Products & services

Use less polymer and reduce your carbon footprint

MasterFoam™ is an endothermic blowing agent. Supplied in masterbatch form, the product works by creating a fine foam structure in the material whilst the polymer is in a liquified state. Tiny pockets of gas mean the moulding material is less dense, resulting in a lighter end component and a reduction in polymer requirements and costs. MasterFoam is proven to reduce cycle times too, enhancing productivity, whilst reducing energy demand and environmental impact.

The utilisation of an endothermic reaction has benefits over the exothermic chemistry of the past. An endothermic chemical foaming agent is less hazardous – it doesn’t release harmful gasses or emit heat, making it a safer choice. There’s also very little chance of an uncontrolled runaway reaction (generating excessive heat). Broadway’s MasterFoam is not an imported, traded product. It was developed by our in-house technical team and is manufactured at our factory in the UK, offering enhanced security of supply.

MasterFoam – Learn More

Summary of the key benefits:

• Reduction in material usage
• Reduction in costs, without any tooling changes
• Reduction in weight of the moulded component
• Reduced cycle times
• Reduced energy demand
• Reduced carbon footprint
• Increased shot/running speed
• Increase in productivity
• Reduction of sink marks
• Improved thermal efficiency of the moulded component
• Improved acoustic insulation of the moulded component

Improve product durability and lightweight your components

GrapheneXcel™ leverages the unique properties of graphene to improve the performance of polymers used across many industries, including automotive, defence, packaging, and consumer goods. The benefits include significant improvements in strength and durability, as well as improved barrier properties and the opportunity for product lightweighting.

GrapheneXcel is a made to order additive masterbatch, with formulations customised to meet individual customer requirements. Thanks to polymer-specific carrier systems, GrapheneXcel offers compatibility with a range of polymers including polyolefins, PET and TPU.

GrapheneXcel – Learn More

Summary of the key benefits:

• Improved mechanical strength and impact resistance
• Increased elastic modulus
• Weight reductions (through thin walling)
• Impressive barrier properties
• Favourable processing conditions
• Improved fire retardancy
• Enhanced electrical and thermal conductivity

What is graphene?
Graphene was discovered just 20 years ago at the University of Manchester. This remarkable material has rapidly gained attention for its extraordinary properties. Like diamond and graphite, graphene is composed entirely of carbon. However, uniquely, it consists of just a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb nanostructure. This arrangement includes numerous double bonds, contributing to its exceptional characteristics. Graphene’s atomic structure gives it unparalleled strength – as a single layer it’s the strongest material ever measured, boasting a tensile strength 200 times greater than that of steel. This offers immense potential to a range of industries, including plastic manufacturing.

Improve recycling compatibility with our NIR detectable ‘piano black’ masterbatches

High opacity, high gloss black plastics are a popular packaging choice, commonly used to offer products a premium appearance. Carbon black pigments – traditionally utilised to achieve such a finish, present inherent difficulties to the NIR detection systems used at waste sorting plants. They are strong absorbers of radiation both in the visible and infrared regions. This limits the amount of infrared radiation which can be reflected into the NIR detectors, placing considerable limitations on the system’s ability to characterise and sort the polymers. Conservative estimates from industry indicate that 30,000 – 60,000 tonnes of black plastic packaging may be entering the UK waste stream each year as a result of this issue.

The in-house laboratory at Broadway has called upon its extensive experience in colour chemistry to overcome this technical barrier. Our NIR-detectable piano blacks have undergone extensive and successful in-house NIR spectroscopy based tests, returning a distinct and statistically significant spectroscopic signature. Compatible with both PET and PP, these masterbatches produce a high-quality gloss ‘piano’ black finish whilst meeting standard food contact regulations. It redefines what can be achieved when it comes to maintaining a premium appearance, whilst safeguarding the ability to sort the end component in standard recycling waste streams.

We also provide NIR-detectable masterbatches for silver and other dark colours – just let us know your requirements and we’ll formulate a custom solution for you with NIR detectability where required.

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Enables plastics to be etched with industrial lasers

By using this additive masterbatch, the surface of the plastic can be marked directly using an industrial laser. The additive absorbs high-intensity energy from the laser, which heats the polymer and provides a controlled etch. Laser etching can offer various advantages to using paper labels, inks and adhesives in packaging applications. Laser marking is also a great solution for high-touch and long life applications, where information needs to remain legible throughout a component’s lifetime. This additive can be integrated into your colour masterbatch for ease of dosing.

Laser Marking – Learn More

Summary of the key benefits:

• Allows plastics to be marked with industrial lasers, which offers various advantages over using paper labelling
• A solution to provide permanent marks on the surface of plastics
• Flexibility – options for dark marking on light, light marking on dark and colour change marking
• Avoids detection issues during recycling, which can be a problem when processing packaging with large labels
• A cost-efficient option, suitable for a wide range of plastics and meets many common regulatory requirements

Biomaterials offer end-of-life benefits

Using 100% bio-based sources, we can offer fully biodegradable and compostable biomaterials, providing a more sustainable alternative to traditional plastics. We utilise various bio-sourced feedstocks including wood pulp, agricultural pulp, seaweed and wheat straw. Many biomaterials offer home-compostability, degrading in a matter of weeks, without leaving any trace of microplastics. This is a great solution for hard-to-recycle, or single use applications – such as lateral flow tests, protective films and single-use cutlery at events.

