Plastic Rattan Furniture: How Is It Manufactured?

Plastic rattan furniture, also known as synthetic rattan furniture, sometimes referred to as plastic wicker furniture or resin wicker furniture. It is a furniture product that is artificially woven with plastic rattan strips as the main raw material and a metal frame as the skeleton. Compared with real rattan furniture, plastic rattan furniture not only has the beauty of natural rattan but also has good flexibility, strong chemical stability, anti-mold, anti-fade, easy cleaning, UV resistance, weather resistance, low cost, and many other advantages.
 
Plastic rattan furniture is suitable for applications in various indoor and outdoor places. In our daily life, plastic rattan furniture mostly serves open-air cafes, leisure clubs, outdoor playgrounds, residential gardens, bedroom balconies, and other spaces for public activities. Nowadays, plastic rattan furniture has become one of the most popular outdoor furniture products. Therefore, the manufacturing business of plastic rattan furniture is increasingly profitable. Before starting your furniture business, you’ve got to know the production process of plastic rattan furniture.

Manufacturing Process of Plastic Rattan Furniture

Raw Material: Plastic Rattan Strips

The main material of plastic rattan furniture is plastic rattan, also called synthetic rattan, or artificial rattan. Plastic rattan is a 100% plastic product because there are no natural ingredients used in the production process.
 
Plastic rattan materials are usually made in dark brown, brown, beige, white, and other colors. According to the shape and surface finish, plastic rattan material can be divided into flat rattan, round rattan, half-round rattan, and seagrass rattan.
 
In today’s market, most plastic rattan furniture is made of PE rattan. PE, short for Polyethylene, is polyethylene, a high-performance polymer that is non-toxic, easy to color, and has good chemical stability, cold and heat resistance, radiation resistance, and good electrical insulation. PE rattan is made with a beautiful look that resembles natural rattan. Besides, according to clients’ requirements, different colors and patterns can be created on the surface to suit various outdoor furniture.
 
PE rattan strips are durable because it is 100% resistant to weather elements like rain, snow, wind, etc. Even though it is exposed to long-term outdoor conditions, it won’t easily fade, mildew, or break out like natural rattan.

Frame

Correction: Perfect the frame to ensure left-right symmetry and front-to-back alignment.



 

Most of the plastic rattan furniture is made with a frame structure. A frame is not only related to the overall shape of the furniture but also the main bearing component. The frame of plastic rattan furniture is mainly divided into two types: wooden frame and metal frame. In today’s market, 90% of plastic rattan furniture is mainly made in a metal frame. Since the frame is wrapped or covered by plastic rattan strips, most of the frame is invisible, so the frame design is relatively simple. It doesn’t need special decoration but only needs to meet the requirements of the overall shape and mechanical properties. The form of the frame determines whether the whole furniture is of visual tension, or whether the lines are smooth and light.
 
The frame of the plastic rattan furniture is mainly made of aluminum alloy or stainless steel Aluminum is a very light metal with a density of 2.702 g/cm³, about one-third of pure copper. As a dense aluminum oxide film is easily formed on its surface, which can prevent further oxidation of the internal metal, aluminum has good atmospheric corrosion resistance. Industrial pure aluminum has extremely high plasticity and can easily withstand various forming processes. However, its strength is too low, so pure aluminum can only be used as a structural material when its strength is improved through cold deformation strengthening or alloying.
 
Stainless steel is mainly divided into austenitic stainless steel, martensitic stainless steel, and ferritic stainless steel. Austenitic stainless steel is the most widely used stainless steel for plastic rattan furniture, with a chromium content of about 18% and a nickel content of about 8%.

Powder Spraying

When the frame is finished, it will be painted by powder spraying. Taking aluminum alloy as an example, the first thing is to remove dust, dirt, and grease on its surface with clean water and a degreasing agent. Then spray water thoroughly on the surface of the frame to increase the paint adhesion. After a second cleaning, the aluminum frame will be dried at a high temperature of 220°, then sprayed with black or white powder. Later, the aluminum frame was baked at a high temperature of 220° for another 15 minutes. Finally, the frame was cooled, and the spraying was completed.

Rattan Weaving

After the metal frame is treated with paint, the next step is to weave PE rattan strips on the frame according to the required weaving pattern. When all plastic rattan strips are woven on the whole furniture, then the furniture will be sent for inspection of color, bearing capacity, tension, waterproof test, UV test, etc. Finally, the plastic rattan furniture is finished and ready for shipping.

Start Your Furniture Manufacturing Business With Us