Aligning the Design and Manufacture of Glass Reinforced Plastics for Success - Material Selection

This event is the second in our four-part series on how to successfully design and manufacture parts using glass reinforced plastics. The strength that glass reinforcement can impart to plastic materials is phenomenal. Glass fiber reinforced plastics offer enhanced mechanical properties, particularly strength and stiffness over unfilled materials. Their use is widespread in a wide variety of applications where mechanical integrity is essential. However, this benefit is not without its challenges. This series will focus on what to consider when selecting, designing for, and manufacturing glass reinforced plastic materials.

Material selection is one of the key facets of successful product development. The base resin, additives and reinforcements will be important factors in how well a part molds and performs mechanically and cosmetically over time in the field. Material selection is not trivial and utilizing glass fiber reinforcement increases the complexity of this process. It involves understanding the stress, environmental and cosmetic demands. This webinar will cover some of the key aspects when making the decision to use glass fiber reinforcement during the material selection, including:

• The material selection process.
• Advantages of utilizing glass fiber reinforcements.
• Challenges that come with glass fibers.
• Balancing requirements with material limitations.
• Short-term and long-term material property considerations.
• Less reliance on datasheet properties.
• Key properties to consider when selecting the resin, additives, and reinforcements.
• Using material testing to help make material decisions.