WPC Extruder: Importers Guide

The WPC extruder makes it possible to produce WPC granules (raw materials), planks, door boards, foam boards, and other WPC profiles.

In this short guide, you’ll get to learn about:

– The WPC extruder function and parts

– Types of WPC production lines

– What’s unique about Benk’s WPC extruders

– How to order a WPC extruder

Chapter 1: What is a WPC extruder?

The main role of the WPC extruder is to produce molten WPC polymer by heating & melting solid WPC raw material.

You then shape, mold and cool the melt into different products.   

1.1. WPC raw material

A wood-plastic composite results when a polymer is combined with plant material to form a homogeneous product that’s superior to its constituents in terms of strength, workability, chemical, and physical properties, etc.

Thermoplastics used for WPC composites include PVC, PE, PP, and PLA. They are mixed with rice husks, vegetable waste, coconut shells, wood flour, almond shells, peanut hulls, bamboo, etc.

During the WPC profile extrusion process, other ingredients are added to the product’s formula including mineral fillers, pigments, lubricants, plasticizers, stabilizers, etc.

You can actually tell the color of the pigment used by looking at the finished product. Fillers add bulk, reduce the manufacturing costs, and also enhance the product’s physical properties. Lubricants & stabilizers, on the other hand, act as processing aids.

WPC advantages:

The composite’s main advantage is that it combines the best properties found in wood and plastic polymers. More precisely: The aesthetic properties of wood. And the functionality and desired properties of plastics such as fire retardation, water-proof, insect-proof, etc.

WPC as a sustainable, green and energy-saving material

Manufacturing WPC products is fast, less-energy & capital intensive compared to making wood products. Not only that, WPC products are fully recyclable at the end of their useful life; you can recycle them into WPC pellets then made into new products. They also reuse waste products such as wood dust reducing the demand on depleted forest reserves.

Where can you get WPC raw materials?

You can choose to buy ready-made WPC granules from other manufacturers. Or you can produce WPC granules for extrusion at your own factory.  If you choose the latter option, you’ll require:

• Wood powder miller production line
• WPC composite pellets extrusion line

If you’ll produce Wood-PVC products, you’ll also need a high-speed mixer for blending wood flour, PVC powder, and other additives prior to feeding them in the WPC extruder machine.

1.2. Parts of a WPC extruder

The WPC extruder happens to be the most important part of any WPC extrusion line. It consists of electrical and mechanical components. For this article, we’ll just highlight the main parts, but you can read more here.

– Screw: The rotating cylindrical screw is housed inside the barrel. It’s the main working part responsible for conveying, mixing, shear refining, melting, metering/pumping and homogenization

– Barrel: Houses the screw and together they convey the polymer forward. See, the melting polymer will stick to the barrel’s walls. As the screw rotates, it scopes the melting material and slips it forward.  

Extruder with fans on barrel (black)

– Heaters: Lining the barrel are electric ceramic heaters that supply heat utilized for melting the plastic polymer. Temperature control is very essential as high temperatures (above 220°C) might cause the wood raw material to degrade and burn.

– Shaping Die: It’s a shaping orifice mounted at the extruder’s head. The die design depends on the product’s shape. There are separate dies for WPC planks, door boards, profiles, etc.  

– Vacuum system: It’s used where the raw material fed into the extruder has a high moisture content. The system exhausts any steam along with fumes produced by the melting polymer.

1.3. Twin-screw extruder for WPC profiles

Plastic extruders usually have one to two screws inside the barrel. Exclusively for WPC extrusion, we use the twin-screw extruder.

Working with many customers, we have noticed that they tend to look at the extruder’s production capacity. Two models have become popular:  

Twin screws in extruder’s extruders

• SJSZ65/132 conical double screw WPC extruder with a production capacity of 300kg/h
• The SJSZ80/156 production capacity of 450kg/h

1.4. Popular WPC extruder production lines

WPC might be relatively new in the marketplace, but wood-composite products are gaining acceptance from consumers. They are similar in appearance to wood products, but they are also water-proof, stronger, less-hazardous, long-lasting, and insect & mildew proof unlike products such as plywood, MDF boards, etc.

