At S&H Rubber, manufacturing custom rubber components is more than just a production process—it is an art backed by decades of engineering expertise. Since 1967, our Fullerton, California facility has delivered precision custom molded, extruded, and stamped rubber products to top-tier industries ranging from medical to aerospace.
Today, we are taking you behind the scenes for a look at our live extrusion process and how continuous quality, craftsmanship, and state-of-the-art machinery come together on our shop floor.
Step 1: High-Speed Coiling & Material Preparation
The extrusion process begins with accurate handling and tension management. In our shop floor setup, extruded rubber stock is carefully wound onto revolving tension reels as it comes off the line.
- Controlled Tension: Winding continuous profiles onto a spinning reel ensures uniform length without stretching or warping the profile.
- Efficiency & Safety: Our technicians keep a watchful eye on every rotation, maintaining continuous output so extruded reels are neatly organized and ready for downstream processing.
Step 2: Precision Hot Extrusion & Curing
Extrusion involves pressing unvulcanized rubber compounds through a custom-machined steel die to form seamless profiles.
- Thermal Management: Controlled open flames pre-heat and condition the tooling and die head, ensuring smooth material flow and eliminating surface imperfections during shaping.
- Liquid Curing / Cooling Bath: Immediately after exiting the heated die head, the rubber profile enters a liquid cooling medium. This locks in the intricate profile shape, stabilizes tight tolerances, and solidifies the profile prior to cutting.
Step 3: Staging, Storage, and Final Finishing
Once extruded, profiles are organized on multi-tiered racks for final cooling, vulcanization (autoclave curing), and quality inspection.
- Versatile Finishing Options: Depending on customer specifications, extruded rubber can be shipped on continuous reels or precision-cut to custom lengths.
- Multi-Channel & Hollow Extrusions: From multi-ribbed strips to hollow rubber tubing and custom U-channels, our diverse tooling capabilities accommodate virtually any profile cross-section.
Why Choose S&H Rubber?
With ISO 9001 and AS9100 certifications, S&H Rubber delivers American-made quality backed by rigorous quality control standards. Whether you need custom extruded profiles, hot/cold splicing, precision die-cut gaskets, or high-capacity custom molding, our team in Fullerton, CA has the expertise and equipment to fulfill your exact project requirements.
- Materials We Work With: EPDM, Neoprene, Silicone, Nitrile (Buna-N), Viton®, Fluorosilicone, Natural Rubber, and specialized FDA-grade compounds.
- Serving Key Industries: Aerospace, Medical, Automotive, Electronics, Plumbing, Commercial OEM, and more.
Ready to Start Your Custom Project?
Visit shrubber.com to learn more about our capabilities, or contact our engineering team today to request a quote!