The Rise of Plastic Fasteners

There are 6 million parts in a Boeing 747, half of them are fasteners. Fasteners are pieces of hardware that mechanically joins or affixes two or more objects together. They come in various different shapes, sizes, materials, and finishes, used in a vast range of applications from basic construction to mission-critical aerospace and aviation manufacturing. One particularly interesting type of fastener, more common that we’d expect, is the plastic fastener.

Typically, fasteners, like screws and bolts, are made of metals like aluminum, stainless steel, and titanium. But they’re not always ideal. While plastic fasteners are not inherently strong, reinforcing the design can increase their strength. They’re also better suited in many cases because they can be treated to be corrosion, chemical, abrasion, and vibration resistant. For example, UV resistant ingredients can be added to make them better suited for outdoor use. This makes them ideal for use in sensitive applications such as electronics.

In a circuit board even the smallest of electrical impulses can lead to unintended consequences. As such, metal fasteners, which conduct electricity easily, are not recommended. Instead, plastic fasteners, which are good insulators, are used to space, secure, guide, and support the electronic components. And with the rise of the Internet of Things (IoT), more than ever, there’s a demand for WiFi and RF facilities, which in turn drive a demand for plastic fasteners.

And companies, like Pingood Enterprise Co., LTD. in Taiwan, are capitalizing on this new demand. ISO 9001 and 14001 certified, Pingood tries to ensure that the quality of their products is on par with those of the international leading brands of Europe, Japan, and the US. By upgrading their machinery and testing their molds and equipment with strict quality control, Pingood aims to make their manufacturing process as efficient as possible in order to produce the highest quality plastic fasteners as possible.