Custom Manufacturing

Our product catalog is only a partial list of the materials available from American Elements. Some of America's and the European Union's top industrial names have trusted American Elements to manage the materials research and development component of their new product development programs. On request, American Elements will enter non-disclosure and secrecy agreements to protect customer proprietary advances.

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Our custom manufacturing experience

Our professionals are recognized materials science experts as inventors of several landmark patents; many with management level experience at the world's leading research centers, including General Electric's Center for Research & Development (GE CRD) and Bell Labs giving us the ability to provide valuable guidance to customers in fields as varied as ceramics (from structural to conductive to artistic), glass (from lighting to lasers to optic communication), space and military applications, metallic alloys, electronic materials, catalysts, power generators, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. American Elements can bring a wealth of materials know-how to your efforts so you can avoid "reinventing the wheel" or investigating known dead-ends.

Let our experience, asset resources and analytical skills bring your proprietary program to market on time and in budget. We can substantially reduce the great expense of in-house materials production or trial and error purchasing by establishing a program for providing samples of applicable materials in an assortment of documented formulations, purities and physical morphologies.

We will work with you to find the best materials to improve product performance or reduce process or raw-material costs. With American Elements as a partner, you can trust that once commercialization begins you will have chosen the raw materials that meet production requirements and are cost effective.

We may already be producing what you need

Several important advanced technology industry standards are based on American Elements-developed materials which we choose not to generally market due to our already close working relationship with the relevant companies in the field. Therefore, if you do not see a particular material or recent industry application referenced, contact us to discuss your requirements. We may already be commercially producing the material. For example, most of the insoluble metallic compounds can also be produced as spray dried powders. Spray drying allows us to produce highly specific particle sizes and surface areas with very narrow particle distribution (low standard deviation from the D50) for use in coating spray nozzles and to produce a uniform ceramic powder for pressing and extrusion applications.

Contract tolling

American Elements' capabilities are also available to chemical manufacturers, distributors, traders and wholesalers on a contract tolling basis. Some of the most respected names in the rare earths and advanced materials industry have contracted for large volume productions at our facility. If we can meet the stringent approval standards to contract produce for these companies, we can assist you in expanding your product line or increasing your capacity to serve a greater number of customers.

The American Elements Pledge: Documented Processes, Accurately Certified

The world's most important technology companies know American Elements' products will always be certified, and all future orders will be materially identical. That's because manufacturing begins with written standard operating procedures (SOP) established for all product codes. Certification is merely a final analytical confirmation of a series of documented GMP in-process control gates and measurements. Over the years, our extremely high level of batch-to-batch consistency has allowed many global enterprises to confidently move new innovations to full commercialization.

Regulatory Compliance

One of the most essential tasks for any organization focused on research or manufacturing is ensuring adherence to the safety standards and other applicable regulations. Understanding the web of chemical regulations and keeping up with current best practices can be extraordinarily challenging, especially if your business requires you to work across different states or countries with disparate rules.

American Elements has years of experience navigating these difficult waters, and can serve as your expert partner, helping you stay in line with exacting regulations. We hold our own operations to the highest standards, and believe in helping our customers do the same. The American Elements’ [Safety and Regulatory Compliance] team is nimble and adaptive, and seeks always to meet the needs of our customers. Below we discuss two of our most frequently requested services, but if you have regulation compliance concerns that fall outside these areas, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Custom MSDS Authoring

Material safety data sheets (MSDS) are a standard across industries and around the world, but finding the MSDS that meets your specific needs can still be a frustrating process. American Elements can provide custom MSDS services to help ensure your organization’s compliance with all current regulatory guidelines.

American Elements’ [Safety and Regulations Compliance department] has deep knowledge and skill in MSDS authoring. We can produce high-quality safety data sheets for compliance with GHS, OSHA, WHMIS, CLP, REACH, and more. As a global manufacturer and supplier of advanced materials, we have experience dealing with a wide array of needs; hour MSDS authoring services can include customization for location and application, as well as translation into a variety of languages. When you work with our authoring team, you’ll receive both the paperwork you need to be compliant with regulations, and direct access to American Elements materials experts.

Of course, as is the case with our custom manufacturing, American Elements’ MSDS authoring services are sensitive to the needs of our industry partners, and any custom information provided to us in the course of the authoring process will be handle in the strictest confidence.

REACH Compliance Advising

Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals, or REACH, is a set of regulations passed by the European Union in 2006. REACH regulations are intended to improve the protection of human health and the environment from the risks posed by chemicals used in industry, research, and everyday life. REACH began taking effect on June 1st of 2007, and has incorporated several phase-in periods to allow for the gradual adaptation of industry to the demands of this vast new system of regulation.

Under REACH, companies are responsible for identifying and managing the risks associated with substances they manufacture or market in the EU, and carry the burden of proving to the European Chemical Society how these substances can be safely used. This is accomplished in part by requiring companies to register all substances imported or manufactured in the EU in quantities exceeding one ton per year, with the exception of substances falling within one of a number of exempt classes of chemicals.

