Since 2010, Apex Machine Group has been providing premium abrasive sanding machines and accessories to process metal, wood, plastic, and composite products. Located in Minneapolis, Minn., we offer services to customers throughout the United States and Canada. This page will detail the machines and solutions we offer for specific plastic and composite processes.
Machines Used for the Plastics and Composites Industry
Common machines that process plastics and composites include:
- Wide belt sanders. Wide belt sanders machine solid wood and composite boards to have a certain flatness and thickness. The stock is fed through the machine while the abrasive belt removes unwanted materials from the surface. A wide belt sander is often paired with a jointer to create square, accurate stock.
- Abrasive sanding belts. These belts contain abrasive grains on a cloth, foam, paper, or film backing. The belts are mounted on either rotating wheels or pulleys for surface sanding, grinding, or finishing purposes. Three categories of abrasive belts include narrow belts for backstand grinders, file belts for handheld tools, and wide belts for large, flat surfaces.
- Brush sanders. Brush sanders remove loose fibers and break sharp edges from the top surface of the stock. They’re great for cleaning up the profile and evening the sanding of the surface, resulting in an even stain color, if needed.
- Belt/brush machines. This is a contact belt unit with flexible sanding strips. The product is sanded by pushing it against the belt. Compared to sanding rollers, belt/brush machines are more versatile, since two different types of sanding strips can be used. This tool is best for sanding heavier products without damaging the surface.
Common Plastic & Composite Applications
The following are common plastic and composite processing applications:
- Material calibration
- Denibbing loose composite fibers
- Loose flash removal
- Distressing and/or texturing plastics
- Finish sanding
Plastic & Composite Solutions From Apex
At Apex, we produce the following plastic and composite solutions:
- Deflashing. Deflashing consists of removing loose plastic or composite materials after a molding operation. Apex offers cleanup through an automatic conveyor on a flatline sanding system.
- Calibrating. Calibration involves removing excess material from a workpiece to achieve a specific thickness. We use wide belt sanders with different configurations to ensure your stock has tight tolerances and the right dimensions.
- Finish sanding. Our finish sanding machines can perform both fine finish sanding and polishing. The machines have up to four sanding/finishing heads with varying levels of grits.
- Brushing/Denibbing. Brushing and denibbing involves removing loose fibers before finishing or painting products. We use flexible sanding strips and abrasive nylon brushes to gently remove sharp edges from two- and three-dimensional workpieces.
- Destressing. Our automated narrow linear and wide flatline machines can destress or texture plastics and composites to create a rustic finish.
Apex Machine Group provides a diverse selection of machines to meet various plastic and composite processing needs. Our professionals have the experience and knowledge to deliver superior results every time. Contact us to see how we can help you with your plastic or composite project.