While plastic products have a reputation for being cheaply made, high-quality plastics are often used in the mining industry. These products can actually lower costs. Some tools made out of plastic are actually more durable than those made out of other materials. Shoddy manufacturing has given plastic products a bad name, but this doesn’t mean that there aren’t plenty of good designs still on the market. Miners always need to contract with geologists to provide core samples. Even the general population is probably familiar with this. Samples need to be stored in special trays when they’re transported, and these could very well be made from synthetic polymers.
High-grade plastic core trays are actually sought after by some of Australia’s top geologists. They’re becoming rather popular with several mining firms. In fact, some people now believe that the majority of core trays sold in the future will be made from synthetic materials as opposed to metal. This is only one example out of many. Heavy metal compounds were often lifted to the tops of mine shafts by using an iron kibble or a wooden skip. These could be quite dangerous, but artificial buckets have proven to be much safer. No one would think of using the older devices in today’s world. Plastics can make the chore of metalliferous mining that much easier.
Extracted ore is usually placed into a barrow and then transported to railcars. Canisters used to move the ore can be fashioned from plastic components to reduce weight. Some manufacturers make modules that can be assembled together into larger barrows or containers. Different loads require different sized bottles to hold them. Modular plastic shake water bottle designs give people the option of matching the equipment to the amount of extracted ore. Plastics make this sort of flexibility possible.
Interestingly enough, the fact that the mining industry uses plastic can help to eliminate plastic components in some consumer products. Clay needs to be extracted from mines, and it can be made into things like brick or tile. Ceramic tiles are considered superior to plastic ones. Likewise, ceramic crockery is better than plastic for many uses. The mining industry can actually extract more clay from the soil by using efficient plastic components. This means that more ceramic products end up on the shelves. Consumers are able to reap these benefits. In some cases, ceramics can even be recycled more readily than plastic. Nevertheless, plastics tools help to put these ceramic items into regular households.
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