Spark IBEX Crampons

PROCESSING

From standard sheets to custom extrusions,

our aluminum is sourced locally

and is the raw material for the majority of our binding and accessory parts.

With our CNC mills and lathes and our

extremely talented machinists, we are able to

produce a wide variety of parts in all shapes,

sizes, and complex geometries.

All scraps are sorted and recycled.

ANODIZING

This electrochemical process is how we add a vibrant coat of color to our aluminum parts such as baseplates, heel straps,

tail clips, etc.

Anodizing not only adds beautiful colors, but also creates an aluminum oxide layer

on the parts that hardens the material to

make it stronger, more corrosion resistant, and more slippery

to prevent snow from sticking,

and to generally protect the material.

It is a much more environmentally friendly

process than powder coating or painting,

and it adds very little weight or thickness to the parts.

The anodizing station is like a small chemistry lab

and requires precise operation and maintenance.

All wastewater is evaporated or

tested and dumped,

and our system has specially

insulated dye and rinse tanks

to reduce energy use.

PLASTICS AND INJECTION MOLDING

We make almost all of our plastic parts in

house, from smaller parts like

snap blocks to larger parts

like our Rip 'N' Flip highbacks and Pillow

Line straps! We now have two

injection molding machines to keep up with the growth

in this area of our manufacturing.

One of the coolest parts about our

plastic programs is that we also make all of our

own molds in our machine shop.

PAD PRINTING & PRE-ASSEMBLY

Our product graphics were originally

all laser engraved, but since 2012,

we have been doing pad printing in-house,

which has opened up a world of product graphic possibilities for us.

Not only is it

faster, more colorful and consistent, but it's

fun, too. We select our

own inks, test them, and match

colors. Every Spark product with graphics

was hand-printed by one of our employees.

Pre-assembly is the last

preparation before a part goes to the

assembly table. Every end product is a

little different, but pre-assembly generally involves

a mix of printing,

bending, fitting, and pressing.

MANUFACTURING

Our modern manufacturing line is equipped with

a variety of air guns,

multiple quality control checkpoints, and

an incredible team of

detail-oriented, hardworking men and

women. Blasting from the speakers

in the workshop is everything from hip-hop to

hair metal. Aside from the eye-catching

technology in our factory, the

employees are Spark R&D's greatest asset.

Our team is just as passionate

about making a good product

as they are about letting loose in the nearby

mountains.