Foam Applications
Foam is Everywhere...
Page Summary
- Foam is a very versatile material. It supports us, keeps us comfortable and alleviates some of the minor aches and pains that are brought on by everyday living.
- To choose the right grade one must look at the three key ingredients of support, comfort and durability. With over 45 grades of foam to choose from we can easily find the one which is best suited for your particular need or application.
- Using the right foam cutting equipment, foam can be cut, shaped and laminated to suit all your comfort needs.
- We make better mattresses because we use the best grades of foam (see Mattresses).
All Foam is Not Created Equal
Flexible polyurethane foam is one of the most versatile materials ever created. We are literally surrounded by it in our lives. It's used as packaging material to protect delicate instruments and it is the cushioning material of choice in almost all furniture and bedding.
Foam has become such a widely used material because it provides a unique combination of form and function. It's light, quiet, mildew resistant and foam won't aggravate common allergies. With the right equipment, foam can easily be cut or moulded into almost any shape. At the same time, foam can be made to provide very supple or very firm cushioning for any given application. Flexible polyurethane foam appears to be a simple product, but it is actually very complex. It can be produced to have an almost infinite variety of properties. Even though two foams may look the same, they may feel and perform entirely different.
However, the properties of foam can be identified and specified very precisely. The foam industry utilizes a number of measurements and tests to accomplish this. Using these measurements, it is possible to pinpoint the right foam for the right applications (Foam Grades).
Key Ingredients to all Foam Applications
Although a number of different measurements and tests may be used to choose what foam to use in any given application, almost any selection task has to do with one or all of the following three elements as its final goal.
Durability: The foam has to hold up through use without losing its original properties.
These are the basic benefits that foam cushioning provides. If the needs in each of these three areas are evaluated first, selecting the proper foam for a given use becomes fairly simple. A sofa seat cushion has to have good support, comfort, and durability. The arm and back cushions for the same sofa need to last and be comfortable but will not necessarily be required to support much weight. The foam used to line the case of a video camera needs to support its weight and hold up through use, but the camera cares nothing about comfort.
