Swarfega
Encyclopedia
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
company based in Denby
Denby
Denby is a village in the English county of Derbyshire that is notable as the birthplace of John Flamsteed, England's first Royal Astronomer, and the location of the Denby Pottery Company....
, Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
, and is used in engineering and other oily, dirty, manual trades, such as printing.
It is a dark green, gelatinous, thixotropic substance used to clean grease
Grease (lubricant)
The term grease is used to describe semisolid lubricants. Although the word grease is also used to describe rendered fat of animals, in the context of lubrication, grease typically applies to a material consisting of a soap emulsified with mineral or vegetable oil...
, oil
Oil
An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....
, printer's ink, or general persistent, hydrophobic dirt from the skin. Swarfega is used by working a small amount into dry skin, then wiping or rinsing off. As with other such cleaners, it can be more effective than soap or other common cleansing products at removing such dirt; Swarfega became virtually ubiquitous in environments where this kind of dirt is common, such as garage
Garage (house)
A residential garage is part of a home, or an associated building, designed or used for storing a vehicle or vehicles. In some places the term is used synonymously with "carport", though that term normally describes a structure that is not completely enclosed.- British residential garages:Those...
s and machine shops.
History
Swarfega was invented in 1947 by Audley Bowdler Williamson (28 February 1916 - 21 November 2004), an industrial chemist from HeanorHeanor
Heanor is a town in the Amber Valley district of Derbyshire in the East Midlands of England. It is northeast of Derby. According to the census of 2001 the town's population was 22,620.-History:...
, Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
. In 1941 he had founded a detergent-sales company, Deb Silkware Protection Ltd., based in Belper
Belper
Belper is a town and civil parish in the local government district of Amber Valley in Derbyshire, England.-Geography:Belper is situated eight miles north of Derby and is centred in the valley of the River Derwent...
, to produce a formulation for extending the life of silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
stocking
Stocking
A stocking, , is a close-fitting, variously elastic garment covering the foot and lower part of the leg. Stockings vary in color, design and transparency...
s. The name derived from "debutante
Debutante
A débutante is a young lady from an aristocratic or upper class family who has reached the age of maturity, and as a new adult, is introduced to society at a formal "début" presentation. It should not be confused with a Debs...
", to signify the newness of the company and its products. The introduction of nylon stockings threatened to render it superfluous, however Williamson suggested that mechanics had already found it useful for cleaning their hands.
This may have been a myth encouraged to attract interest, but the product was reformulated and marketed as Swarfega, becoming the company's main product. (The company’s name had been changed to Deb Chemical Proprietaries Ltd.) Before Swarfega, mechanics used a variety of harsh home-brewed cleaners such as paraffin (kerosene), sand and petrol. These removed the skin's natural oils, leading to dry, cracked skin and the risk of occupational dermatitis.
The effectiveness of Swarfega is due to the hydrophobic ingredients, notably medium-chain (C9-C16) alkanes and cycloalkanes; in combination with an emulsifier (Trideceth-5 in current formulations). These are more efficient at solubilizing oil and grease than a detergent alone.
In the UK, the word "Swarfega" may be used as a generic term for all similar cleaners, particularly if they have the same green jelly-like appearance as genuine Swarfega. According to the company website;
the name comes from "swarfThis may be a bit confusing, as "swarf" now commonly refers to the metal shavings and chips resulting from metalworking operations.SwarfSwarf, also known as turnings, chips, or filings, are shavings and chippings of metal — the debris or waste resulting from metalworking operations including milling and grinding. It can usually be recycled, and this is the preferred method of disposal due to the environmental concerns regarding...
", being the old engineering term for oil and grease, and "-ega", as in "eager to clean".
Deb expanded its product range and has long offered a range of products either related to detergent ingredients, or sold to the same mechanical trades. Many of these such as Jizer, a water-rinsible degreaser used for washing mechanical parts rather than mechanics, first defined the original market for a new product that has now become commonplace.
Competing products
A similar product, called "Dirty Paws", was available in the UK in the 1950s but has now vanished. It was orange, not green.In recent years, Swarfega has lost the ubiquity it once had. There are now many competing products, such as Rozalex
Rozalex
Rozalex was a brand of Rozalex Limited, a subsidiary of the Chloride Electrical Storage Company credited with being the first company in the United Kingdom to commercialise topical barrier cream for use in an industrial setting....
Two Fives and Rozalex Gauntlet, Deb have even repositioned their own "Suprega" and "Tufanega" for industrial use. This has an orange colour, emphasising its "natural" origins and citrus oil ingredients. As with its own precursors, Swarfega now raises concern over removing skin oils and so a gentler solution is sought. Some may also contain mechanical scrubbing additives, such as polymer grains.