BenchPro ESD Workbench Q&A as per October 2010 1.

In the event of scratch, wear, or damage on our paints and laminates there will be NO decrease in your ESD properties or protection. We use our own proprietary design ESD laminates that carry the static charges across an embedded layer of carbon which it is virtually impossible to damage or degrade. 2. Our ESD Table requires no maintenance. They will always be dissipative to the level at which they were delivered to you. The only exception is seen when someone applies wax to the surface, and it takes a lot of wax to be a problem. 3. Our product is guaranteed to meet the ESD Association and ANSI for 10-year unconditionally.

4. Our ESD Upright, ESD Top shelves and all other components have an integral connection,
and do not require snaps and wires for extra grounding. 5. We do not use ESD paint. As our paint is in contact with steel where it quickly dissipates its charge. 6. Care and use: We have never heard of ESD damage due to Paint Thinner, Lacquer Thinner, Alcohol, brushes, etc., in fact, we use Lacquer thinner, and brushes to clean our ESD tops before they leave our plant. 7. BenchPro adjustable floor glides are insulators. We do this to prevent any disturbance to other devices used to measure or control the rate of static dissipation. 8. Our competitors work-surface grounding instructions require a special bolt be inserted through the top of the work surface. We do not do this, and our ESD benches do not require this. Benchpro eliminated this process and expense by building our ESD tops so they have all six sides electrically connected together. Here is how we do it. A. All our ESD tops have rounded front edges for comfort. We do not offer them with square front edges. This rounded edge produces both ESD laminate on the top of the workbench and under the front four inches of the top. When the top is assembled to the frame, we drive 4 to 6 sheet metal screws through the laminate, each one connecting directly to the "scrim" or inner layer of the laminate where the static charges pass the most efficiently. If there were any failure rate with the "screw through the top" system, we would have about one sixth the rate. In reality, we have produced over 100,000 ESD tables with this system, and have never had a report of a failure or degradation of the ESD properties. B. We use dissipative edge banding. Edge banding is the 1-1/4" high strip that goes on the edges. This both works as a conductor and eliminates the possibility of static charges building up around the edges of the tops. C. We use an aluminum bottom cover layer on the bottom side of our tops. Its conductive, and makes sure no charges develop on the bottom of the top which might migrate to the top side when coming in proximity with the worker or other objects. This connects all the edges together, along with the edge of the top laminate which wraps around under the top. This is an exclusive feature at BenchPro, and also is the best moisture barrier available on any workbench top available today. 1-888-700-9888 www.benchdepot.com