Many products in use today were designed years — or even decades — ago, when the materials selected were the best option available. But materials evolve. Manufacturing technologies improve. Product requirements change. The question worth revisiting: is the material you’re using today still the right one?
Many manufacturers are discovering opportunities to improve durability, reduce weight, simplify manufacturing, enhance appearance, and strengthen supply-chain stability through material conversion.
At Laszeray Technology, we help manufacturers evaluate whether existing components may benefit from alternative material solutions through our Material Conversion Review process.
What Is Material Conversion?
Material conversion is the process of evaluating whether an existing part or assembly can be manufactured using a different material that better supports the product’s performance, manufacturing, and business objectives.
The goal isn’t change for the sake of change. The goal is to answer a simple question:
In many cases, the answer may be yes. In others, advances in engineered thermoplastics and manufacturing technologies may create opportunities to improve product performance while reducing manufacturing challenges.
Material conversion is not about replacing every material. It is about making informed decisions based on current requirements and available technologies.
Why Manufacturers Revisit Material Selection
Several common challenges often trigger material conversion discussions.
Product Breakage
Glass, acrylic, and certain commodity plastics may be susceptible to cracking, chipping, impact damage, or premature failure. Modern engineered thermoplastics often provide improved toughness while maintaining the functionality and appearance customers expect.
Excessive Weight
Metal and glass components can contribute significant weight to finished products. Reducing weight may help:
- Improve ergonomics
- Lower shipping costs
- Simplify handling
- Improve product usability
Chemical and Environmental Exposure
Many products operate in environments that expose components to:
- Cleaning chemicals
- Water
- UV exposure
- Temperature fluctuations
- Repeated handling
Alternative materials may improve long-term durability and resistance to these conditions.
Manufacturing Complexity
Certain materials may require multiple parts, secondary operations, or labor-intensive assembly processes. In some applications, material conversion creates opportunities to simplify manufacturing and improve production efficiency.
Supply Chain Risk
Manufacturers continue evaluating ways to strengthen domestic supply chains and reduce sourcing risk. Material conversion reviews often uncover opportunities to improve supply-chain flexibility while supporting domestic manufacturing strategies.
What Materials Are Commonly Evaluated?
Laszeray regularly reviews opportunities involving:
The objective is not to promote a specific material, but to identify whether another solution may provide a better overall fit.
Three Common Material Conversion Paths
Clear & Durable
Many products require transparency, visibility, or food-contact performance while also demanding durability.
- Blender jars
- Appliance containers
- Sight windows
- Transparent guards
- Medical equipment covers
- Foodservice components
- Tritan™ copolyester
- Polycarbonate
- PCTG
- Other advanced transparent polymers
Common goals include reducing breakage, improving clarity retention, and increasing resistance to chemicals and cleaning procedures.
Lightweight & Tough
Not every metal component needs to remain metal.
- Handles
- Brackets
- Guards
- Covers
- Equipment housings
- Ergonomic components
- Nylon
- Acetal
- PC-ABS
- Reinforced thermoplastics
- TPE overmold solutions
Common goals include reducing weight, improving corrosion resistance, and simplifying assembly.
Domestic & Moldable
Many manufacturers are evaluating whether existing parts can be redesigned for more efficient domestic production.
- Offshore components
- Machined parts
- FRP and thermoset parts
- Multi-piece assemblies
- Products affected by supply-chain instability
Potential benefits may include improved manufacturability, part consolidation, and reduced supply-chain risk.
Tritan™ Copolyester
One material frequently evaluated during conversion reviews is Tritan™ copolyester. It has gained popularity in applications requiring transparency, durability, and food-contact performance because it offers a combination of:
- Excellent clarity
- Outstanding impact resistance
- Chemical resistance
- Hydrolytic stability
- Dishwasher durability
- Heat resistance
- Food-contact suitability
Blender jars, foodservice equipment, beverage containers, appliance components, transparent covers, and medical and dental equipment components.
Tritan is only one of many materials that may be considered during a material conversion review. The best solution always depends on the specific application and performance requirements.
Is Your Part a Good Candidate?
A Material Conversion Review may be worth exploring if your current part is:
- Breaking, cracking, chipping, or generating warranty claims
- Heavy, difficult to handle, or expensive to ship
- Exposed to chemicals, UV, water, heat, or repeated use
- Made from glass, acrylic, metal, FRP, thermoset materials, ABS, or PC
- Sourced from an unstable supplier
- Manufactured offshore with increasing supply-chain concerns
- Part of a multi-piece assembly that may be simplified through molding
Even if a product has been successful for years, it may still be worth evaluating whether newer materials can provide meaningful improvements.
The Laszeray Material Conversion Review Process
Our Material Conversion Review is designed as a front-end engineering and commercial evaluation.
What customers typically provide
- Current part drawings or samples
- Existing material information
- Annual production volumes
- Manufacturing method
- Known product concerns
- Environmental requirements
- Cost objectives
What Laszeray evaluates
- Candidate material options
- Injection molding feasibility
- Manufacturing considerations
- Tooling implications
- Risk factors
- Prototype recommendations
- Potential next steps
The goal is not to immediately redesign a product. The goal is to determine whether a better material solution exists before significant investments are made.
Not Every Part Should Convert
One of the most important things manufacturers should understand is that not every material should be replaced.
In some applications, glass remains the right choice. In others, metal may continue to provide the best overall performance. ABS, polycarbonate, and other existing materials may still be the optimal solution.
Our objective is not to sell a particular resin. Our objective is to help manufacturers make informed material decisions that support product performance, manufacturability, and long-term business goals.
Better Materials Can Lead to Better Products
Material selection influences nearly every aspect of a product’s performance — from durability and appearance to manufacturability and customer satisfaction.
As new materials continue to emerge, manufacturers have more opportunities than ever to evaluate whether existing designs can be improved through smarter material choices.
For companies looking to reduce breakage, improve durability, simplify manufacturing, or strengthen supply-chain resilience, a material conversion review may provide valuable insight.
Send us one problem part.
If you have a part that cracks, breaks, clouds, corrodes, weighs too much, cleans poorly, ships expensively, or creates ongoing manufacturing challenges, Laszeray can help determine whether a molded engineered thermoplastic could improve durability, clarity, weight, cost, manufacturability, cleanability, or domestic supply-chain control.