Once you get any of our WPC extruder models, you just have to change the downstream equipment (die, calibration mould, pulling machine, and cutter) to produce different products.

Benk offers a number of WPC extrusion lines including:  

1. Wood-PVC profiles

The raw material used here includes wood and PVC powder. From this, we have the:

• WPC door production line

Produces 600-800 mm WPC door boards that are later joined with other WPC profiles to produce complete doors. This production utilizes the SJSZ80/156 conical twin-screw extruder.

• Wood-PVC vinyl laminate production line

WPC plastic composite flooring

The line produces WPC plastic composite flooring planks used for indoor applications. The core layer is made from WPC material. It’s sandwiched between other layers including the backing layer, vinyl (printed layer), and the UV special surface treatment layer.

The WPC laminate planks have a click-lock functionality that minimized the need for glue. Our WPC extruders paired with the right die & mould will produce flooring of dimensions of 1218×147mm, 1218×180mm, and 1524×225mm.

• WPC wall panel production line

The WPC wall panel making machine produces panels from WPC material that are 300, 400, or 600mm in width. These panels are used for indoor wall decoration, and you can find out more about them here.

WPC wall panels

2. Wood-PE profiles

Wood-PE profiles are composites of wood material + polyethylene (PE). Products made from wood + PE are geared towards outdoor applications. It’s because of the great properties of PE including its stability when exposed to UV for a long time, resistance to alkalis and acids, etc. In fact, it can be used outside for 50+ years.  

Wood-PE composite decking

• PE WPC decking production line

The PE hollow decking production line is also a type of WPC extrusion machine. It produces hollow PE decking that resembles wooden planks down to their surface finishes, texture, and feel. They have dimensions of 40mm*25mm*2000mm. And are used for making patios, pavilions, outdoor walkways, decks, etc.

• PE-wood profile extrusion line

The PE-wood profile extrusion line makes WPC profiles used as substitutes to similar wood products. For instance, PE fences, pillars, frames, planter pots, park benches, etc.  

Wood-PE fence

• Co-Extrusion WPC Production Line

This WPC extrusion line is also called the “new-style co-extrusion WPC profile production line.”

It was developed to solve the issue of wood-PE profiles getting chipped and damaged in the sun after long exposure.

The innovative material relies on two extruders co-extruding; the main extruder and side extruder. The inner layer consists of structural foam. It’s made when a foaming agent is used in the formula (foaming just makes the layer porous and lightweight).

The hard exterior layer is also called the crust and it protects the inner layer. We can supply the main WPC extruder and the side extruder together with the co-extrusion die.   

New-style co-extruded WPC decking  

3. Wood-PVC foam

Wood-PVC foam products are made by mixing wood, PVC polymer resin, and other additives. But the formula contains a fair amount of foaming agents that make the products lighter in weight.

• WPC form board production line

WPC form boards have become popular replacements of MDF boards and plywood. You can use them as construction, kitchen cabinet, furniture, and deck boards.

Example of WPC foam boards

This WPC production line utilizes the SJSZ80/156 extruder for high production rates. The final boards are 5 to 50 mm thick with widths of 1220 to 2450mm. You can find out more here.  

Chapter 2: What’s unique about Benk’s WPC extruders

2.1. Advantages

a) Best international brand parts

Quality is at the forefront of everything we do at Benk Machinery. To achieve the demands of our international customers, we use the best parts from reputed manufacturers such as ABB, Crydomm, Siemens, Schneider Electric,  Jiangyin, etc. We have some of their parts in stock and can help you when you need replacements.  

Siemens Standard Motor, 3-phase

b) Turnkey solution

Get your WPC extruder customized to your specification. You can choose the material for the screw and barrel. The brand parts of the individual components such as the motor, gearbox, relays, and contactors can be customized to your liking.

