Stop everything and brush up on plastic film 101
Are you a manufacturing business in the mid west looking for accurate and reliable thin film measurements? Plastic film production is a fine-tuned process and your business may require thin film measurement near mid west facilities. By utilizing a non contact thickness gauge in your region, you can ensure that your plastic film is produced uniformly and without variations that can jeopardize the integrity of your finished product.
While this sounds simple, it is critical to understand the plastic film production process, end-use applications and the issues that can causes thickness irregularities. Keep reading to learn more about plastic film and thin film measurement near mid west locations, from SolveTech, the leaders in non-contact thickness gauges.
Applications
Plastic film has many end use applications from shrinkage wrap for food items to industrial wrap and medical grade film. Each application is produced in a similar manner. The major variation occurs in the polymer used to produce the plastic film and of course, the thickness.
If your film product is the incorrect thickness, it can be unusable and result in material, financial and production time waste at your factory. Variations in thickness can affect quality and lead to unsatisfied customers.
Production Process
Plastic film is produced through one of two extrusion processes—blown extrusion or cast extrusion. While the latter, cast extrusion, is a more affordable process, it has many disadvantages over the blown film extrusion process.
Production Problems
During the production of extruded plastic film, several things can go wrong and affect finished thickness. At set-up, a line worker can make an error preparing the production process. Also, the extrusion equipment could be incorrectly calibrated or the extruder could suffer wear and tear.
During the lay-flat part of the process, the film, which is extremely thin, could become damaged because of misuse. Certain polymer materials may not extrude properly through the mold because of their unique chemical properties.
At the finish, film could be mislabeled by an employee. The finished plastic film is so thin that even the most experienced production employee would have difficulty identifying its thickness with the naked eye.
Gauging
Thin film measurement near mid west facilities becomes an important tool to mitigate all your production problems. When a non contact thin film measurement gauge is used at key points in the production process, errors and irregularities can be spotted before they become costly to your wallet and reputation. Measurements can be taken at set up, to ensure equipment is properly calibrated; during the lay flat to check film thickness mid-production and in the quality control lab to check accuracy of labeling and the finished product.
Want to learn more about thin film measurement near mid west manufacturing facilities? Call SolveTech, Inc.today!
