Aflex Hose Ltd is known in the industry as the primary innovator and pioneer of PTFE hose technologies. We were established more than 30 years ago and pioneered the concept of PTFE lined flexible hoses for the transfer of process fluids in pharmaceutical and chemical plants. Since then, the company has been committed to a program of continuous development and improvement, resulting in the most technically competent and sophisticated hose range available today.

Our head office and main manufacturing facility is located in Halifax, West Yorkshire and is equipped with state of the art technology. Our structure enables us to provide our customers with engineering, design, manufacturing and warehouse services. As an ISO 9001:2008 company, Aflex Hose continuously enhances its in-house procedures to ensure that only precisely crafted hoses leave our facility.

Our world leading engineering brings cutting edge flexible hose technologies to critical environments. Whether used to satisfy specific requirements for hygienic and chemical resistance in pharmaceutical manufacturing and research facilities, or to satisfy multi purpose use in chemical or food stuffs process operations.

We have a proven record of success with PTFE hose products where a robust, flexible and chemical resistant hose is required.

Trained quality and process control personnel monitor all processes at Aflex Hose, and all products are tested to the highest standards by Government accredited institutions. Our professional sales and marketing team, supported by dedicated engineers and technologists, has helped establish our brand as among the most preferred in the market.

Our reputation for innovative design and build quality is second to none, and has earned the company market leadership of the PTFE lined flexible hose market for Process Fluid Applications worldwide.

LATEST NEWS:

Due to global demand for one of Aflex's most respected products, Bioflon has been reinstated into the Aflex product range in 2 1/2" and 3" sizes, to satisfy customer requirements for a smooth bore PTFE lined product with larger bore sizes.

Bioflon is a premium smooth bore product with a stainless steel reinforcement wire helically wound over the braid and is available in a standard blue, vulcanised, EPDM rubber cover.

Bioflon compliments the Bioflex and Corroline hose ranges giving Aflex the flexibility to service the requirements of today's demanding markets.

Aflex Hose is pleased to introduce Puretag, the world's first fully integrated sanitary hose labelling system, providing significant improvements over the conventional silicone bubble encapsulated labelling systems.

The new Puretag label is fully bonded to the inner braid of the hose, encapsulated by a transparent silicone, or a transparent EPDM rubber cover. The streamlined design ensures there are no bulges on the outside of the hose that could cause obstruction whilst in use, or that could prevent efficient external cleanability; which often occurs with standard silicone bubble encapsulated labelling systems. The fully bonded design of Puretag completely eliminates entrapment zones on the external surface of the hose.

Puretag is available on our full range of pharmaceutical hoses; Pharmaline, Pharmalex, Bioflex Silicone (SI) or Rubber covered (RC) or Fireproof (FP) Hose, and Corroflon SI or RC or FP Hose. Puretag uses the same grade of silicone or EPDM that is used to form the hose cover, so it does not alter the usage conditions, approval ratings, or cleaning systems and is autoclave compatible.

Puretag is a user-friendly label design and is intended to provide a more effective way to manage and maintain your hose systems, and maximise your plant efficiency. Puretag allows our customers to customise their label, either colour coding it to make identification easier for faster replacement, or to include customer specific information, such as:

• Customer part numbers
• Hose testing date requirements
• Process fluid used
• Hose cleaning systems

The Puretag label can also be removed and replaced, if a change of colour, or an update to the label is required.

Aflex Hose Ltd, a UK based company, was established in 1973, and have since expanded worldwide with their market leading PTFE lined flexible hoses, to make the most prestigious hose products on the market globally accessible to all process industries. Aflex has manufacturing sites in both the UK and USA, and a worldwide distributor network spanning over 40 countries.

Aflex Hose is pleased to announce that we have extended our manufacturing capabilities of hose end fittings.

Taking total control of our supply chain reduced our dependence on external suppliers, proving beneficial to both Aflex and our customers. Sourcing components from other companies and countries can often cause the supply chain to break down, resulting in lost revenue and unnecessary down time for the customer. Continuity of supply at Aflex now enables us to provide an improved service to our customers and allows our customers greater control of their inventory.

We commenced a major investment program, installing state-of-the-art CNC machines, and the purchase of a new electropolishing plant, allowing us to manufacture end fittings to order, in batches of 1 to 1000, within a short period of time significantly reducing lead times.

These investments offer great improvements to product quality and can guarantee that all products are manufactured to the highest standard.

Our end fittings are available in a wide range of materials including 316 and 304 Stainless Steel, Hastelloy, Monel 400 and many other metals and plastics. A new brochure is now online with the full details of the available Aflex end fittings range.

Aflex end fittings are specifically designed to correspond with Aflex PTFE lined flexible hose, offering the ultimate hose for process fluid applications. All our products are manufactured in accordance with BS EN ISO 9001:2008 quality management systems.

Aflex Hose Ltd, a UK based company, was established more than 30 years ago and pioneered the concept of PTFE lined flexible hoses for the transfer of process fluids in pharmaceutical and chemical plants. Since then, the company has been committed to a program of continuous development and improvement, resulting in the most technically competent and sophisticated hose range available today.

