Appliance Design - August 2008 - (Page 14)

PLASTICS Pondering Sabic Innovative Plastics has released its Expressions 2009 palette of colors. The line includes 16 colors and six different textures. the Palette New choices raise new considerations. D by larry adams 14 applianceDESIGN August 2008 esigning with plastics offers many benefits, one of which is the ability to embed the color into the polymer itself, eliminating the production bottlenecks created by finishing lines. But the decisions to be made for coloring plastics are multi-faceted, involving aesthetics, color stability, processing, cost, and the effect of pigments on mechanical properties. All of these factors must be carefully weighed to make the optimal selection of color and coloring method, and with new special effect resins being introduced on a regular basis, the right choice becomes a moving target. In choosing a color, designers are often faced with a dizzying number of pigments, dyes, and special additives, and an almost infinite number of material combinations from which to choose. These “recipes” of colors can give the colored-plastic product a unique and attractive look while offering a whole range of functionality. In addition to the broad array of stock colors from which to choose, designers also have the option of working with a color supplier to create a custom color that no one else has. The selection of a particular color for a product can be a short-lived flirtation, used for one model year, but not the next. Or it can be an enduring commitment, where the color serves as a brand identifier, as with John Deere green or DeWalt yellow. Either way, designers must be assured of getting exactly what they want, and not just “close enough.” The human eye can discriminate between almost 10 million colors, which means getting the color right is imperative. Getting it right means that the color on the finished part not only matches the color specified, but the color continues to match from batch-tobatch and part-to-part. Appliances assembled from multiple components made at multiple sites, and even multiple countries, must have color-matched parts. Slightly skewed color matches negatively affect the aesthetics of a product and create the impression of poor quality in the mind of the consumer. Beyond aesthetics, the pigments often must be functional, and must be compatible with the chosen resin. Of course, the choice must be cost effective as well. Decisions also need to be made as to the www.applianceDESIGN.com http://www.appliancedesign.com

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Appliance Design - August 2008 Contents Editorial Shipments/Forecasts News Watch Plastics Switches Noise & Vibration Control Joining New Products Design Marts Association Report: CEA Advertiser’s Index

Appliance Design - August 2008

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