Our technical team has more than 10 years experience designing, building and testing high-quality turnkey extruders.

c) Long service life of the Screw and Barrel

The WPC extruder’s screw and barrel are made from 38CrMoAlA alloy steel and have undergone special nitriding treatment to boost their durability.

Extrudate at the end of extruder’s barrel

d) Low power consumption

Using an ABB inverter helps us reduce the power consumption of the extruder. We also used the ABB frequency converter to control the power supplied to the motor, and it’s all linked to the machine’s PLC control system for automation.  

e) Specially designed screw

The screw is specially designed to plasticize WPC material, and offer high stable outputs.

f) Quick hydraulic screen changers available

In case your WPC extruder needs to be fitted with a hydraulic screen changer, we can do this for you.

g)Excellent after-sales service

Our services don’t end after you buy the machine. Our team is on hand to ensure you get the best out of your WPC extruder by offering excellent after-sale services.

We offer online video technical support. And you’ll be getting help from the professionals who designed and built the WPC extruder machine.

You also get free spare parts supply for the first months. Our engineer who will come to help install the machine can train your first line operators to become proficient at using the WPC extruder. We also maintain connections with local service agents for on-site repairs or maintenance services.

h) Cooling system & temperature controller

Omron intelligent temperature controllers

Temperature control is critical for stable extrusion performance and consistent products. Our WPC extruders are fitted with Omron intelligent temperature controllers. Along the barrel, each zone has heaters and thermocouple. Fans along the barrel also keep the temperatures within the acceptable range and screws are oil-cooled.

1. h) High-quality gearbox

The gearbox transmits power from the motor to the screws. Our gearbox brand comes with a hard tooth surface. Two options are available: Vertical gearbox where the motor sits below the gearbox. This shortens the extruder’s length, ensures it takes up less space in shipping containers and gives it a better appearance.

 Conical Twin-screw Extruder with vertical gearbox

The other type is the horizontal style where the motor is on the same level as gearbox.

Horizontal type gearbox

2.2. How to order a WPC extruder

It’s easy to get started with Benk’s WPC extruders. The first step is to contact us with your questions or send us a quote for any extruder model you need. You can tell us more about your production capacity, raw material composition, etc.

We can offer further consultation with or without an order. Our payment schedule is also flexible. Generally, an initial 30% prepayment is required to kick start production. The remaining 70% is paid after your WPC extruder is tested, inspected and ready for shipment.  

2.3. What is the SJSZ65/132 conical double screw extruder price?

Order your SJSZ series extruder today

How much can you pay for a brand new Chinese WPC extruder? Buying your machine from China can spell many benefits for your company. First, the lines tend to go for less. But you must work with a reputed WPC extruder supplier who is particular on the line’s quality.

For the price range, you can expect to pay anywhere from US$18,000 to US$35,000. You’ll get more accurate pricing once you send us your quote.

2.4. Used second-hand WPC extruders for sale

Benk offers new and second-hand/used WPC conical twin-screw extruders. They are several reasons why a customer may prefer a used extruder. First, it’s cheaper than a new extruder. And used doesn’t mean it’s damaged or incapable of stable extrusion.

Second hand-extruders are usually conditioned by dismantling, cleaning, rebuilding and replacing any parts if needed. Some also come with new control systems. Testing is also done fully before shipment.

You can contact us to find out if we have used WPC extruders in stock.
Send your Inquiry Here

We stand out among other WPC extrusion machine manufacturers in terms of cost, quality and friendliness of our sales staff. Talk to us:

Contact Person: Tony Cao

Email: [email protected]

WeChat/WhatsApp: (+86) 13052271776

Phone: 0086-512-58901463

Factory Address:

300m West of Luyuan Over Pass Bridge, Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China (Mainland)

FAQ

1. Are you a trading company?

Benk is a manufacturing company with a working workshop.

2. How long does it take to deliver the machines?

It can take anywhere from 7-10 working days if the extruders are in stock. For turnkey/non-standard extruders customized to the client’s specifications, the lead period is between 25 to 30 business days.

References

1. Wood–Plastic Composite Technology | SpringerLink

2. Extrusion of Wood Plastic Composites –