British thermoplastic sheet manufacturer invests 1.5 million in new extrusion line and adds ABS to its range

Plysolene has invested £1.5 million in the installation of a brand new Kuhne machine at their site in West Sussex to begin producing Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) in the UK.

The company believes the addition of the new extrusion line is an example of Plysolene’s program of continuous improvement and investment.

Shawn Lainchbury, Managing Director, said: “We’re very excited by this investment and direction for us in the production of ABS on site. It’s a new era, expanding our product range into a more diverse and growing market whilst using the expertise and skillsets we already have in our teams.”

Plysolene’s range of ABS sheet includes smooth and embossed finishes, in virgin, recycled and capped grades.

ABS is a very versatile and lightweight material which combines rigidity and strength. It’s easily thermoformed, machined and fabricated making it ideal for vacuum forming and has high impact strength and chemical resistance making it ideal for demanding applications such as automotive parts.

“With our customer base being primarily in the UK, and manufacturing here in the UK, we can be more flexible and responsive to needs of the market. This gives us massive advantages over our continental Europe based competitors and real tangible benefits of buying from us for our customers,” explained Lainchbury.

He concludes: “It’s a great addition to our styrenics range. ABS is made up of 3 component materials polystyrene that offers thermoformability, acrylonitrile that offers fantastic rigidity, and polybutadiene that offers impact strength. It introduces, and opens up, new and exciting opportunities for Plysolene and compliments our established HIPS range perfectly.”

Plysolene has over 40-years of thermoplastic sheet extrusion experience and the company has gained a reputation through, its manufacture of High Impact Polystyrene Sheet (HIPS), for the highest levels of customer service, flexible production, and market leading, fast lead times.