- The masterbatch is key to ensuring that the colour of the manufactured parts is consistent throughout their useful life and also from one production to another.
- Advantages of working with masterbatch in the production of plastic parts: efficiency, cost reduction and improvement of productive capacity
Barcelona, April 11th 2023 — Colour uniformity is a fundamental concern for the plastic parts manufacturing industry. Delta Tecnic as a company specializing in the manufacture of masterbatch for the PVC and Cable industry, aims to ensure that the colour of the manufactured parts is consistent throughout their useful life and also between productions of the same product.
Colour uniformity is essential in many cases. Manufacturers of plastic parts must meet the requirements of their customers, who demand a colour that matches the pattern exactly and is stable over time throughout the useful life of their products. It is not just a question of branding and marketing, but rather that the exact colour replica in each print run is key for the industry. There are different cases in which colour uniformity is decisive.
Colouring the parts produced from plastic can be done through pigments or with the use of a masterbatch. When it is done using pigments, there is a risk of not being able to match the result despite repeating the same pigment formula because the structure of each batch of pigment is different and its development in the extruders causes the resulting colour to be different, despite using the exact same formula. Due to these variations, with the use of pigments, corrections must be made and sometimes even then, the desired colour is not obtained. This is where the masterbatch comes in, since it delivers the product adjusted to the standard colour determined between the customer and Delta Tecnic, so that the colour is stable between one production and another.
A quality check to ensure that the colour is uniform
Delta Tecnic operates with a very rigorous quality control process applied to each mixture unit that is carried out during production. Every time a masterbatch mixture is produced, a quality control is done to make sure the colour matches the pattern and is consistent between productions. If there is any difference in colour, a modification is made to the mixture to ensure that the colour is uniform. The dispersion of the pigments is also very important to achieve colour uniformity, since if the pigments are dispersed correctly, the colour variation between different batches will be greatly reduced.
More competitiveness and productive capacity
Manufacturers who switch from pigments to masterbatch obtain a series of benefits, such as minimizing the defects due to colour problems to practically zero, the decrease in non-conforming internal product and the reduction of adjustments in each production with a significant reduction in costs and increase in their productivity. This translates to a considerable improvement in the efficiency of the production line, the reduction of waste and a reduction in associated costs. All this makes it possible to be more competitive in the market and increase production capacity.
In conclusion, colour uniformity is a major concern in the plastic parts manufacturing industry. Working with masterbatch makes it possible to guarantee colour uniformity from one production to another and to reduce the number of non-compliant products. In addition, good dispersion of the pigments is also essential to achieve colour uniformity and improve the quality of the final product. Compounders working with masterbatch can significantly improve their efficiency and competitiveness in the market.
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