and Neoprene dominate fungus resistant gasketing Fungus resistant gaskets are required in environments where moisture, humidity, and organic material are present. Fungi can colonize natural rubber and some synthetic materials, breaking down the polymer and...
PORON vs Silicone Foam for Low Compression Set Gasketing
When a customer needs a gasket that will not take a permanent set after being compressed for months or years, the conversation almost always comes down to two materials: PORON urethane foam and silicone foam. Both are excellent, but they have different strengths. The...
Gasket Materials for Extreme Cold: Comparing Low Temperature Ranges
How low can gasket materials go? Every rubber material has a glass transition temperature, or Tg. Below that point, the polymer chains lock up and the material goes from flexible to glassy and brittle. When a gasket hits its Tg, it loses the ability to conform to...
Open Cell vs Closed Cell Soft Gaskets: Which Structure Seals Best?
What is an open cell gasket? An open cell gasket is made from foam where the individual cell walls are broken or incomplete, so the cells interconnect like a sponge. Air and fluids can pass through the structure. This gives open cell foams their characteristic...
Fungus-Resistant Gaskets for Military and Marine Environments
At NEDC, fungus resistant gaskets are one of the more specialized product lines we cut, but they come up more often than you might think. Military equipment deployed in tropical environments, marine electronics housings on vessels that spend months in humid...
Compression Set in Gaskets: What It Is and How to Minimize It
Compression set is one of those properties that sounds technical but has a very real impact on whether your gasket still seals a year from now. At NEDC, we cut low compression set gaskets every day, and I have seen plenty of cases where a gasket material was chosen...
Low Temperature Gaskets: Silicone vs Fluorosilicone for Cryogenic Applications
One of the most common calls I get at NEDC is from an engineer who needs a low temperature gasket for an application that goes well below freezing. Sometimes it is an aerospace enclosure that will sit at 40,000 feet where temperatures can drop to -67F. Other times it...
Ultra-Soft Gasket Materials: PORON, Silicone Sponge, and When to Use Each
At NEDC, one of the most common requests we get is for an ultra soft gasket that can seal at very low compression pressures. Whether it is a medical device housing with thin plastic walls, an optical assembly that cannot tolerate high closure force, or a portable...
TFlex HD Thermal Pads | High Deflection | High Thermal Performance
Customers are looking for the best thermal performance when it comes to thermal interface materials. To get the best thermal performance, in my opinion in most cases, you don’t want to rely on much external pressure to get there. For that reason, we thought we’d write...
PORON® Soft-Seal: Ultra-Compliant Sealing for Thin, Sensitive Assemblies
When designers need a gasket material that seals reliably at very low closure forces, maintains its shape over time, and conforms to uneven or delicate surfaces, PORON® Soft-Seal is purpose-built for the job. This microcellular polyurethane foam is engineered for...
3M™ EMI Shielding Fabric Tape CN-3190 | Custom Die-Cutting
Instead of a solid metal foil, CN-3190 uses a copper-nickel plated ripstop polyester fabric backing. That construction gives it several real-world advantages: It bends and conforms easily around corners, seams, and uneven surfaces It’s lightweight but surprisingly...
R10450 Reinforced Silicone Sponge: Dimensionally Stable Sealing from Saint-Gobain
Norseal® R10450 Reinforced Silicone Sponge from Saint-Gobain is a general-purpose, closed-cell silicone sponge designed for gasketing applications that require dimensional stability, controlled compression, and long-term environmental resistance. Unlike standard...
UL-Listed Closed-Cell EPDM / Neoprene Rubber Blends- Durafoam™ DK Series
When applications demand reliable environmental sealing, flame resistance, and consistent mechanical performance, closed-cell EPDM / Neoprene blends are a proven solution. One of the most widely specified options in this category is the Durafoam™ DK Series, a family...
Airflow Management | HVAC Gaskets for Dust Sealing & More
Material Selection, Design Considerations, and Real-World Applications Effective airflow management depends on one deceptively simple component: the gasket. In HVAC systems, air handlers, plenums, and electronic enclosures, gaskets are responsible for controlling...
Cho-Seal 1215 Why Customers Source CHO-SEAL 1215 Converting Through NEDC
When an assembly needs reliable EMI shielding and environmental sealing—without turning into a tolerance nightmare—CHO-SEAL® 1215 is one of the go-to materials engineers reach for. It’s a conductive elastomer gasket material designed to create an electrically...
Thermal Gap Filler Pads in EBikes & E-Scooters, Personal Electric | High W/m-K, Low Impedance
Personal electric vehicles — e-bikes, e-scooters, EUCs (electric unicycles), and even high-performance electric skateboards — have exploded over the last five years. What started as a convenience category has evolved into a serious engineering platform with high-power...
