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7 Household Objects You Wouldn’t Have Realised Are Made with Extrusion

Lots of people outside of the industry wouldn’t have the first clue when it comes to what an ‘extrusion’ is, let alone the fact that they are used in a multitude of industries. From our speciality, aluminium extrusions, to surprising industries like food production, the process crops up in many unsuspected places.

Here are seven household objects that you wouldn’t have thought were made with extrusion methods:

 

Drinking Bottles

Some drinking bottles are manufactured by extruded blow moulding, which involves pushing plastic through an extruder die, closing a mould over the plastic (called a parison), then the parison is inflated with a blow pin and compressed air. Finally, the parison is trimmed at both ends to make it into a bottle.

Pasta

Often made out of stainless steel extruder dies. The machine that makes pasta operates by mixing the ingredients in one end, then pushing the mixture through the extrusion. The die is catered to the type of pasta required – from macaroni, to fusilli – then, if the pasta is in short bits like penne, cut with a rotary blade to keep pieces at the same length.

Dog Food

Most brands of dog food are used by extrusion methods, including Bakers Complete, Royal Canin Dry and Pedigree Complete, in a similar method to that of pasta. The only difference is that the little kibbles start out as dough, which is passed through the die extruder, and then expands with the pressure and heat of the machine – making what we know as dog food.

Cars

Due to its lightweight qualities, aluminium is being used increasingly with the manufacturing of automobiles. For example, Audi are branching into aluminium extrusions for their cars’ body structure, for their line of hybrid aluminium models.

Carpets

Household carpets are created by an extrusion method, although not quite in the same way as the other examples here. The fabric fibres that make up the bulk of the carpet are made by being passed through an extrusion die. They are then spun to make them stick together enough to be attached.

Plastic Bags

Similar to the glass bottles, plastic bags are created in a process called blow extrusion. The plastic is heated then manipulated using compressed air to form the bag shape. Afterwards, the bags are cut to shape with machinery.

Wires and Pipes

One of the more predictable of the products made with extrusion methods. Household and industrial wires and pipes are created by feeding the material through a die in an ‘o’ shape. This allows for wires to fit through or pipes to have space for inserting things into.

The opportunities are endless when it comes to extrusion methods, which is why we’re so committed at Love Aluminium to creating bespoke aluminium extrusions for a wealth of purposes.

Contact us today to see how our company can help you with your aluminium extrusion requirements, as large or small as the project may be – one of our specialist advisors will be happy to take your call.

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