Rubber Processing

Smithers Rapra has a wealth of knowledge & experience in rubber compounding, material development & part manufacture. Solutions have been provided to complex issues since 1919. Our formulation abilities cover a broad range of rubbers for a large variety of products. Rubber compounds have been developed for material suppliers, product manufacturers & designers. Smithers Rapra has worked in most industry sectors including: automotive, medical, industrial, transport & consumer goods.

Our compounding or product development expertise can be targeted at meeting an existing specification, optimising an existing compound, or at developing a material for a novel application for which there is only the broad outline of a material specification.

The on site rubber processing laboratory consists of a range of small scale equipment suitable for bespoke manufacturing & compound development. We can supply both high specification rubber compound & moulded parts. Our experience & in depth understanding of compounding enables our processing team to solve complex issues. Key areas of specialisation include rubber to metal bonding & precision low volume manufacture.

The processing centre is geared up to meet the smallest of jobs with fast response times, coupled with compounding accuracy. This client focussed approach makes our centre ideal for your prototype development.

Banbury internal mixer

This is the typical starting point & has a batch size of about 1.3 kg. Larger quantities can be done in multiple mixes & blended together.

• Fully computerised for consistent reproducible processing.
• Can be used for non-black compounds if required.

2-roll mills

Used for adding final cure additives & banding-off sheet material.

• A range of sizes are available.

Rubber extruders

• We have two rubber extruders that can be used to extrude simple rubber profiles.
• Useful for preparing strip compounds for use or prior to a further moulding process.

Moulding Equipment

• We have a range of presses for curing & product manufacture.
• Moulds can be made for parts
• Autoclave for post-curing.

Cure & Testing

The processing is all backed up with rheology/cure measurements & a large range of physical testing in our other labs.