ABSTRACT
Plastics are increasingly replacing conventional materials such as glass, wood, metal, and ceramic in engineering applications. In a number of large-volume applications such as automotive parts, the cost effectiveness of a material is governed not merely by the material cost but also by the improved processibility and design flexibility offered by material. Transparency is a feature now provided by several of the amorphous engineering plastics that makes new end uses possible. To begin with, the concept of a new object to be made of an engineering thermoplastic, or at least to have an engineering component, presents a challenge to some end users. Their approach to determining which plastic to use for their application will vary considerably, from trying to follow the entire selection process from beginning to end personally, to the hiring of plastics design engineers. Finally, numerous small independent companies have a real need for resin selection assistance and must find it through material suppliers, injection molders, or designers.
