Acrylic is a thermoplastic synthetic material that is naturally transparent. The chemical name of this plastic is polymethyl methacrylate, although this is usually abbreviated to acrylate or acrylic. Plexiglas® is one of the many trade names, but it’s also known by many others: Perspex®, Versato®, Deglas®, Vitredil®, Paraglass®, Vedril®, Oroglas®, Altuglas®, Lucryl®, Crilux®, Ispaglas® and Casocryl®. Acrylic is extremely suitable for the following applications: secondary glazing, decorative material, showcases, roof lanterns, boat windows, acoustic screens, interior construction, custom door canopies and nameplates.
Thanks to its high degree (90%) of light transmittance, acrylic is widely used as a substitute for glass. As well as clear acrylic, coloured and opal white (semi-transparent) versions of acrylic are also available. There are two types of plexiglass: cast acrylic and extruded acrylic. Cast acrylic has the highest quality, extruded acrylic has a lower quality but is also cheaper. Extruded acrylic is also known as acrylic XT.
Machinability of acrylic
Cast acrylic sheets are much easier to machine by drilling, sawing and milling than extruded plexiglass sheets. There is more tension in extruded plates, which causes the material to tear or break more easily. Furthermore, extruded sheets are only available in crystal clear and opalescent white. In terms of price, the extruded version is less expensive: we offer this under cheap acrylic sheets.
Strength of acrylic
One of the most significant characteristics of acrylic sheets is their impact strength (30 times stronger than glass). Other characteristics of plexiglass plates are: shape with heat, strong but lightweight, 50% lighter than glass, and UV and weather resistant, making them also very suitable for exterior applications.
Types of acrylic sheets
The cast acrylic sheets come in crystal clear, opal and coloured variants. In addition, we also supply a “frosted” option for the colours. This means that one side of the acrylic sheet has a rough matt surface. This variant is widely used for decoration and interior applications. The custom-cut acrylic sheets are supplied with a protective film on both sides to provide protection when processing the material.