Plastic part manufacturing has grown significantly over the last couple of decades. Through technologies like 3D printing, CNC machining and plastic injection molding, manufacturing high-quality and functional plastic parts has become easier than ever. Today, however, many manufacturers are not fully aware of all the benefits of using plastic in manufacturing end products. In this blog, we take a quick look at all the benefits of plastic and highlight some of the best reasons why you should consider switching from metal to plastic in your product design.

1. Recyclability

Unlike metals and other production metals, plastic boasts of one of the best rates of recyclability in manufacturing. When you opt to use plastic for your production, you can save production cost by recycling waste plastic, obsolete or damaged plastic parts to get molten plastic that can be re-used to manufacture something else entirely. The recyclability of plastic can therefore impact your material sourcing and cost of operations.

Although metals may be recycled, the ease and effort to recycle metal is often counterproductive, unrealistic or cost-ineffective.

2. Design Flexibility

Plastic, because of its physical and chemical properties, offers a significantly higher range of design flexibility over metals. With plastic parts, you are able to micromanage parameters such as color and geometry because of their higher moldability. Metals on the other hand have certain viscosities and molten flow behavior that may limit the shape and geometries that they may be crafted into. The design flexibility around plastic also means a quicker turnaround for your project.

3. Safety

Metal parts are relatively harder to machine and form than plastic parts. These metals also have sharp edges that may lead to cuts and injuries when machining. Plastic, on the other hand, has smooth edges and lightweight arising from its design and physical properties.

In the chances of installation, metal parts are more likely to be heavier and injurious than plastic parts.

4. Lifespan

Plastic are less susceptible to the wear and tear that arises from weathering elements, chemical attack or chemical reactions. Metals on the other hand are more likely to be affected by oxidation and rusting. To prevent these, metal parts often need to be treated after production. This post-processing may impact your overall manufacturing cost and raise the cost per unit of each part. Unlike metals, because of the lifespan of plastic parts, there is a lesser chance of incurring replacement costs for your parts down the years.

5. Cost

Plastic is generally more affordable than metal. Metal parts have higher tooling cost compared to plastic tooling. Designing your product with plastic parts will save you a lot in manufacturing cost as the time and effort of fabricating metal parts is higher than plastic. Plastic parts have a higher ease of forming due to their low melting point, they also have lesser needs for post-processing and are more lightweight than their metal counterparts.

Premium Parts provides excellent Plastic Injection Molding Services to manufacture high-quality plastic products at cost-effective rates with quick turnaround times. If you’re looking to learn more about all the benefits of using plastic over metal in the production of your part or just looking to learn about what material best fits your next project, feel free to contact us here and get your questions answered and get a free quote.