Material Selection Guide
Action OEM manufactures all of our products with a variety of material types out of our Evansville facility in Indiana to make customizing the perfect piece easy. While other manufactures only have a few material options scattered in facilities across the world, Action OEM can easily create, inject, extrude, and test material from one location to get you the right product quickly. With Action, you can save time and satisfy your material needs from one company.
Are you researching the best material for your garage door application? A great start is to determine what you’re looking to get out of a product—be it aesthetics to blend into an application -or- durability to resist outdoor elements. View the chart below to understand our most common manufacturing requests and the ideal materials for each application. Don’t see what you need? Rest assured we specialize in customized solutions and parts.
| Application | Material Option | Material Option & Benefits | Processability | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garage Door Window Frames | ASA | • Expansion closely matches steel • Outdoor weatherable • Strong outdoor color retention • Scratch resistant • Heat absorption / co-efficient of thermal transfer • Works with both commercial and residential window frames |
Extruding or Molding | $$$ |
| Glass-filled Polypropylene | • Expansion closely matches steel • Outdoor weatherable • Scratch resistant • Chosen over ASA for cost savings • Won’t degrade in direct sunlight—strong color retention outdoors • Won’t warp under heat, good for residential and commercial weather frames |
Extruding or Molding | $ | |
| Weather Seal (Bristles, Back) | Flex PVC | • Used best in extrustion • Flexible |
Extruding | $$ |
| Polypropylene | • Co-extrudable with both TPE and TPV • More flexible than rigid PVC • Slick surface that slides well |
Coextrudable | $$ | |
| TPV or TPE | • Reclaimable material • TPV with Polypropylene easier to string into a retainer • Flexible in cold temperatures • More pliable |
Coextrudable | $$ | |
| EPDM | • Long lasting • Weather performant • More chemical resistant than TPV • Flexible in cold temperatures • More pliable |
$$$ | ||
| Window Glazing Strips & Trim Clips | Rigid PVC | • Best for extruding | Extruding Can be Injection Molded (but not preferred) |
$$ |
| ASA | • Better performance in higher heat applications • Will not warp • More expensive than Rigid PVC |
Extruding (Best with Flexible PVC) Injection Modling |
$$$ | |
| Window Inserts | Acrylic Capped ABS | • Outdoor weatherable • Toughness and pliability with ABS backing • More cost efficient than PVC |
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| Door Overlay Systems & Window Grills | Fibrex Technology® (from Andersen Manufacturing) |
• Good outdoor weatherability (no discoloration) • Won’t melt in heat or crack in cold • Blend of 40% wood fiber and 60% thermoplastic polymer that are both partially reclaimed from Andersen processes |
$$$ | |
| Thermal Breaks | PVC Rigid PVC Flex |
• Best for extruded can be injection molded but not preferred • Used best in extrusion |
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| Co-extruded Polypropylene and TPV | • Coextrudable with both TPE and TPV • More flexible than rigid PVC • Slick surface that slides well • TPV with Polypropylene easier to string into a retainer |
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| EPDM | • Long lasting • Weather performant • More chemical resistant than TPV • TPVFlexible in cold temperatures • More pliable |
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| End Caps | PVC Rigid PVC Flex |
• Inexpensive and affordable • Comparable to ASA • Flex more popular option |
$ |