Before buying caster wheels for your business's materials handling needs, you might question the quality of the items you purchase. Caster wheels are indispensable for many items, including office chairs, medical beds, carts, dumpsters, and more, spanning multiple industries. However, you can be confident that manufacturers that produce caster wheels in compliance with ISO standards value product quality and consumer safety.

Caster wheels by Caster Central follow the procedures and regulations from national and international institutions to ensure product quality. Continue reading to learn more about caster wheel manufacturing compliance, standards, and testing.

What Is ISO?

The International Organization for Standardization is a global federation of national standards organizations. This independent, non-governmental organization's technical committee creates the International Standards that allow manufacturing, technical, and management industries to develop innovative products for safe global distribution. 

When ISO-accredited manufacturers adhere to ISO standards, they give their consumers confidence that the products they purchase are safe and high quality. The standards also help caster wheel production companies develop goods that can hold up to competitors.

Compliance with International Standards is voluntary. Yet, ISO's main focus is the basics of quality management systems to help companies produce quality products by providing regulatory requirements. Today, over a million organizations hold ISO accreditation.

Are the Institute of Caster and Wheel Manufacturers Standards Similar to ISO Standards?

Caster wheel companies can stick to ICWM regulations and remain in ISO compliance. The Institute of Caster and Wheel Manufacturers is an industry group in the Material Handling Industry Association, the largest material handling, supply chain, and logics resources association in the nation. 

The American National Standards Institute backs the ICWM caster wheel testing and performance requirements. The regulatory requirements from these respected national institutions help businesses develop products that align with the durability, safety, and structural integrity criteria that let them be competitive within the caster wheel industry. 

Why Are Regulatory Requirements Necessary for Caster Wheels?

Whether purchasing caster wheels or producing them, you want to make sure they are safe to use. The wheels and rigs are necessary components of many items. They could lead to injuries and damages should they fail due to poor construction. 

Following ICWM and ISO standards means the rigs are safe because they undergo rigorous testing. These certified products are less likely to fail prematurely or break before reaching their load capacity. As a business owner, making casters that align with regulatory requirements can increase customer satisfaction. 

General Standards and Characteristics for Caster Wheels

Below are the general characteristics of casters and their components. 

Wheel

The wheel component on a caster will either rotate on an axle or use bearings inside its central hub. Its core holds the hub, web, and rim, making the wheel sturdy enough for a rubber tire. A wheel's core can be solid with one material or can comprise several assembled parts. 

Tires attached to the wheel can be solid rubber or possess a cavity with air with no pressure, making it semi-pneumatic. A fully pneumatic tire is hollow with air at an adjustable pressure.

Axle and Mountings

The axle refers to a rounded section of the wheel that rotates directly or with the help of anti-friction wheel bearings. Mountings for the caster fall into three categories:

• Stub-axle Mounting: The axle's support is on one side of the hub.
• Fork Mounting: The axle has dual support on either side of the wheel hub.
• Dual Wheel Stub-axle Mounting: One wheel is on both sides of the axle. 

Caster

A caster housing or rig can hold at least one wheel and axle, yet some varieties also fit accessories. Rigid casters have stiff rigs that only allow wheels to move back and forth. A dual-wheel caster also has rigid housing.

However, a swivel caster can hold one or two wheels and housing that allows the wheels to move in any direction on a vertical axis. The wheel's axis is usually offset to the fork's swivel axis.

Testing for Caster Wheel Standards Compliance

Every company that produces quality goods and products, like caster wheels, needs to perform conformity assessments. With these assessments, businesses should follow the manufactory policies involving weights, gauges, measurements, and timing devices for each test. However, ISO standards and other guidelines require caster testing in areas with temperatures between 65-75 degrees Fahrenheit unless otherwise specified.

About 15 tests are available for casters that guarantee they're safe with excellent performance and durability. Businesses can choose which tests to conduct on their goods, including the following:

Wheel Play Test

Manufacturers should perform a wheel play test to measure the movement between the wheel and its tire. The tester would begin the procedure by putting the caster assembly in a rigid vertical or horizontal position.

Then, they'll clamp a measuring device with accuracy up to 0.001 inches to the fixture and record the wheel's movement as it tilts from side to side. Finally, they'll record the linear measurements from the farthest point of its movement and the point parallel to the wheel's axle. 

Furniture Chair Caster Test

Rolling office chairs need the furniture chair caster test. Office furniture casters with a single wheel have a two-inch diameter minimum and a three-inch diameter maximum. Though dual-wheel casters have the same minimum diameter as the single-wheel variety, their maximum diameter is 2.5 inches. 

The test begins by attaching the chair base with casters to a cycling device like a conveyer belt. The device's platform should be firm and smooth if the casters have hard threads. Soft treaded casters require three obstacles mounted onto the testing platform. 

Next, put a 300-pound load onto the chair's base while allowing the base and its wheels to move freely. Hard-threaded casters need to cycle the device for 100,000 cycles, but soft-treaded casters can cycle for 36,000 cycles without taking damage. Every time the chair moves from front to back counts as a cycle.

Static Test

The static test ensures casters meet the basic requirements for static loading. It also establishes the static load minimum and maximum before the casters sustain damage. 

Begin the static test by ensuring the caster can use its normal mounting attachments. The test machine should be sturdy enough to apply a force that's four times the casters' load capacity perpendicular to the rig's mounting plane and the testing platform. 

Rollability Test

This test gauges the ability of swivel casters to roll and turn while holding their load capacity. The rollability test requires a test machine with a horizontal platform and a calibrated force gauge on the caster close to the wheel axis and parallel to the machine's platform.

Ensure the test surface is steel, rigid, smooth, and parallel to the caster's mounting plane. Pneumatic, hydraulic, and electromechanical dead weights equal to the casters' load capacity are suitable for the rollability test. 

Get the Best Caster Wheels and More From Caster Central

It's always best to work with a manufacturer that understands and adheres to ISO standards to ensure the company produces the best quality and safest caster wheels and accessories. At Caster Central, we're glad to meet quality management standards set by reputable international and national standards organizations, like ISO and ICWM.

Our mission is to consistently create the most reliable mobility solutions for every customer. Caster Central has over 150 years of experience satisfying our customers' handling and transportation needs and exceeding all expectations. We stick to rigid caster testing standards and requirements to ensure we only manufacture top-quality products. 

We offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee on our services and products that meet ISO standards. Call Caster Central at (800) 445-4082 for more details.