What are Composites?

Composite materials are materials made of of two distinct phases, or different material types, such as steel reinforced concrete, mud and straw, etc. Polymeric composites are materials where the binding (matrix) material is polymer, and the reinforcement is most often glass (glass fibre reinforced plastic or GRP) or carbon fibres (carbon fibre reinforced plastic or CFRP), but could also be a myriad of other fibre types, or particles, or both. The polymers are normally thermosetting types such as polyester (most common) or epoxy, but could be a vast array of thermoplastic materials too.

What is PCISA?

The Polymeric Composites Institute of South Africa (PCISA) is a group of companes and individuals involved in the composites industry in South Africa. They are mostly involved with the biggest industres, those involved with raw material supply, process equipment manufacture (pipes and pressure vessels), building (pools, etc), marine and boating (yachts and boats), transportation (canopies, insulated truck bodies), or sanitaryware.

PCISA is committed to encouraging the use of Composite materials, and to this end we will endeavour to help with product sourcing, supply of contacts and technical and general industry information.

Technical Information on Composite Materials

The following links are recommended to give you a broad understanding of what composite materials are:

Latest world news and technical information - NetComposites.com

American Composites Manufacturers' Association - ACMA

Composite materials on Wikipedia