The “New Meldin®” Opens Up New Possibilities for High-Temperature Polyimides
Applications for high-performance polyimides have always been limited by one concern above all...
TriStar offers a wide range of bearing materials that are ideal for non-lubricated, high-load applications.
TriStar is the exclusive partner of Saint Gobain for Rulon materials in North America.
Our capabilities include component design, material selection, prototype, production, and manufacturing.
Since 1982 we have been combining the skills of TriStar’s engineering team, our extensive product line, and our deep understanding of a broad range of industries to bring you solutions to your most challenging engineering needs.
Explore the common causes of bearing failure and learn how advanced polymer and composite bearings can address them.
EMD positions TriStar Plastics as the leading resource to solve your demanding engineering material challenges.
View our library of engineering worksheets — the quickest way to communicate your project specs — or reach out to our engineering team.
Here are a few of our most popular online engineering tools - including our PV calc and material database (450+ materials).
Our collection of case studies, product specs, brochures and other key technical documents.
Our library of free-to-download white papers focus on industry-based solutions, specific materials, bearing design, and more...
These pillar pages provide in-depth information on bearings and problem/solutions for specific industires.
Our popular resources, including our monthly newsletters, blog, and our video library.
TriStar Plastics Corp. provides engineering, custom fabrication and manufacturing of high-performance plastics and self-lubricating bearing materials.
We're dedicated to building a company where opportunities exist for talented people to achieve their maximum potential.
To save time, paper & postage please sign up for paperless invoicing and payments.
In the beverage market there are hundreds of companies involved in the bottling and canning of drinkable products. Today’s packaging technology runs from traditional plastic and glass bottles, to aluminum cans (and the latest trend, pouches). The machinery involved is varied in terms of technology but the end result is the same: Hundreds of containers per minute, 24-7, to meet our insatiable need for liquid refreshment!
One of TriStar’s long-time customers came to us with a problem on a filler/rinse machine for a bottling line. As the plastic bottles move from the blow molder to the production line, they must first go through a rinse line to be sure the interior of the bottle is clear of any debris. This machine can process up to 1000 bottles per minute so the parts that make up the machine need to be robust.
One part that failed regularly was a gripper that grabs the neck of the bottle during the water injection rinse cycle. Historically these were made from inexpensive materials like acetal or HDPE but over time they would fatigue from flexing and lose their ability to grip. Chemical attack from cleaning solutions would also lead to a breakdown in strength. The customer needed something that could stand up to this function of opening/closing over the neck while being able to withstand the CIP/SIP solutions now used in the industry.
TriStar engineers looked at how to meet these requirements and developed an injection moldable part using a ketone-based composite that had excellent flex fatigue resistance and other mechanical advantages along with chemical and temperature resistance. The parts now perform with much longer life and are not affected by the latest generation of cleaning products.
This material can handle the variety of process speeds used for different products and can be universally applied throughout the bottling industry.
TriStar offers many other material options geared towards the food processing and packaging industry. If you would like to explore the options we recommend our new deep dive on the food industry and we encourage you to reach out if you have specific questions for us.
Whether you need engineering assistance or material selection support, our Ask the Experts feature provides a quick and easy way for you to upload your drawing and submit questions to our engineering team.
Applications for high-performance polyimides have always been limited by one concern above all...