Plastic extrusion is a reliable process for producing materials used in different industries. Extruded plastics are manufactured by melting raw thermoplastic materials and forming them into a continuous profile. Applications include pipes, wire insulation, plastic sheets and weather stripping.
Another good way of producing weather stripping products is through co-extrusion. Some custom plastic manufacturers use co-extruded plastic because of the added benefits that this type of plastic material provides.
Co-Extrusion Process
With co-extrusion, several layers of raw plastic materials are used to produce a continuous profile. The advantage of using this process is the resulting material exhibits the properties of the layers of raw plastic materials used.
The process is done by extruding several raw materials at the same time by using two or more extruding machines. The different extruded materials are then funnelled into a single extrusion head to form the material into the final product.
Co-Extruded Window Seals
Co-extrusion can result in materials that offer better performance than those that use the traditional extrusion process. The resulting product can exhibit two distinct properties on its two sides. For instance, manufacturers can come up with a profile that has weather-resistant additives on the outer side and additives for durability used on the inner portion of the profile. In this case, the plastic’s outer side, which is exposed to the sun and the elements, is made to be weather resistant. Its inner portion is made stronger for better structural reliability and impact resistance.
Lloyds Pacific Plastics offers window seals made from co-extruded materials. The company’s captive wedge products are made with co-extruded thermoplastics. On the outside is a thermoplastic rubber, but on the inside portion, the seal is made to have a rigid backing.
The co-extruded window seals have been proven to withstand weather changes efficiently. The material also exhibits excellent weatherability and reduced shrinkage.
The company’s co-extruded captive wedge is built to protect the glass. It also makes installation simpler and faster. Because the captive wedge can be installed in place, there is no need to fix the installation from the outside using a scaffold. Construction personnel can fix the installation from inside the building.
Labour costs are also significantly reduced because most of the work is done in the manufacturing facility. The additional installation needed to be done on site is minimal, so the man-hours are substantially minimised.
Pacific Plastics’ co-extruded plastic products are highly recommended in window seals for building construction. Reduced cost, easy installation and better performance are just some of the more obvious benefits one can get from these products.
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