Even if you perform accelerated laboratory weathering testing, you should also perform natural outdoor testing. Why Test? Reliable weathering and corrosion data can help you:
Accelerated testing, available both outdoors and in the laboratory, gives faster results but with some uncertainty about its accuracy. Many companies combine both approaches to ensure reliable results in the shortest time possible. Natural exposure testing is an essential part of any weathering and light stability test program.
Q-Lab Test Services
You’re not alone if you’re concerned about your product’s appearance or functional performance in the outdoor environment. Sunlight, heat, and moisture cause billions of dollars in product damage yearly. A proper weathering testing program can help you anticipate and prevent a variety of potential product failures, meet durability specifications, and preserve your reputation for quality.
Will your product last outdoors? Don’t guess when you can test!
Accelerated Lab Testing
For those interested in accelerated weathering, light stability, and corrosion testing but not yet ready to purchase QUV, Q-SUN, or Q-FOG test equipment, we offer a full range of accelerated testing services in Q-Lab’s fully-equipped laboratory in Florida, USA.
Although outdoor exposures are an ideal way to test your products, sometimes you can’t wait a year or two for real-time test results. We can give you fast and reliable weatherability, lightfastness, colourfastness, and photostability data using our extensive array of QUV, Q-SUN, Q-FOG, and QCT accelerated laboratory testers. Backed by decades of outdoor testing experience, Q-Lab experts can help you set up a successful accelerated laboratory testing program.
Outdoor Exposure Testing
Natural Outdoor Testing Location is everything. About one hundred years ago, companies in the paint and automotive industries realised that environmental conditions in South Florida and the Arizona desert were the harshest on their products. Several companies operated their own test sites in these locations, and they used what they learned to make their products durable enough to ensure generations of satisfied customers.
Today, much of this testing has been consolidated at Q-Lab’s sites in Florida and Arizona. Companies around the globe trust Q-Lab to perform their outdoor product testing.
Q-Lab Florida
Q-Lab Florida has more specimens on test than any other outdoor weathering facility in the world. Q-Lab Florida is located south of Miami on the southern tip of Florida, the only true subtropical region in the continental United States. We offer natural outdoor exposure testing, accelerated laboratory testing and specimen evaluation services at Q-Lab Florida. These contract test services are ISO 17025 accredited.
Why Florida?
Florida is the internationally recognised benchmark location for outdoor exposure testing. Florida subtropical weathering exposures are not only realistic, but they are also accelerated. One year of Florida sunshine can equate to several years of weathering elsewhere. Our Florida site has high-intensity sunlight, high annual UV, high year-round temperatures, abundant rainfall and very high humidity.
This synergistic effect of UV, moisture and heat makes Miami the ideal location for testing the durability of materials in outdoor environments.
The extremely sunny, humid, and warm climate has been proven especially useful for certain types of testing, including:
Q-Lab Arizona
Q-Lab Arizona ranks among the largest desert exposure facilities in the world. Q-Lab Arizona is located 30 miles west of Phoenix in the town of Buckeye, an area away from automotive, industrial or agricultural pollution. We offer natural outdoor exposure testing, Q-TRAC natural sunlight concentrator testing, and specimen evaluation services at Q-Lab Arizona. These contract test services are ISO 17025 accredited.
Why Arizona?
Arizona is an internationally recognised benchmark location for outdoor weathering exposures because of its high-intensity sunlight and high year-round temperatures. Compared with Florida, the Arizona test site offers about 20% more sunlight, higher annual temperatures, and lower humidity. During the summer, the air temperature may reach 46°C. A black-coloured specimen may reach over 71°C.
This combination of high levels of UV and extremely high temperatures makes Arizona the ideal location for testing highly durable materials that may not fail elsewhere.
This extreme climate has been proven especially useful for certain types of testing and materials, including: