“Old Guy Street Smart” Plastics Consulting

Engineered plastics design and related questions cannot be fully resolved by AI. Conversations are necessary to address these issues.

It is often the case that talking to someone who knows what questions to ask is your best solution.

Tom knows what questions to ask you

In my 47+ years in the engineering plastics, composites. and powder coatings markets, I’ve seen applications from HDPE hose spacers to high-performance materials for medical, semiconductor and even satellite applications, and everything in-between. I have seen what works and what usually does not work. That’s “STREET SMART” experience you cannot easily get anywhere else.

Engineered Plastics Training

The world of engineering plastics and composites has changed rapidly over the years. Many companies’ engineers and other specifiers don’t have the “functional experience” to properly investigate, review, choose, design, or sale in this material space.

Engineered Plastics Consulting

Experienced engineered plastics and composites consultants typically get to see many more industries, organizational cultures, technologies and ways of working due to the nature of their work. This can be beneficial and helpful, so your organization does not need to fumble through the learning curve associated with doing something for the first time.

Engineered Plastics Consulting

Cast Nylon Sheaves

Cast nylon sheaves are often used due to their lighter weight, corrosion resistance, and improved wire rope wear versus steel sheaves. However, special considerations are needed to enable a machine builder to use these with a high degree of safety factors.

INDUSTRIAL PLASTIC WEAR PADS

These are primarily made of self-lubricating cast nylon or UHMW polyethylene, but there are other materials that often better meet a given application’s needs. The process of material selection, design, and method of retention requires a more in-depth understanding of the factors to be considered.

HIGH PERFORMANCE PLASTIC ROLLER TOOLS

FOR SOFT METAL SPINNING AND FORMING

This market originally used only materials such as double-annealed nylon, Delrin®, and limited-life phenolics, versus the standard steel rollers. Now, a much wider range of material options is available. The selection of the most appropriate advanced thermoplastic material requires both technical expertise in the specifications of engineering polymers and their practical integration into spinning equipment, ensuring superior performance in demanding industrial environments.

Testimonials

'Tom also played a pivotal role in resolving a serious issue we encountered with boom chatter. His expertise extends beyond plastic materials to include paint and powder coat, enabling us to address the issue related to the interaction between our booms painted surfaces and nylon wear pads."

Kyle Gerber

Vice President, Engineering

“Tom’s Knowledge, Passion and genuine Interest have been a continuous source for our Success. We know that if Tom is involved, we can concentrate on other areas of our Business as he will get us EXACTLY what we need EVERY TIME."

Marting Guschlbauer

COO Franjo Metal Spinning

“In the world of Engineering Plastics, Tom sits quite high on the mountaintop in terms of overall knowledge. With over 47 years of deep experience, Tom was part of the initial wave of “why plastics” when replacing traditional metal choices in a variety of applications and industries. He has continued to be a critical asset to the overall plastics industry regardless of the individual company he worked for. Essentially, he has seen it all.”

Brian Loftus

COO

General FAQs

What are the reasons for a company to hire an external consultancy firm instead of using its own internal staff?

In general, these are the reasons you might hire a consultant:

Provides specific expertise for your project
Boosts your capacity
Broadens the skills and knowledge you have available
Makes you more agile
Helps you generate new ideas
Reduces your time to market

What are Engineering or Industrial Plastics - Composites?

Unlike the “plastics” you typically see and use (water bottles, food containers, cups, etc), industrial plastics are very robust materials used in industrial components, typically process and lifting machinery. Primarily used as wear components (bearings, bushings, wear pads) they have become the preferred material family for many such applications due to their improved wear resistance, reduced dependency on external lubrication, corrosion resistance and lighter weight.

What criteria are used to select the best materials?

In most cases, there isn’t just one specific “perfect” material for a given application. Depending on the application requirements, several materials could be viable candidates, each with their own product and performance profiles. The application development process is designed to find the material with the best combination of properties for that specific component. NOTE: price and size availability are inherent properties, not all materials are available in all shapes and sizes, and some are quite expensive.