Materials for Design

SMMA (Styrene Methyl Methacrylate)

Clarity is seductive. If you’ve ever seen glass making, you’ll understand what I mean: solid, weighty clear globs blending, creasing, twisting and melting into each other in a mesmerizing way. But clarity can also be honest – everything is exposed behind a clear material. Apple used a translucent polycarbonate in the first iMacs to reveal the decorative potential of the technology behind the products, blending it with fun colours to mist some of the untidiness of the components. Look at the totally transparent dirt collector in a Dyson vacuum cleaner, which offers reassurance that your dirt is contained in the sealed container and your home is clean.

SMMA is from the styrenic family of polymers that includes ...