We also work with leading material innovators, providing specialist services to enable the development of their biomaterial formulations. Our extrusion expertise, technical knowledge and manufacturing capability can turn your concept into a commercial success.

Technical support

We offer technical expertise to refine formulations for optimum processing and moulding performance. Our laboratory has a dedicated R&D line, perfect for lab trials and formulation development. Our extensive range of in-house testing equipment enables moulded samples to be tested for tensile strength, impact strength and density – providing the data you need on material consistency and performance.

Toll compounding

Whether your formulation is developed by Broadway, or you simply need a compounding partner, we have the infrastructure to support industrial-scale manufacturing of novel materials. Our newest compounding line has multiple gravimetric feeds, enabling the efficient and accurate processing of complex materials with multiple constituents. Underwater pelletising delivers consistent pellet quality, even with materials which would otherwise be hard to stand and cut. Our facility enables biomaterials to be manufactured at scale, with speed, consistency and repeatability.

Biomaterials – key benefits and services:

• Bio-based – derived from sustainably sourced, renewable feedstocks
• End-of-life benefits: biodegradable, compostable, or home-compostable
• Compatible with your existing injection moulding lines
• Can reduce the carbon footprint of your materials (vs using oil-based plastics)
• A solution for single-use or hard-to-recycle applications
• Utilised across multiple market sectors
• Achieve precision mouldings with colouring versatility
• Technical support to develop and refine formulations
• Toll compounding – commercial material production

Lower your dependence on oil-based plastics and achieve a natural aesthetic

We offer a number of bio-filled options, allowing customers to introduce sustainable materials into their mouldings. This reduces dependence on traditional, oil-derived polymer content. It can also offer aesthetic benefits – products with PCR content can often look very similar to those using virgin polymer. With no obvious aesthetic change visible to consumers, the environmental benefits of the product’s PCR content may not be apparent. With bio-filled materials, a more natural aesthetic is often apparent in the end product.

Key benefits:
• A percentage of polymer is swapped for a natural filler, reducing your requirement for oil-derived plastic
• Creates a ‘natural’, textured aesthetic in finished products, which is typically popular with eco-conscious consumers
• Some fillers can improve the mechanical strength of the polymer, as well as lightweighting products
• Can reduce the carbon footprint of mouldings, as well as supporting biodegradability
• Our bio-fillers are sustainable. Many are by-products of other industries, so they don’t require additional resources
• Our natural fillers include harvest waste, crushed egg shells, hemp and bio-marine waste

Reduce odours in smelly materials

Whilst there are obvious circularity advantages to using recycled materials, there are challenges too, such as the smell! Recycled plastics can come from a range of sources and carry a multitude of contaminants, many of these cause odours which are problematic during production and can remain present in the end component. Even some virgin plastics can carry smells which need eliminating. Whilst these can be masked with a fragrance, this isn’t always desirable, particularly in applications such as toiletries or food packaging. It’s also a temporary solution, which soon fades, meaning end products can still present undesirable odours.

Our R&D scientists invested months of research, exploring odour neutraliser additives for plastics. They consider these a more effective and permanent solution than attempting to mask smells with a fragrance. Specialist chemicals within our new odour neutraliser additives act to absorb and trap VOCs and other odour molecules. This significantly reduces the amount of odorous particles which are released, therefore reducing the perceived smell of the material. We’ve explored a number of functional additives in order to find a commercially viable solution which delivers optimum performance.

We’re experts in colouring recycled plastics

With the world focused on reducing plastic waste; brand owners, moulders and consumers are rightly seeking sustainable options. PCR (Post Consumer Recycled) plastics offer an obvious solution – reprocessing waste packaging into usable materials for re-moulding. Our colourists are well-versed in colouring PCR, our team delivers dozens of matches for use in recycled plastics every week.

Many brands already enjoy the benefits of working directly with us. Broadway’s colour suite allows you to join us on-site to approve matches. This process means several new colour samples can be approved in a single day, saving time on product development. This facility is particularly useful when colouring recycled plastics. Our team can use a sample of your base material to demonstrate exactly how a specific batch of recyclate will impact the end colour of your moulded component. We’ll produce samples whilst you wait.

We’re also able to formulate masterbatches using PCR carrier resins. A significant proportion of each masterbatch is polymer, so for a brand to legitimately claim their product or packaging is “made from 100% recycled plastic“, their masterbatch must contain a PCR carrier resin (and no virgin plastic). The polymer within the masterbatch will typically form between 0.5% and and 2.5% of the finished moulding, although this can be higher.