The Plastics and Rubber Products Manufacturing industry subsector makes goods by processing plastics materials and raw rubber. Plastics and rubber are combined in the same subsector because plastics are increasingly being used as a substitute for rubber; however the subsector is generally restricted to the production of products made of just one material, either solely plastics or rubber.
Major products include plastic bags and bottles, plastic film and sheets, plastic pipe and foams, rubber hoses, and tires. Plastics and rubber used in the production process include PVC, acrylic, PET, and latex. Different raw materials are used depending on the product’s end use, such as acetal in auto parts and polyethylene in toys. Injection and compression molding are the principal methods of plastic processing. Process methods and the resulting equipment are chosen to suit the type of product produced, such as the blow molding process, which uses compressed air to form hollow articles, like bottles.
