Railroad Performance Composites

As a supplier of railroad performance composites, we focus on increasing reliability while reducing component cost and weight.

These objectives can be met by replacing metal or cast components with high performance composite railroad materials. Norplex-Micarta offers a full line of these composites in sheet, tube, rod, and prepreg forms that are certified to meet the most challenging rail and mass transit requirements. From braking systems to electrical insulation components for subway cars, Norplex-Micarta is the preferred railroad performance composites supplier for OEMs and fabricators around the world.

Norplex-Micarta Composite Materials provide excellent mechanical strength at a relatively low weight.

Light-weight components must exhibit excellent tensile, compressive, shear, and flexural strength. They must also withstand the initial impact force of installation, as well as the repeated stress of inspection and repair. Creep resistance is also an important performance criteria. Norplex-Micarta composites exhibit excellent creep resistance, making them a good alternative to standard thermoplastics.

Norplex-Micarta composites offer insulation properties when used as an electrical barrier between metal parts. They also feature low toxicity/burn characteristics critical for applications in mass transit applications. Some materials are self-extinguishing to minimize damage in the case of fi re or explosion.

Thermoset Composites as Railroad and Subway Supports

Being a railroad performance composites supplier, our composites provide electrical insulation for motor mounts, generator mounts and surrounding electrical equipment for rail and mass transit environments. For subway applications, our composite materials provide electrical insulation between the car and the electrical current running from the third rail to the motor.