Welcome to Allplastics. You are viewing our offline website. Please click here to visit our new website. We offer Australia's widest range of plastic materials and associated services. Our experience in the machining of plastics extends over 25 years. In addition our fabrication facilities cover an ever-expanding range of indusries and applications. We stock and cut building, industrial and architectural plastic rod, sheet and tube. Please click here to visit our new website.

POLYVINYL CHLORIDE (PVC)

  Vinyls are a broad and diversified group of materials.  Rigid vinyl sheeting is available in three categories:

  Calendered Sheet

  Planished Sheet

  Extruded Sheet

Calendering is the manufacturing process, and sheet is available in .005-.020" thicknesses.  Planished sheet is calendered sheet that has been laminated using polished or matte finish plates to give the finished sheet a polished or matte finish.  Planish sheet is available in .10" - .125" thicknesses.  Special order thicknesses are also available.

Calendered rigid vinyl sheet is available in a full range of colors.  Calendered sheet is also less expensive, due to in part to not having the processing time that other sheet needs. 

Calendered sheet is brittle because of the considerable strain imposed during manufacturing.  Calendered sheet may be used in lieu of planished sheet, at a reduction in cost, if further processing and laminating is required. 

Planished rigid sheet is available in a variety of thicknesses and colors.  It is available in transparent, translucent, and opaque formulations, and in standard and high impact forms.  For workability, high impact formulations are more desirable.  Clear standard formulations are more rigid and haze free.  Planished sheet is used for a wide variety of applications including:

     Face Shields                                   Safety Shields

     Drawing Instruments                        Lamp Shades

     Dial Covers and Faces                    Scales

     Lighting Diffusers                             Menus

     Shims                                              Insulating Spacers

     Airline Seat Pocket Cards               Decorative Applications

The advantages of rigid vinyls are:

     Clarity                                                                                Low Moisture Absorbtion

     Dispersion                                                                         Easy to fabricate

     Excellent chemical resistance                                              Good dimensional stability

     Good draw characteristics                                                  Good flexural strength

     Good range of forming temperature (280 ⁰– 300 ⁰ F)         Self-Extinguishing

     Excellent electrical properties

The disadvantages of rigid vinyls are:

     Poor weatherability

     Relatively low impact strength

     Heavy

     Easily scratched or marred

     Low heat distortion point (160⁰  F)

Flexible vinyl sheet and film comes in a myriad of appearances.  It can be skin soft to semi rigid.  It can come in any color and can be formulated to meet specific applications.  Some of the applications for the flexible vinyls are:

     Seat Covers                                                  Shop Aprons

     Protective Gloves and Clothing                      Rainwear

     Anti-corrosive Liners                                     Inflatable Toys

     Hospital Equipment                                        Novelties

     Fabrics                                                          Shower Curtains

     Storm Windows and Draperies

Its applications are almost unlimited.  Many of the advantages of rigid vinyls are also advantages to flexibles.  In addition, flexibles are tear and puncture resistant, abrasion resistant, easily fabricated and they are non-toxic.

PVC is the oldest sheet and tube product in the market used for corrosion resistant tanks, ducts, fume hoods and pipes.  PVC tanks are very popular with etchers and metal chrome platers.  Photography labs use many types of standard and custom made tanks to contain corrosive solutions.  PVC will withstand temperatures over 140⁰  for short periods but it is not recommended for higher temperatures.

Unlike other olefins, PVC can be cemented together, although heat welding is more acceptable for joining them together.  Rigid PVC is available in sheets, bars, rods, tubes, pipe fitting valves and large diameter ducting over 24 inches.