Polyurethane Molded Sheets

A wide variety of standard bore options are available for molded encoder wheels, with the ability to customize to your exact bore requirements for all volumes. Most center bores have a tight tolerance of +0.001/- 0.000”; tighter tolerances are available upon request.

The outside diameter of overmolded encoder wheels is molded exactly to size. Meridian Laboratory has the ability to mold to your exact specification without grinding or abrasive finishing, guaranteeing repeatable results. Typical tolerances of molded diameters are +/-0.003” but can be delivered with tighter tolerances if desired.

A variety of standard width offerings for molded encoder rollers are available with the ability to customize to your exact requirements for all volumes.

The thickness of ML6 polyurethane for molded encoder wheels can be specified to meet the specific requirements of your product or application. Generally speaking, thicker urethane will support a greater load rating than a thinner layer of the same durometer.

A wide variety of SAE sizes are offered to meet your specific needs. Not all sizes are listed online – for specific requirements, reach out to us.

A wide variety of metric sizes are offered to meet your specific needs. Not all sizes are listed online – for specific requirements, reach out to us!

The surface profile shape of urethane encoder wheels can be molded to the exact dimensional requirements of your specific needs without grinding or abrasive manufacturing techniques. This guarantees the best repeatability between parts, durability, and overall tolerances. We often mold crowned (convex or concave), ribbed, V-groove, slotted, and other shapes free of a noticeable parting line on the surface.

Meridian Laboratory molds ML6 polyurethane directly to a wide variety of metals, including but not limited to: aluminum, steel, stainless steel, titanium, brass, copper, and nickel. The bond strength between ML6 polyurethane and the metal core material is extremely strong and resists tear-off and delamination.

Meridian Laboratory molds ML6 polyurethane directly to a wide variety of plastics, including but not limited to: Nylon, polycarbonate, PEEK, acetal, and ABS. Meridian Laboratory can mold efficiently to a variety of 3D printed plastics as well. The bond strength between ML6 polyurethane and the plastic core material is extremely strong and resists tear-off and delamination.

As an additional value-add, Meridian Laboratory offers the ability to lasermark parts with customer names, part numbers, QR codes, and other unique identification features. We also have the ability to color code to specific durometers for easy identification between similar parts.

Our standard colors for polyurethane encoder wheels include yellow, blue, orange, black, red, white, green, clear, and purple. For our standard molded encoder wheel offerings, these colors are correlated to a specific durometer for simple identification of different parts. However, Meridian Laboratory also offers the ability to deliver any custom polyurethane colors to your specific preference in all volumes.

For food sensitive applications, Meridian Laboratory can provide FDA-Compliant molded encoder wheels. We offer FDA Dry-approved formulations for applications that involve direct contact with dry foods or that will be in the vicinity of the product, such as its packaging. We also offer more stringent FDA Wet-approved formulas for applications that are in direct contact with wet/fatty foods or that will be exposed to heavy moisture and washdown. In addition to the FDA approved polyurethane formulas, we can also make the other components that require overmolding using stainless steel components, FDA approved bearings, etc. in order to deliver complete FDA compliant parts.

The hardness of any soft material such as rubber, plastic, polyurethane, or non-metallic material is measured in durometer, which is similar to how metals are measured on the Rockwell scale. There are various scales used to measure the durometer to encompass the wide range of hardness that these materials come in.

The Shore A hardness scale is the most commonly used scale in production and manufacturing applications due to its wide range and versatility of uses within the scale. The Shore A scale can range from parts that are flexible and soft in nature (0-40A), to semi-flexible and medium-hard (50-80A), to hard and rigid (90-100A). Meridian Laboratory operates primarily in the Shore A scale and offers 40A, 55A, 70A, 80A, 90A in durometer choices, but is not limited to these durometers.

The hardest scale in plastic, rubber, and polyurethane measurement is Shore D. Shore D can most commonly be associated with hard rubbers and plastics. Meridian Laboratory offers precision molded polyurethane parts in the Shore D scale up to 75D, being very hard and rigid.

Anti-static molded encoder wheels are offered to reduce the amount of static build-up over time.

Unlike many other standard and custom urethane encoder wheel manufacturers, Meridian Laboratory is the proprietary developer of our specially blended ML6 polyurethane. ML6 polyurethane is specifically designed for use in industrial, manufacturing, and other environments where precision, durability, and quality are critical. Meridian Laboratory utilizes the highest quality raw materials to ensure that the best end products are produced. We can fine tune our exclusive recipes of ML6 polyurethane to meet the exact needs for your application.

For wet, washdown, or high moisture environments where molded ML6 encoder wheels are used, Meridian Laboratory offers unique polyurethane formulas to ensure the consistency and performance of the polyurethane is maintained.

Meridian Laboratory offers bonded encoder wheels with dual durometers. Drive belts and wheels would be a good example where a more rigid durometer is used on the inner diameter for mounting, and a softer durometer is used on the outside diameter to add friction to drive materials. The bond strength between the two durometers remains strong and without any compromise.

The standard finish of molded encoder wheels features a smooth, blemish-free, and high-grip surface on all molded portions of the part. This surface finish maximizes friction / grip while minimizing wear. Contrary to conventional belief, this finish provides the maximum amount of traction – similar to the way a racing slick provides the maximum traction with the asphalt surface it comes in contact with.

A matte surface finish can be specified for parts where friction / grip is not desired, or for applications with light materials like plastic films, which could potentially stick to a tacky surface. A matte finish will still provide the friction drive benefits which ML6 polyurethane is known for, while allowing light parts to be released from the contact surface.