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Hi! This is Toby with HMC Electronics. We're going to be taking a look at the different
types of static-dissipative, anti-static, and static-shielding bags.
We're going to start off by taking a look at your regular poly bag. The weakness of
this poly bag is if I rub it--if it comes in contact with something--it will generate
a charge; hundreds, in some cases up to a thousand volts. So obviously not good for
an ESD environment.
Next step up, your pink--I couldn't find a bigger one. This pink poly bag will not tribocharge.
It can be rubbed against something else. It will not generate a charge. So it's a good
intermediary.
The problem with a pink poly bag is that people think that it is a truly ESD-safe product.
If I put a product in here that is sensitive to static, and then I take this product in
this packaging into an area where it could come in contact with static, this does not
shield, cage, or protect that product from a static charge being introduced. You could
actually still zap the product inside the bag because this is not creating a cage, a
faraday cage. It's fine to use in an area where the product in here is not sensitive
to ESD, but perhaps you don't want to have a poly bag that could have hundreds or thousands
of volts on it. It's fine for document holding, though we do have some other options for that.
But not a great idea if you're holding something that is static sensitive.
The metalized static-shielding bag would be used in the instance that you wish to protect
something from any sort of ESD event, any static charge, any chance of it being zapped.
The difference between this and the pink poly bag is this has a metalized layer. A faraday
cage is create when you put a product in here and then you seal that bag. What that means
is that no charge can penetrate it. You have this product and a person has a charge on
them and they touch this bag, the item inside is safe. It won't tribocharge, obviously.
There's no fear of this bag generating a charge, so if you have something that needs to be
transported from an ESD-safe environment to a non-ESD safe environment and then back into
an ESD-safe environment, this would be your product of choice to protect the inner product.
Going back to the holding of documentation. As I mentioned, the pink poly bags are sometimes
used for holding paper work; something where the product in the bag is not susceptible
to any ESD charge, but you cannot introduce packaging that would generate a charge. The
shop travelers and document holders that we offer are a great alternative to the pink
poly bags, in so much as these are actually static-dissipative. They are kind of an in-between
of the metal shielding and the pink poly. So not only is this not going to generate
a charge, but if it comes into an area where there is a charge, it will dissipate. And
that's an added benefit, an added feature with these. So if you are looking for something
to hold paper work and perhaps you're already using the pink poly, you may want to consider
moving up to something that is actually static dissipative over its surface, rather than
just antistatic.
So to wrap up. We've got three different options of protection; ESD-protection. If you have
any further questions, you're welcome to reach out to us here at HMC Electronics or browse
our website and you'll find a full range of pink poly, shop travelers, and also the metal
shielding bags.