Polyethylene Foam
Polyethylene Foam Fabrication
Advanced Seals & Gaskets Ltd stock a massive range of polyethylene materials in a block and sheet form, from which we can manufacture various fabricated components. A fabrication requires the use of a combination of specialist machinery, usually a selection of saws, drills, buffers and knives, alongside the manual adhesion and construction of the finished product. By choosing ASG for your fabrications, you will benefit from the availability of our CNC oscillating knife, which can automatically cut and drill fabricated parts by reading CAD drawings. Fabrications are often used as a cheaper alternative to mouldings and extrusions for the production of bespoke shapes (as there is no initial die or tooling cost), ideal for when 1 off prototypes or small quantity runs are needed. All our polyethylene foam fabrications are made to order, produced using samples or drawings provided by customers, and can take many forms including multiple material laminating to create composites sheets which are then cut down into gaskets/washers/strip, displays & signage (such as logos/lettering) and seals with flexible joints or irregular angles.
What is a Polyethylene Foam Fabrication?
Fabrication is the process by which polyethylene foam blocks and sheets of material are turned into custom made 3D usable shapes. Fabrications are created using CNC machines, saws, drills, buffers etc, enabling us to create unique products that usually can not be produced by one single process for example where the item is too big to be produced in one single piece, or where 3D profiles are required such as cubes or cone shapes. Polyethylene foam fabrications can be cut from blocks kept in stock, cut from laminated layers of sheet material and even made using a number of smaller cut parts joined together.
Why use Polyethylene Foam Fabrications?
Fabrications are often used as a cheaper alternative to extrusions (as there is no initial die/tooling cost) for the production of bespoke shapes, these are ideal for use as samples or prototypes prior to paying for expensive tooling for mouldings or extrusions for bulk production. They are also perfect for producing props, signs, displays, packaging case/box inserts with routered out shapes to hold specific items in place. Different types of sponge rubber fabrications have their own unique set of characteristics and properties for use in various applications, some are suitable for outdoor use and UV/Ozone exposure, others have oil resistance or are flame retardant. Polyethylene foam fabricated parts can be found used in many applications and industries such as electrical equipment, automotive, advertising and packaging.
Different Grades
There are different types of polyethylene foam available for use within many industries each with its own unique characteristics. Popular types of fabricated polyethylene foam include:
- Flame retardant
- Plastazote
- Low-density non-cross-linked Polyethylene
Benefits of Polyethylene Foam Fabrications
Fabricated polyethylene foam products offer a range of benefits, not only are they more cost-effective than extrusions, but they also enable us to produce a number of variations of the same product for testing and prototypes. Fabricating parts allows us to produce composite material sheets which add extra mechanical properties and resistance to the product and also allows us to offer products for even the most unique applications. Sponge rubber fabrications are perfect for producing props, signs, displays, packaging case/box inserts with routered out shapes to hold specific items in place. Different types of sponge rubber fabrications have their own unique set of characteristics and properties for use in various applications with some being suitable for outdoor use and UV/Ozone exposure whilst others may be oil resistant or are flame retardant.