Aflex's reputation for innovative design and build quality is second to none, and has earned the company market leadership of the PTFE lined flexible hose market for Process Fluid Applications worldwide.

Lot traceability is a crucial requirement in the pharmaceutical and Biotech world - the ability to trace all components of the hose assembly is essential for pharmaceutical manufacturers.

Aflex Hose has recently introduced encapsulated batch numbers onto its Pharmaline brand of PTFE flexible hoses, ensuring full traceability throughout the supply chain.

The batch number is encapsulated between the white inner silicone and the outer clear silicone cover to ensure permanent fixture. Lot traceability allows the customer to trace the manufacturing history right back to source.

As well as Lot Traceability Aflex Hose offers two additional options of labelling:

• Standard Labelling - Vibro etched on to a loose stainless steel ring mounted onto the hose.
• Puretag Labelling - Encapsulated on to the braid by a transparent platinum cured rubber cover, which is integrally vulcanised and fully bonded to the rubber cover on the hose.

These labels contain details of the manufacturer and Hose Size and Grade ensuring corrective action can be taken straight away if a hose needs replacing.

Full traceability is fundamental in biopharm and pharmaceutical industries where validation processes must be maintained.

All Aflex products are manufactured in accordance with BS EN ISO 9001:2008 with full certification from the worlds governing bodies including USP Class VI, FDA Compliance and 3 A Sanitary Standards.

As part of our global development strategy, we are pleased to announce our expansion into the Middle East.

Worldwide demand for Aflex Hose products has been the driving force for our company to expand into the Middle East market with the appointment of two new distributors who hold essential knowledge of the Middle East, offering unrivalled technical support and after sales service to the chemical and process industries.

Gulf Incon WLL will cover the State of Qatar and the Flexiflo Corporation will cover the United Arab Emirates, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Bahrain, and Kuwait. These two companies will now offer the full range of Aflex Hose products, including our leading brands Bioflex, Corroflon, and Corroline, throughout the Middle East.

It is essential for pharmaceutical and chemical manufacturers to have the right equipment, and certification for their process fluid applications. Our world leading engineering and process expertise has enabled us to develop some of the most effective hose products on the market today. We understand which PTFE hose products are best for your applications to optimise your performance. The worldwide growth of Aflex Hose demonstrates our commitment to provide customers with the precise product for their needs anywhere in the world.

Aflex Hose Ltd, a UK based company, was established more than 30 years ago and pioneered the concept of PTFE lined flexible hoses for the transfer of process fluids in pharmaceutical and chemical plants. Since then, the company has been committed to a program of continuous development and improvement, resulting in the most technically competent and sophisticated hose range available today.

Aflex's reputation for innovative design and build quality is second to none, and has earned the company market leadership of the PTFE lined flexible hose market for Process Fluid Applications worldwide.

For more information please contact the Aflex Hose Ltd team on + 44 1422 317238

Supply chain control is an important part of the manufacturing process as most companies are increasingly reliant on outside sources for different components. When the supply chain breaks down lead times increase, resulting in lost revenue and unnecessary downtime for you, the customer.

Aflex Hose has always manufactured its own product range of PTFE lined flexible hoses, and is now pleased to announce significant investments in new CNC machining capabilities and a new Electropolishing plant.

With these new investments we are now able to manufacture end fittings in house. Our experienced and dedicated engineers consistently produce high quality products for the pharmaceutical, Biotech, Chemical and Food Industries allowing us to service your requirements in a timely and cost effective manner.

Our CNC machines make it possible for us to make fittings in batches of 1 to 1000 within a short time frame enabling us to supply to your timeframes at market prices.

All our products are manufactured in accordance with BS EN ISO 9001:2008 quality management systems.

We are proud to be able to supply the correct product, on time, at the right price.

Aflex Hose Ltd, a UK based company, was established more than 30 years ago and pioneered the concept of PTFE lined flexible hoses for the transfer of process fluids in pharmaceutical and chemical plants. Since then, the company has been committed to a program of continuous development and improvement, resulting in the most technically competent and sophisticated hose range available today.

Aflex's reputation for innovative design and build quality is second to none, and has earned the company market leadership of the PTFE lined flexible hose market for Process Fluid Applications worldwide.

Greater emphasis on safety has meant that chemical transfer hoses have come under close examination. Governing bodies have introduced standards as a guideline for manufacturers to ensure the supply of safe and high quality hoses.

Aggressive chemicals are known to attack hose liners, resulting in hose failure. Any hose failure can be devastating and lead to the release of poisonous, corrosive and flammable materials posing a health and safety risk to operators, the general public and the surrounding environment.

One of the most important steps in ensuring hose safety is to select the correct hose for your application. As the demand for innovative products keeps increasing, Aflex Hose has designed a range of products for the safe and efficient handling of chemicals in the toughest chemical and process applications.

Corroline and Corroflon are manufactured with a PTFE hose liner, the most chemically inert product available on today's market. We have developed a high quality PTFE hose liner that is more resistant to fluid/gas permeation than any other hose product currently available.

