Pexco Offers Advanced Extrusion & Compression Techniques

July 25, 2024  |  , ,

Pexco utilizes advanced extrusion techniques encompassing arange of sophisticated manufacturing methods to produce profiles, tubes, and multi-layered products with specific properties and configurations. Here’s an overview of each technique:

 

 

Profile Extrusion

  • Definition: Profile extrusion involves extruding plastics such as ABS, TBE, PE, and PC into a continuous shape that can vary in complexity, from simple designs to intricate profiles with specific cross-sections.
  • Advanced Techniques:
    • Precision Control: Utilizing advanced die designand computer-controlled extrusion systems to achieve precise dimensionsand surface finishes.
    • Co-extrusion: Integrating multiple materials or layers during the extrusion process to impart desired properties such as color, texture, or functional attributes.
    • In-line Processing: Incorporating secondary operations such as cutting, punching, or coating directly into the extrusion line for enhanced productivity and versatility.
  • Applications: Profiles are used extensively in construction (window frames, decking), automotive (trim and seals), and consumer goods (furniture components, appliance trims).

Tube Extrusion:

  • Definition: Tube extrusion involves the extrusion of plastics such as HDPE, FEP/PFA, and ETFE to create hollow tubes of various diameters and wall thicknesses.
  • Advanced Techniques:
    • Micro extrusion: Producing very small diameter tubes with high precision, often used in medical devices (catheters, tubing for drug delivery).
    • Multi-layer Extrusion: Extruding tubes with multiple layers to achieve specific properties like barrier resistance or flexibility.
    • High-speed Extrusion: Implementing advanced cooling and handling systems to maintain dimensional stability and surface quality at high extrusion speeds.
  • Applications: Tubes find application in industries such as healthcare (medical tubing), industrial (piping and conduits), and food processing (packaging and conveying).

Co-Extrusion:

  • Definition: Co-extrusion involves extruding multiple layers of different materials such as PTFE, ABS and PE,  simultaneously to form a single continuous profile or tube.
  • Advanced Techniques:
    • Barrier Properties: Creating structures with enhanced barrier properties against gases, moisture, or UV radiation.
    • Functional Integration: Combining materials with different properties (e.g., stiffness, flexibility) within a single extruded product.
    • Multi-color Extrusion: Producing profiles or tubes with distinct color layers without secondary painting or coating processes.
    • Applications: Widely used in packaging (food packaging films, bottles), construction (multi-layer pipes), and automotive (multi-material trim components).

 

Tri-Extrusion and Crosshead Extrusion:

  • Tri-Extrusion:
    • Definition: Tri-extrusion involves the simultaneous extrusion of three different materials such as ABS, PC , and PP  layers to create complex profiles or tubes.
    • Applications: Enables the production of products requiring three distinct layers with specific performance characteristics, such as  weatherability, strength, and aesthetic appeal.
  • Crosshead Extrusion:
    • Definition: Crosshead extrusion is a technique used in cable and wire manufacturing to apply an additional layer of insulation or jacketing around a core conductor.
    • Advanced Techniques: Precise control over thethickness and uniformity of the extruded layer, ensuring electricalinsulation properties and mechanical protection.
    • Applications: Essential in the production of cables for telecommunications, automotive wiring harnesses, and industrial powercables.

Benefits and Applications:

  • Benefits: Advanced extrusion techniques offer benefits such as increased production efficiency, precise control over material properties, customization of products with multiple layers or profiles, and integration of functional features. Typical materials include PVC, HDPE, LDPE, and nylon.
  • Applications: These techniques are essential in various industries including automotive,  medical, packaging, and electronics, where they enable the creation of lightweight, durable, and high-performance components tailored to specific requirements.

 

Pexco specializes in advanced extrusion techniques such as profile extrusion, tube extrusion, co-extrusion, tri-extrusion, and crosshead extrusion.  These techniques play pivotal roles in modern manufacturing, facilitating the production of complex, multi-functional plastic products across a wide range of applications and industries.  We leverage years of expertise to bring your product to market – on time and on budget.

 

For more information on how Pexco can assist you with your next extrusion project, please visit our website at www.pexco.com,or contact our office at 513.321.8404.

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