I work at a smaller company and we are looking for a way to cover our ESD safe carts to protect product from FOD. We found a cover that should work fine for us (the data states Printed Side ≥ 3.2 x 10^6 / Over Side ≥ 2.5 x 10^11). Now the question comes down, we also found the same exact material that is in roll form. This is a much cheaper option and we have a way to stitch the covers together ourselves to save some money. The other thought of getting the most out of our money, are there other possible uses for this kind of material? It was suggested in my company to use the material as a mat, but I am not sure how that works since one side is 10^11. Does anyone have any suggestions on ideas on how I could possibly use this material other than cart covers?
It looks like the cover material consists of a dissipative netting with an insulative plastic cover. Although this may protect a rack from ESD risks, I doubt it would be a good worksurface material.
First, you would want the dissipative netting on the top side of the worksurface as it would be the only way to effectively remove any charges from the ESDS item. This would likely not be ideal as the netting may snag on the ESDS items.
Second, you would need to figure out a way to connect the netting to ground. Most ESD mats have a way to attach a snap to the mat which provides the connection point. This would not be possible with the material in question. Instead, some other means would need to be figured out.
Third, the spec sheet says the netting (printed side) resistance is ≥ 3.2 x 10^6 ohms. The ANSI/ESD S20.20 limit for a worksurface is < 10^9 ohms. It is possible the netting resistance is too high, but this would need to be measured
Fourth, I would be leery of the insulative side of this cover. You would need to measure the voltage of this surface to make sure it falls below the limits for insulators in ANSI/ESD S20.20 section 8.3.1.
It would also be a good idea to test this material for the purposes of a rack cover. You could simulate this by rubbing the insulative side of the cover in a way that may represent how someone or something in the factory may rub up against the rack, and then measure the voltage seen on the other side through the dissipative netting. You could apply the same limits in the insulator section of ANSI/ESD S20.20 based on the distance the ESDS items on the rack may be from the cover.
I actually do want to clarify, it is called “Netting,” but I believe they mean that by the cross pattern. It looks like it is actually a printed on dissipative material (hence the printed side). I do not believe there should be any snagging, but I will need to confirm if the printing can be grounded (as you said) and check to see if the resistance is too high.