Glassfiber Reinforced Plastics (GRP) are uniquely versatile materials found in every aspect of modern life. From the houses we live in to the cars, boats, planes and trains we travel in, to the leisure activities we participate in: it´s hard to imagine life without reinforced plastics. Here are some of the most important market segments where you will find GRP materials, reinforced with 3B glass fiber reinforcements.
These are dynamic times for the reinforced plastics industry boosted by the drivers common to all manufacturing industries like optimized cost/performance, operating cost improvements and return on investment. The need for materials that are lighter, stronger and more durable is resulting in traditional materials being increasingly replaced by reinforced plastics, and new products being designed to fully utilize the benefits of the material.
Automotive:
Improved engine efficiency and low weight are essential elements in reducing fuel consumption and environmental emissions in cars and trucks.
Replacing steel body panels with fiberglass composite panels can realize exceptional weight savings of over 40%.
Composite panels are also more resilient to minor impacts. In headlamp shells, the use of GRP allows greater design freedom, while in the commercial vehicle sector, corrosion resistance and lower tooling costs are also key drivers.
In semi- structural parts, numerous functions can be integrated into a single component, saving time and sub-assembly costs. Under the bonnet applications for reinforced plastics and composites are also growing including engine components like valve covers, engine under covers, running gear, filters, fuel delivery and exhaust systems.
Building & Construction:
Glassfiber reinforced plastics are used to construct meter boxes, underground junction boxes, drainage channels and manhole covers. In the house building sector, GRP composites are used for doors, roof and ceiling tiles, flat roofing laminates, canopies, dormers and balconies, garage doors, decorative cornices & pillars and other architectural finishes.
Even complete pre-fabricated composite houses have been built for emergency/temporary housing needs. Modular pre-fabrication also enables a high level of insulation to be built into the structure. The use of fiberglass composites for these applications provides for a much faster installation and due to the reduced weight manual handling issues are reduced.
Chemical Plant & Pipework:
In process industries and civil engineering projects, GRP composites are replacing steel, aluminum and concrete for pipework and pressure vessels due to their strength, excellent resistance to chemical attack and their freedom from maintenance. Fiberglass chemical storage tanks and pipes have a track record of over 40 years performing day in day out, handling aggressive acids and alkalis under high temperature service conditions.
Fiberglass composites are also used for walkways, railings and ladders especially in chemical plant and offshore installations for their non-conductive, non-corroding qualities. Thanks to 3B Advantex™ glass reinforcements composite parts can be formulated to deliver optimal chemical resistance properties.
Defense and Ballistics:
In defence and security applications, fiberglass reinforced plastics meet the need for blast and ballistic protection at lower cost and at lower weight. Because of its fibrous composition, a GRP ballistic panel will absorb impact by transmitting the energy along the fiber network.
Electrical and Electronics:
The electrical and electronic industries benefit from the electrical insulation, dielectric resistance and anti-corrosion properties of fiberglass reinforced plastics.
GRP moldings are also rigid and maintain dimensional stability under heat and mechanical pressure. They are lighter and tougher than traditionally used materials like ceramics. Because their low coefficient of linear expansion is close to metals, GRP components such as machine bases form a precise fit with metal components - even under elevated operating temperatures.
Whether it´s a fiberglass filled nylon or a fiberglass reinforced bulk molding compound, 3B offers reinforcement solutions for electrical insulators, switchgear, fuses and housings. 3B fiberglass products also accelerate the miniaturization of small mechanical components.
Energy:
Harnessing and maximizing nature´s own resources - wind, sun, waves and tides - is essential if we are to meet global demands in a responsible and sustainable way.
Reinforced plastics are the material of choice in these emerging renewable technologies, offering design freedom, high strength, low weight, and corrosion resistance. The huge wind turbines, now a familiar site on our landscapes, would not be possible were it not for composites. Steel blades would be simply too heavy and too costly to maintain.
Infrastructure:
Infrastructure is a major growth sector for the composites market. Demand is driven by the need for materials that deliver unlimited design flexibility and are lighter, stronger, more corrosion resistant and require less maintenance than traditional structures made from steel and concrete. For example, in bridge construction, lightweight pre-fabricated modular bridges are replacing steel and concrete structures – especially for bridges designed for pedestrians or bicycles. They are more quickly and easily assembled requiring less road or rail closures.
Fiberglass composites are also used to rehabilitate sewer systems using the latest in trench-free relining technology. Other applications include, corrosion-free concrete reinforcing bars, acoustic barriers and road signs. Theft of steel road signs for their scrap value is a growing problem: GRP has no scrap value.
Machines & Domestic Appliances:
Tough, fiberglass reinforced thermoplastics are used for business machine housings, gears and other components for computers, copiers, printers, cash registers and mailing equipment.
They are also to be found in a host of domestic appliances from vacuum cleaners to washing machines, giving design freedom and excellent cosmetics. Where higher heat resistance is needed, for example for electric toasters, oven door handles, panhandles, iron skirts and coffee makers, GRP are commonly used.
Marine:
The adoption of fiberglass molding techniques in the 1960s has gone on to revolutionize the boat building industry. Previously used materials like steel and wood are heavy, labor intensive and expensive to maintain. GRP transformed the market, especially for leisure craft but also for workboats. Naval minehunters are also built from GRP as are marine ancillaries such as submersibles and mooring buoys.
As with other forms of transport, the marine industry benefits from the enhanced surface qualities, design freedom, substantial weight savings and corrosion resistance offered by reinforced plastics, over conventional construction materials.
Mass Transit:
A major benefit of reinforced plastics is that the recipe – resin, glassfiber and filler types – can be formulated to precisely match the application needs.
In the case of trains and other methods of mass transit such as monorails, metro systems, trams and buses, flame retardancy and low smoke emission are important drivers.
Flame retardant GRP formulations are therefore used for seating and for internal fixtures and fittings. Externally, GRP is found in body panelling and nose cones, enabling dramatic areodynamic shapes to be produced. And because fiberglass reinforced plastics also make excellent electrical insulators, GRP is also used for floor panels, spark guards and arc barriers.
Sports & Recreation:
Fiberglass reinforced plastics are to be found in a variety of sports equipment including swimming pools and spas, water and snow skis, snowboards, high performance rackets for tennis, squash or badminton, fishing rods, archery bows, golf club shafts and golf trollies & buggies, racing cycle frames and wheels, white water kayaks, jet-skis, light-weight body armour, helmets and many other items of equipment or accessories.
Reinforced plastics also give the strength, design freedom, aerodynamics and low weight solutions needed in motorsport - from Formula 1 motorcycle fairings.