Cho-Seal 1287, and Cho-Seal 1285 | Custom Die Cutting of EMI Pads, Gaskets
When customers look for high-performance conductive elastomer gaskets, two of the most commonly requested materials are CHO-SEAL 1285 and CHO-SEAL 1287. Both materials use silver-plated aluminum (Ag/Al) as the conductive filler — but they differ in one critical way:...
Understanding EC-2130 by Saint-Gobain: A Reliable Silicone EMI Gasket for Sealing & Cushioning Applications
At NEDC, we work with a wide range of specialty materials for shielding, sealing, gasketing, and thermal management. One material we frequently convert for aerospace, defense, electronics, and RF-sensitive applications is BISCO® EC-2130, a soft, electrically...
3M Polyethylene Foam Tapes: 4462, 4466, 4492, and 4496 (Including 4496B Variant)
3M polyethylene foam tapes are a trusted solution for sections where foam is needed along with sticky backing. Built on a closed-cell polyethylene foam core, these double-sided tapes provide conformability, shock absorption, and durable adhesion across metal, plastic,...
Do Double-Coated Tapes Make Liner Removal Easier? Yes… But Not Always.
Introduction If you’ve ever installed a gasket, foam pad, or adhesive-backed component, you know one of the most frustrating steps has nothing to do with performance—it’s peeling the liner. Liner removal can slow down assembly lines and cause operator aggravation....
3M™ 9690+ Double-Coated Tape – How NEDC Uses It in Industrial Gasketing and Assembly
Introduction of 3M 9690+ At NEDC, we convert and laminate a wide range of pressure-sensitive adhesives to support custom gaskets, seals, and industrial components. One of the most versatile adhesives we use is 3M™ 9690+, a double-coated acrylic tape designed for...
Gasketing for UL 48 Electric Signs/Electrical Signs: Getting the Details Right
Illuminated signs such as electronic billboards face long-term exposure to rain, sun, temperature swings, and vibration. UL 48, Standard for Electric Signs, sets the construction and safety requirements that make sure those signs stay reliable and safe for years. One...
Thickness Tolerance, Die-Cut, and Waterjet Cut Tolerances for Sponge/Foam Gaskets
Standard Thickness and Cutting Tolerances for Sponge Rubber Gaskets When designing with sponge rubber, engineers need to account not only for material properties like density and compression but also for thickness and cut tolerances. These tolerances directly impact...
FOD Gaskets; Gaskets to Prevent FOD: Silicone Rubber, Poron®, Silicone Foam, and Silicone Sponge
In industries where reliability and cleanliness are paramount—such as aerospace, defense, electronics, and medical devices—the risk of foreign object debris (FOD) is never taken lightly. A single loose particle, shaving, or improperly selected material can jeopardize...
Compression Rates in Rubber Gaskets : Solid vs. Foam/Sponge for Air & Water Sealing
Why Compression Rate Matters When designing with gaskets, compression isn’t just about fit—it directly determines sealing performance, stress relaxation, and gasket life. Compress too little, and you get leaks; compress too much, and you risk tearing or losing...
Gaskets in Medical Devices: Silicone Rubber, Expanded PTFE, and Viton®
Introduction In medical devices, gaskets are far more than sealing elements—they are critical components that ensure biocompatibility, sterility, chemical resistance, and functional reliability in some of the most demanding environments. Whether in surgical...
A Shield Against Interference: An Introduction to EMI/RFI Solutions
In an increasingly connected world, electronics are constantly at risk of electromagnetic and radio-frequency interference (EMI/RFI). This invisible noise can disrupt sensitive components, degrade performance, and even cause total system failure. The solution?...
Navigating Our Blog: Your Guide to Die-Cutting, Gaskets, and Thermal Management
With over 100 blog posts, our site is a rich resource for engineers and designers. We've written on everything from specific material properties to the latest industry applications. Referencing these articles is a great way to deepen your understanding and find the...
The Role of Thermal Pads in 5G (and Future 6G) Communications
As 5G infrastructure continues to expand worldwide, the technology powering base stations, small cells, and data networks is becoming denser and more power hungry. Every generation of wireless communication pushes performance higher, but it also increases thermal...
TG-A9000 Ultra Soft Thermal Pad from T-Global
The TG-A9000 Ultra Soft Thermal Pad from T-Global — Engineered for Next-Gen AI Hardware As artificial intelligence hardware becomes more powerful, the heat it generates becomes one of the biggest bottlenecks to performance. Data center GPUs, AI accelerators, and...
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Our Popular Blog Posts
EPDM vs Neoprene for Fungus Resistant Gaskets: Material Comparison
Why EPDM and Neoprene dominate fungus resistant gasketing Fungus...
PORON vs Silicone Foam for Low Compression Set Gasketing
When a customer needs a gasket that will not take a permanent set...
