Successful design of any profile extrusion depends on a great number of factors. There are however, just a few that should be considered in the beginning phases of your design plan. After the basic design is roughly determined, we can review your concept and suggest any ideas to maximize processability, dimensional control and part performance. Material selection can greatly alter the overall performance and cost of the final product. It is at this stage that factors can be addressed.

TOLERANCES: that are extremely tight are one of the major contributing factors in costs. It is best to consider which specific areas of the part need to be maintained as ‘critical’ and how tight they must be for the intended use. Mating parts and dimensional stacking problems also can be considered at this stage. Tolerances are dependant upon a great number of factors including shape, material and size, among others. A general rule of thumb is dimensions less than 1.5” (+/-.020”) and dimensions 1.5” or greater (+/-1%) will provide the greatest value in tooling and production efficiencies. Many factors can affect these guidelines, please consult your Quaker representative before concluding any print tolerances.

WALL THICKNESS: Overall wall thickness in the cross-sectional area should be as consistent as possible. Following this basic rule improves production efficiency, tolerances and geometry to help reduce tooling costs.

SINK MARKS: Sink marks or depressed areas generally occur opposite the opposing leg or rib of a product extrusion. The greater the wall variation, the greater the depth of the sink mark. To compensate for these sink marks, feature lines can be added to hide this inherent process condition.

HOLLOW SECTIONS: Profiles that require hollow sections will require special tooling and sizing considerations where areas that are required to maintain consistent wall thickness are still preferable to unbalanced walls. It is generally not recommended to include projections inside of a hollow section so these projections cannot have tight tolerances.