Metal Replacement

As the technology of material manufacturing has developed over the past decade, an increasing number of plastics have stepped up to meet the mechanical requirements of many metal parts. Some applications include: housings/enclosures, brackets, bushings, and gears/bearings/wheels.

There are many cases where the right plastic selection can satisfy your needs and offer a significant reduction in cost. Let us help you evaluate if plastic is up to the challenge. Where stiffness is required, filler agents such as fiberglass can be used. Where repetitive assembly & disassembly takes place, we can place threaded inserts. Where shielding is required, we can use grades of plastic with ESD or they can undergo a shielding treatment for a very modest cost. Even for part volumes as low as 1000 per year, the reduced part price can often deliver a payback on tooling within 12 months.

The benefits of a metal-to-plastic conversion for you may include:
• Weight reduction - on average (40-50%)
• Cost savings - on average 50%
• Noise reduction
• Ease of manufacturing and higher throughput
• Improved weatherability