American Elements strongly supports the policies and intent underlying REACH, as we believe that high standards of safety and environmental protections are essential for the long-term sustainability of innovation. Additionally, as a global company, we at American Elements have placed the highest possible priority on remaining in REACH compliance so that service to our European Union customers is never interrupted.

Compliance with the REACH system requires extensive work, including the preparation of technical dossiers and Chemical Safety Reports (CSR) on each substance requiring registration. American Elements provides advising and support on this process to our customers. Further questions can be directed to our REACH Implementation Unit at REACH@americanelements.com.

Analytical Services

In addition to providing certification and testing for American Elements' own materials, our laboratories have for many years provided contract testing for our customers. Customers as large as Fortune 100 companies have at times found that it is more cost-effective to allow us to perform specialized analyses rather than shouldering the cost of establishing their own laboratory.

Our highly qualified personnel, many of whom have held management positions at leasing research labs, including General Electric’s Center for Research and Development (GE CRD) and Bell Labs, expertly perform all analysis on validated instrumentation and with the utmost care. Our analytical capabilities are available to you at all stages of product development, from testing of raw materials, in-process quality control, and performance testing of processed materials and final products. We provide complete analytical support, which can include consulting on development of specifications and process controls.

The following analytical capabilities are available on a one time or contract basis. Since our laboratories are primarily dedicated to our own products, we usually maintain capacity for quick turn-around analysis, and we are able to charge less than most contract laboratories.

Full list of available services:

  • Spectroscopy:
    • Atomic
    • X-ray fluorescence
    • Infrared
  • Classical wet chemistry
    • Separations
      • Precipitation
      • Extractions
      • Distillation
    • Quantitative Analyses
      • Gravimetric
      • Volumetric (titrations)
    • Qualitative Analyses
      • Melting point determination
      • Flame test
      • Select other chemical tests by request
  • Physical / Structural Analyses
    • Particle size distribution analysis
    • Powder surface area analysis
    • Solid and liquid density calculation
    • Viscosity/rheology analysis
    • Gas chromatography
    • SEM/EDX
      • Surface structure analysis
      • Particle morphology
      • Fracture analysis
    • Strength Analyses
      • Crush strength
      • Green body strength
      • Sintered body strength
      • 4-point bending strength (bars)
    • Closed and open porosity
    • X-ray diffraction for phase identification
  • Thermal Analysis
    • Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC)
    • Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA)
    • Thermomechanical analysis (TMA)
    • Dilatometry (TCE)
  • Electrical Measurements
    • Dielectric constant measurement
    • Accelerated life test (HALT)
    • Temperature coefficient of capacitance (TCC)
    • Insulation resistance (IR)
    • Electrical failure analysis
    • 4-lead resistance
    • 2-lead resistance

Sourcing Services

Free your researchers and development team to focus on product design instead of the search for raw materials and key intermediates. Let American Elements develop a sourcing program customized specifically for your needs.

For our entire history as a company, we at American Elements have made it our business to help our customers acquire the materials they need. In many cases, these are materials we produce or process ourselves, but even our catalogue is not infinite. This doesn’t mean, however, that we can’t help you find what you’re looking for. If the material you need is available anywhere, we will help connect you with the appropriate supplier.

Speed and Flexibility

Working with American Elements for sourcing means never having to start fresh and find a new vendor just because you need a new material. This allows your business to experiment with new designs without substantially setting back product development.

Cost Savings

American Elements will negotiate with vendors on your behalf to secure the best possible price for your organization.

Basic Research

American Elements seeks to enable all of its customers to focus on innovation, not acquiring materials. In no area is this more important than in basic research. Whether you are setting up a new research program, need reliable custom reagents, or are seeking direct research assistance, American Elements’ experts are here to support you.

New Lab Start-Up Program

If your organization is building a new lab or embarking on a new research project, American Elements can help you get started. Contact us to discuss the nature of your project, and we will help guide you in gathering materials you need to get started.

Custom Reagents and Standards

Preparing solutions and other reagents de novo each time they are need in your laboratory can be incredibly time consuming and produce batch-to-batch variations. For frequently used materials, save yourself this hassle and source of error by allowing American Elements to deliver these materials to you ready for use. Reagents can be prepared to your precise specifications and packaged conveniently in drums, large liquid totes, or smaller units.

Consulting and Contract Research

Focusing on your organization’s core competencies can be key to maintaining the flexibility necessary to compete in a rapidly changing marketplace, but sometimes a development project requires components that are outside your area of expertise. When these project components involve materials development, American Elements can help. Our operations are supported by state-of-the-art research and analytical laboratories managed by Ph.D.-level staff. Our experts can be made available as consultants as you expand into new areas, or you can outsource components of your project entirely to our research team.