posted July 18, 2006 01:52 PM            

I need some help with a question. Purchasing Dept. informed me that they would like to switch one of our parts that was previously molded out of polystyrene over to PE to save money. We ran some samples with the PE and everything looks OK for our product except that it is a little too ductile. The polystyrene was more brittle which allowed the "knock-outs" in the product to be punched out easy. The PE however is softer and the "knock-outs" almost have to be torn out. I know there are additives that can be added to PS to make it softer, but does anyone know of any additives that can be mixed with the PE to make it more brittle? I am going to go to the resin supplier and inquire about a different grade of PE, but I think they may say it will cost more than our current grade of PE which will defeat the whole purpose. So when I talk to the supplier, I want to have a some information that I can use as ammo when they try and tell me they have to increase the price. I would rather not mix the additive on site, I would rather bring it in that way. Any suggestions?

posted July 18, 2006 05:18 PM               

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Best Regards,

Tom Cunningham