What is plastic extrusion?

What is plastic extrusion? In a basic technical definition, it is the transformation of solid plastic mass converted into a shape that can be used as produced or converted into usable products.

As a plastic product extrusion line manufacturer, we produce plastic product extrusion line used in the three primary processes of producing a plastic part – extrusion, injection molding and blow molding. There is a uniqueness to each primary process. Extrusion is continuous, injection molding is discontinuous and blow molding would also be considered continuous. Because of these differences, each process presents its own challenges but for this post we will focus on extrusion. Extrusion is a continuous process of converting a solid plastic mass, pellet or powder into a melted form where it is pushed through a die into a shape. This shape is then moved through various secondary operations where it is cooled then cut, coiled or experiences a variety of other possible operations. Extrusion can be broken into specific sub-processes which are sheet, blown or cast film, profile, pipe or pelletizing. Outputs from these plastic product extrusion line processes include:

1. Plastic sheet turned into drinking cups or food storage containers

2. Films used for grocery bags or to protect our food from harmful contamination while increasing its shelf life

3. Plastic pipe to safely deliver water to our homes without the worry of lead contamination or to clad the sides of our homes for an aesthetically pleasing low maintenance look.