October 3, 2022 12:00 am
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Metal has been used for various purposes throughout history, but with the advent of plastic, it is being replaced in a growing number of applications. Plastic is faster to produce and lighter. It can also be molded into various shapes, making it ideal for products that need to be lightweight or that require intricate design details. Given its many advantages over metal, it’s little wonder that plastic is quickly becoming a material of choice for many applications. The Growth of Plastic Applications Over the past few decades, plastic has increasingly been used in various industries, from construction and electronics to military and aerospace applications. This was especially after plastic manufacturers began producing long fibers. Longer fibers increased the strength of... View Article
January 18, 2022 8:22 pm
Published by Writer
Thermoforming is the process of heating a material to its forming temperature before molding the material into a desired shape. The ancient Romans were actually the first people to use thermoforming by soaking turtle shells in hot water to make them pliable enough to form bowls and eating utensils. Nowadays, we practice plastic thermoforming every day at D&D Plastics. With plastics, we stretch a plastic sheet over a mold and warm the sheet until it becomes pliable. Once it’s warm, it’s applied to the mold using a vacuum, air pressure or even a second mold. After the plastic cools and hardens, we cut it into pieces and ship them out. This is a fast process that we rely on for... View Article
November 3, 2021 9:57 pm
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Thermoforming is a plastic fabrication technique that’s used to create products for a variety of industries. Read on for an introduction to the process and benefits of plastic thermoforming. Plastic thermoforming In basic terms, thermoforming refers to the process of heating a thermoplastic sheet to its softening point where it can be stretched and manipulated over a mold. As the plastic cools, it’s hardened into the desired shape. Thermoforming can refer to a variety of more specialized plastic fabrication processes including: Vacuum forming: This common technique involves heating plastic and stretching it over a mold using a specialized vacuum. The mold is typically open, and the force used to push the heated plastic over the form is limited to around... View Article
September 21, 2021 7:17 pm
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Plastic is an amazing material with a nearly infinite number of useful applications. Manufacturers in just about every industry use plastic components in their operations, and consumers have come to expect to see plastic employed in all kinds of ways. Here’s a basic plastic design guide for thermoforming and injection molding to help you understand some of the key concepts of plastic-component fabrication. Thermoforming The thermoforming process involves melting plastic sheets into a predetermined shape. The plastic is heated to a very high temperature, enhancing its malleability and allowing it to be formed and shaped without risk of cracking or breaking. Once the plastic sheets are heated, they’re pulled down onto a mold, which is the inverse of the final,... View Article
August 20, 2021 2:31 am
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It goes without saying that the medical community played the number one role in combating the coronavirus pandemic and helping to restore life to (almost) normal conditions. But one could argue that medical professionals couldn’t have done it without the help of polymer products. Continue reading to learn more about how polymers and plastic thermoforming helped throughout the pandemic. Medical devices made of polymers It’s hard to look anywhere without seeing a product that’s at least partially made of plastic, especially in the medical community. While many plastic products played an important role during the pandemic, these are two of the ones that helped the most: Face shields: In addition to face masks, most medical professionals wore additional personal protective... View Article
