Replacing Metals with Plastics

Replacing metals with plastics has become a viable option for many leading businesses. Metals are sometimes appropriate for your design, and in other situations plastics are appropriate for your design, it all depends on the end-use of your application. When it comes to plastics, modern thermoplastics have made great strides in replicating many of the strengths metals possess, without the drawbacks they were also known for.

A common misconception about plastics is that they burn where metals don't. There is truth to this in regards to many plastics; however, there are flame retardant packages that can be added to thermoplastics that make them adhere to stringent flame-smoke-toxicity requirements. Several thermoplastics on their own offer high melt points, over 575°F, PEEK, and Teflon,fall into this category. Reinforcements such as glass, carbon, and aramid add to the structural integrity of thermoplastics.

Advantages of Replacing Metals with Plastics:

  • Lower overall cost
  • Low maintenance
  • Reduced noise and vibration
  • Simplified design
  • Lower weight
  • High Energy Efficiency
  • Better Chemical Resistance

With the advantages of plastics having been listed, several thermoplastics offer strength, rigidity and impact resistance that meet or exceed many metals, without the added weight. For this reason alone, and as an example, several transportation applications have made the switch from metals to plastics.

Vanderveer Industrial Plastics offers a wide selection of materials in order to perfectly match your application requirements with the most cost effective material.

View our Top 10 Reasons Why Plastic Bearings are Better than Metal Bearings

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