All Aflex Hose assemblies are identified with a stainless steel identification tag, ring or ferrule, vibro etched with a unique serial number for complete traceability, and any other relevant information. Having this information gives you full control and peace of mind that if a problem is detected or a hose needs replacing corrective action can be taken straight away.

We offer a range of outer covers from stainless steel and rubber covers to an outer protection coil ensuring our hoses are tough enough to withstand crushing, kinking or collapse adding to the overall performance of the hose. We also have the option to colour code or company brand hoses for application and product identification. Colours may be used to relate equipment or products within the hose or to distinguish between different temperature lines.

Aflex Hose Ltd, a UK based company, was established more than 30 years ago and pioneered the concept of PTFE lined flexible hoses for the transfer of process fluids in pharmaceutical and chemical plants. Since then, the company has been committed to a program of continuous development and improvement, resulting in the most technically competent and sophisticated hose range available today.

Aflex's reputation for innovative design and build quality is second to none, and has earned the company market leadership of the PTFE lined flexible hose market for Process Fluid Applications worldwide.

For more information please contact the Aflex Hose Ltd team on + 44 1422 317 238

By Rod Anderson, Managing Director of Aflex Hose Ltd. (Original article published at www.pharmaceuticalonline.com)

PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) was discovered in 1938 and became commercially available in 1950. PTFE-lined flexible hose products were first introduced in 1955, mainly for military applications in the United States. It was soon realized, however, that two of the primary properties of this remarkable plastic made it particularly ideal for use in pharmaceutical and chemical plants as a lining material for components containing process fluids - the excellent chemical resistance and ease of cleaning are quite simply in a different league than those of the other materials that previously had been used.

Many pipes, vessels, pumps, valves, and other process fluid components have consequently been lined with PTFE and other fluoroplastics ever since, and various designs of PTFE-lined hoses have been developed to provide a flexible conduit for connecting between components.

Basically, PTFE-lined hose constructions include an inner PTFE liner tube with outer reinforcement and protection layers, including stainless steel wire or textile braids, steel helix wires, and rubber layers and covers in various combinations.

The hose constructions are designed to provide a hose that is able to flex sufficiently in the application without excessive stress being applied and without the risk of damage, kinking, or interference with the function of the hose.

This is where a problem arose, because hoses made up with smoothbore PTFE liner tubes in bore sizes above 3/4 inch (20 mm) were found to be hard to flex and prone to kinking.

This problem was partially solved by making the PTFE, FEP, or PFA liner thin-wall, then bonding it externally to an EPDM or white silicone rubber hose carcass. This was done in order to prevent the possibility of the liner tube kinking inside the hose construction. Such products are widely available today, but have significant disadvantages. First, the adhesive layer outside the thin wall liner is a chemically reactive, non-FDA approved material, which has been known to leak into the hose bore and contaminate process fluids in certain types of applications. Second, when the hose is flexed, the liner at the inside of the bend ripples severely, creating entrapment zones. Third, the hose is stiff, and hose bore sizes above 1-inch bore require excessive force to flex the hose, making it difficult to install on site.

Another widely available hose designed to overcome the problem includes a PTFE tube liner, which is helically convoluted, or 'concertina-ed'. This provides a hose liner design with excellent flexibility and kink resistance, but introduces the significant drawback that the internal convolutions are entrapment zones for the fluids passing through, and turbulent flow is induced by the internal convolutions, which severely reduces fluid flow rates.

In spite of the disadvantages, these PTFE, FEP, and other derivative fluoroplastic-lined hose products are available and in use in pharma, biotech, and chemical plants worldwide with varying degrees of customer satisfaction.

During the last few years, an alternative design of PTFE liner has become available for use in hose constructions that combines a substantially smooth bore (slight ripples) with an excellent level of flexibility. While the bore of the PTFE liner is effectively smooth, the outside surface is heavily convoluted to provide 'hoop strength', so the liner is self-strengthened and does not need to be bonded with an adhesive to the outside braid or rubber layers.

When flexed, the bore does not exhibit severe rippling. The ripples already present become a little deeper, but not severe.

The hose liner is externally reinforced with a stainless steel wire braid and an optional EPDM or silicone rubber cover, without any adhesive layers, to complete the hose construction.

Such hoses can be made into assemblies that are available with 'integral PTFE-lined' end fittings attached, in which the thick-wall PTFE liner is passed through the bore of the end fittings then flared out to form the sealing face. This protects the end fitting material from contact with the process fluid and ensures clean, restriction-free flow of the process fluid through the end fitting.

Finally, pharmaceutical, biotech, and chemical plant engineers are able to obtain what they have always wanted - a genuinely flexible, genuinely smoothbore, fully PTFE-lined hose product, eliminating all the disadvantages of previous designs.

These products are available under the trade names Bioflex, Pharmaline, and Pharmalex, and are available from Aflex Hose Ltd (UK), Aflex Hose USA LLC, or any of the Aflex Hose distributors worldwide.

Rod Anderson was one of the founders of Aflex Hose in 1973 and has been managing director of Aflex Hose Ltd for the past 15 years His primary achievement has been to develop worldwide market leadership in the PTFE-lined hose products that Aflex offers to pharmaceutical, biotech, and chemical plants for process fluids transfer applications.