Material Integrity: Every Ingredient Counts
Stainless steel is made up of several elements, and each of these elements serves a unique purpose, like ingredients in a recipe. And like restaurants, some manufacturers use only the finest ingredients, while some skimp in order to cut their own costs. These low-quality manufacturers depend on customers not to know the difference – until it's too late.
The accelerated corrosion test samples show the difference in corrosion resistance between different formulations of stainless steel. Given the harsh, acidic foods steam table pans are exposed to daily, this test shows how crucial it is to get the correct formulation every time.
Samples were suspended in a 170°F, 3:1 ratio water-bleach mixture for eight hours. Sample B contains only 2% less each of nickel and chromium than Sample A, and the drop in corrosion resistance is substantial.
For this reason, Vollrath only uses mills that have proven to uphold exacting and consistent standards. In addition to all the certifications done at the mill as listed below, Vollrath does its own incoming material inpection, and each pan is stamped with an identification number that allows it to be traced back to the master steel coil and heat that it came from at the mill. Because of these stringent quality controls Vollrath pans can be counted on to be durable and consistent, now and for a long time to come.
All material used in the Super Pan 3® and Super Pan V® lines is certified at the mill to meet the requirements of the following standards:
- ASTM A240 / 08, A480 / 06b, A666 / 03
- ASME SA240 / 07, SA480 / 07, SA666 / 07
- QQS766D-A X MG PERM
- All material meets Corrosion standard ASTM A262 / 02aE
- All Material is free of mercury Contamination
- Material is RoHS Compliant
- Material is free of Radioactive Contamination
- Material is manufactured in a facility with a Quality Management System in Conformance
- with ISO 9001:2000.
- Mechanical properties verified at the mill:
- Tensile strength
- Yield strength
- Elongation
- Hardness