PVC is a material used in a wide range of products. They range from toys to handbags, passing through furniture and building construction materials. Another common use of PVC is for advertising. You know that billboard you saw this morning on your way to work on the ring road? Well, it was probably printed on a PVC sheet.
Although it is a fairly simple product to make, some types of PVC plastic contain toxic and carcinogenic substances such as phthalates.
In this article, we will discuss the best strategies to import PVC products and rolls from China and PVC sheets.
Product Specifications
As we often say, there is no universal definition of “good quality”; What exists is a list of specifications (dimensions, colors, materials, components, certification standards, etc.) that a supplier should comply with. Like most products, PVC can also be made according to different specifications, which will obviously have a major impact on both the quality and price of the final product. Below we list some of the most common specifications regarding PVC.
PVC coated or PVC laminated sheets
Coated PVC sheets are more durable and expensive – 20-30% more expensive – than laminated PVC sheets. These are the most commonly used PVC sheets for building materials.
Laminated PVC sheets are less durable than coated PVC sheets. However, they can still be used to make products that are not subject to high stress, such as toys, furniture, or billboards.
Weight of the plates
While some plastics are measured in “thickness”, PVC sheets are instead measured in grams per square meter. This specification is the one that has the greatest impact on the price. Obviously, the weight depends on the use you want to make of PVC. Here are some examples:
- Construction tarpaulins: 550 – 700 grams per square meter
- Billboards: 350 – 550 grams per square meter
- Toys: 300 – 650 grams per square meter
- Furniture: 300 – 450 grams per square meter
Width
PVC is marketed in rolls. This means that while the length may vary depending on how the roll is cut, the maximum width will be limited by the width of the PVC roll. Most Chinese manufacturing companies can make rolls with a maximum width of 3.2 meters. However, there are some companies capable of making rolls up to 5.1 meters wide.
Colors
Most suppliers use Pantone and RAL codes as reference colors. In addition, many suppliers can also replicate the color of a physical sample.
Manufacturing companies
With more than 7,000 suppliers (most located in the coastal provinces of Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Guangdong), China is the world’s leading producer of PVC. However, it must be borne in mind that most of these “suppliers” are not manufacturing companies, but wholesalers (or intermediaries). The reason for this is that, since PVC is used to produce a very wide range of products, many companies that are dedicated to the production of objects containing PVC also take advantage of it to sell PVC as wholesalers.
If you want to buy PVC rolls – and not finished products containing PVC – it doesn’t make sense to go to a wholesaler. Apart from having to settle for an unfavorable price (obviously a wholesaler will charge you more than a manufacturing company), having to go through an intermediary will make communication more complicated. This could be a problem because, as mentioned above, PVC can contain toxic substances.
Certification standards
PVC always contains a certain number of “regulated” substances (i.e. substances for which only a certain amount per gram is allowed, after which PVC is considered non-compliant with REACH standards and therefore illegal within the European Union).
The problem is that less than 10% of Chinese suppliers have the production capacity to make PVC that complies with European standards. You will therefore have to be very careful about the supplier you choose.
Phthalates
Phthalates are a group of substances commonly used in the production of PVC in order to increase its flexibility, a very important feature in some applications of the material. The problem is phthalates are carcinogenic and are therefore prohibited if PVC is used to make toys. Here is a list of phthalates that are prohibited when importing toys:
- DEHP
- DBP
- DIBP
- BBP
- DINP
- DIDP
- DPHP
- DIUP
- DTDP
In this case, the only way to be on the safe side is to have a laboratory test carried out concerning the REACH regulation. If you are interested in importing toys, we also recommend that you read our article dedicated to the Toy Safety Directive.
Flame retardants
PVC used to make furniture or building constructions must comply with fireproof standards. Here are some of the most commonly used standards:
- Class B2 (Germany)
- Class B1 (Germany)
- Class M2 (France)
- Class M1 (France)
- NFPA 701 (USA)
- BS 5852:2006 (United Kingdom)
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