Push material through a die. Repeat the cross section continuously.
Extrusion forms continuous products by forcing material through shaped tooling. The emerging profile maintains a substantially consistent cross section along its length.
The die opening defines the profile that continues along the extruded length.
Metal and polymer extrusion use the same broad idea but very different production systems.
Aluminum Extrusion
Heated aluminum billet is pushed through a shaped die to produce profiles used in frames, channels, structural members, heat-management products, housings, and other applications.
02 / PLASTICPlastic Extrusion
Molten polymer moves continuously through tooling to produce tubing, channels, seals, profiles, sheet, and other constant-section products.
The profile is only one part of the finished production sequence.
Billet, pellets, resin, or another feed form is prepared for the extrusion process.
Material is heated, softened, or otherwise prepared before being pushed through the tooling.
The die opening controls the basic cross-sectional geometry of the emerging extrusion.
The profile is controlled as it cools so dimensions, straightness, and geometry remain within requirements.
Continuous product is cut to length, coiled, or otherwise prepared for later operations.
Machining, drilling, coating, anodizing, printing, assembly, or other secondary work can complete the product.
A profile must flow through the die as one continuous cross section.
Wall thickness, unsupported features, enclosed cavities, symmetry, material flow, cooling, and final tolerances can all influence whether a profile is practical to extrude.
Extrusions often become finished components after additional work.
Machining
Drilling, milling, tapping, cutting, and other machining can add local features that cannot be created continuously.
02Surface Finishing
Anodizing, painting, coating, polishing, printing, or other finishes can protect or modify appearance.
03Assembly
Extruded profiles can be joined with brackets, fasteners, inserts, seals, panels, or other components.
Need geometry that is not limited to one continuous cross section?
Additive manufacturing builds complex geometry layer by layer directly from digital data without conventional extrusion dies.
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