Lopital develops and manufactures ergonomic hygiene and transfer solutions for the healthcare sector. Its product range includes shower and toilet chairs, patient lifts, care tables and other transfer aids.
Stainless steel is widely used throughout these products, but assembling stainless steel fasteners with stainless steel components created a recurring challenge: galling. Lopital needed a way to simplify assembly while reducing its reliance on separate grease and lubricants. Fabory introduced Lubrinox stainless steel fasteners as the solution.
Results at a glance
90% Lubrinox
90% of Lopital's fasteners are now Lubrinox products.
No separate greasing step
Pre-coated fasteners reduce the need to apply grease or lubricant during assembly.
Threadlocker compatible
Thread-locking compounds can still be applied where required.
The challenge: stainless steel galling during assembly
When stainless steel fasteners were assembled with stainless steel components, Lopital experienced galling. This can cause mating threads to bind or seize as they are tightened.
To help overcome the problem, grease and lubricants were applied during assembly. For Lopital, this added an extra step to the production process and was undesirable when manufacturing hygiene and transfer equipment used in care environments.
Grease also made it difficult to use thread-locking compounds on the same connection. Lopital therefore required a solution that could address stainless steel galling while supporting its existing assembly requirements.
The solution: pre-coated Lubrinox fasteners
Fabory introduced Lubrinox stainless steel fasteners. Lubrinox uses a pre-applied coating designed to reduce friction between stainless steel mating surfaces, helping to prevent galling during assembly.
Because the lubrication is already incorporated into the fastener coating, Lopital no longer needs to apply grease separately to these connections during assembly.
Fabory also supplies custom Lubrinox bolts with a pre-applied thread-locking compound where required. This allows Lopital to combine smoother stainless steel assembly with thread locking without first applying separate grease or lubricant.
How the solution works
1. Pre-coated fastener
Lubrinox fasteners arrive with the coating already applied.
2. Reduced friction
The coating reduces friction between stainless steel mating surfaces during assembly.
3. Simplified assembly
Lopital can assemble stainless steel connections without a separate greasing step.
4. Thread locking where needed
Thread-locking compounds can still be used on components where the application requires them.
A simpler stainless steel assembly process
The change has removed a separate lubrication step from Lopital's assembly process for Lubrinox fasteners. Technicians and engineers use considerably less grease and lubricant while retaining the option to apply threadlocker where needed.
Lubrinox has since been adopted extensively across Lopital's fastening requirements, with the company now using Lubrinox products for 90% of its fasteners.
“The biggest advantage is that we no longer have to lubricate or grease our fasteners.”
Hans Vermeer, Operations Manager, Lopital
Solving a small but important production challenge
Lopital's experience demonstrates how selecting the right fastener can simplify an established production process. By addressing stainless steel galling with a pre-coated fastening solution, Lopital reduced its reliance on manual lubrication while retaining the fastening functionality its products require.
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Lubrinox stainless steel fasteners
Facing stainless steel fastening challenges?Talk to Fabory about your application and find the fastening solution that best fits your assembly requirements. Contact Fabory |