The Value Advantages of a Custom Metal Bellows Why Unique Engineering Dynamics Demand Customized Quality - And Why No Two Expansion Joints Are Created Equal.

A good expansion joint must be custom designed, as a wide variety of differences between applications can result in significantly different engineering requirements. Environmental stresses, unique application design, materials, individual component design and quality, even the overall facility age all individually add unique stress factors that give every ductwork or pipeline a somewhat unique personality. When FlexCom engineers build a custom expansion joint, our goal is to make your application more reliable and predictable by compensating for your unique combination of these stress factors. Rarely is that task more challenging than in environments commonly served by a metal bellows.

Metal bellows - expansion joints made entirely from steel, designed for use in high pressure gas and liquid transfer environments - are routinely subjected to very high stresses. For these environments, custom design is essential to build a reliable joint that lasts:

• Heat and pressure. Thermal and pressure loads subject ductwork and pipelines to an enormous level of environmental and movement stress, which can over time reduce the predictability of your application and damage expensive components. Custom selection of metal grades, joint size and overall design can ensure that your metal bellows enjoys a long, reliable and productive lifespan in the most challenging environments.


• Axial movement. Bellows compression and extension can present a unique problem in selecting an appropriate bellows design. In addition to basic design elements such as metal grade selection and overall joint size, FlexCom designs include the careful addition of control and limit rods to the bellows exterior - creating a “cage” of sorts that prevents over-extension or compression of the bellows.


• Vibrations. Caused by factors ranging from normal flow turbulence to loose or malfunctioning components, vibrations transmitted along ductwork can cause significant damage to your application over time. By varying design factors such as multi-ply construction, metal grades and joint size, a custom designed metal bellows can effectively dampen vibration transmissions before they damage expensive application components.


• Abrasion and particulate buildup. In many cases, the gases and liquids transferred through a metal bellows are not clean, instead containing a high level of particulate contamination that over time can cause abrasion damage to the joint and reduce its effective lifespan. The addition of an interior flow liner protects the joint in highly challenging abrasive environments.

These factors and more should be considered when selecting the best metal bellows for your unique application. As every application is unique, no two metal expansion joints are created equal. Selecting a custom designed bellows to fit your exacting specifications ensures that the joint you install is the right one - and the one most able to safeguard your application for many years to come.

Are you in search of a truly superior expansion joint for your industrial engineering needs? CLICK HERE to contact us today and request a quote!

FlexCom Inc. 6864 Chrisphalt Drive Bath, PA 18014 Phone: 610-837-3812 Toll Free: 888-376-FLEX

• The Value Advantages of a Custom Metal Bellows
• Our Products: Metal Bellows
• About FlexCom Inc.

FlexCom Composite Flat Belts.
Made With ChemShield®.

FlexCom® fabric and composite expansion joints are constructed of ChemShield®, a composite material designed to provide maximum strength and protection for tough environmental conditions.

ChemShield® is a PTFE-coated, high strength fiberglass cloth, which is in turn laminated to a sheet of 100% PTFE fabric - making FlexCom fabric expansion joints an ideal solution for any gas transfer application that must withstand heavy thermal stress.

We've Moved!

Since 1991, Flexible Compensators (FlexCom) Inc. has focused its energy and resources upon the single task of becoming the industry leader in robust, dependable fabric and metal expansion joints. In 2008 we took the next logical step: moving into a new state of the art manufacturing plant. Our new plant in Bath, Pennsylvania today serves as our fully integrated and full service engineering, manufacturing and test facility.

Two-thirds larger than our previous plant, this new facility has effectively doubled FlexCom's production capacity, enabling us to offer even greater cost efficiency, quality control, fast shipping and customer service.