Most caulks or sealants are still dispensed via the traditional caulk or adhesive cartridge. The typical cartridge consists of a plastic tube, nozzle, and plunger. While these are convenient and easy to use, they do contribute to waste in the shipyard. On a large vessel build where several thousand cartridges may be required, it can really add up.
Although popular for a long time in the adhesives and sealants industry, the sausage or foil-pack has not been widely used in the shipbuilding industry. However, STI Marine, a Division of Specified Technologies Inc. introduced Marine Firestop Sealant (MFS) in a convenient sausage pack. A sausage or foil-pack (also called a chub) is the sealant packaged in a Mylar® bag. The end of the foil-pack is slit with a knife and then it is inserted into a barrel caulk gun.
Sausages have many benefits compared to standard cartridges. They are more cost effective. They typically hold at least twice the volume of material. And they significantly reduce waste. After the sealant has been fully dispensed, the foil casing ends up being roughly a 13 mm tall disk. A handful of these disks can equal a garbage bag full of empty cartridges.
STI Marine manufactures MFS Sealant in 592 mL sausage-packs. Custom 1,000 mL sausages can also be made, although sometimes space constraints onboard a new build can make the 1,000 mL packaging too big so exercise care to ensure there is ample room to dispense the sealant.
For a limited time, for every 10 cases of MFS120 purchased, STI Marine will provide a free high-capacity sausage gun featuring lightweight, rust-free aluminum construction with an 18:1 mechanical advantage. Contact your local STI Marine Representative or email customerservice@stimarine.com.