Polyvinyl Chloride is the third most widely produced polymer, used for plumbing, cable insulation, inflatable products and material. Since it’s discovery in the 19th Century there hasn’t been much to rival it. That is, until Openhouse invented their incredible material, micrAgard PLUS. MicrAgard PLUS material is significantly better than PVC and I have 8 reasons.
Environmentally friendly
MicrAgard is more environmentally friendly than PVC as it is made from sustainable synthetics and natural sources.
Lasts Longer
When micrAgard PLUS was scraped vigorously with a sharp utensil, the surface of the material was barely marked, keeping in tact its anti-microbial and flame retardant properties.
PVC was put under the same test and the surface material was scraped off and it lost all of its properties, allowing bacteria to infest the material. This shows that you will get much better wear and tear out of micrAgard PLUS than PVC
Sterile
As previously stated micrAgard PLUS will not lose its anti-microbial properties. This prevents the problem of cross contamination and keeps things sterile.
Water resistant even after abrasion test
In our research micrAgard PLUS and PVC proved to be water resistant, but once the abrasion test had taken place the PVC did not stay waterproof letting water into the fabric. MicrAgard PLUS proved still to be waterproof, with all water staying on the surface.
Stronger
In tests of two different sizes of each material, micrAgard PLUS and PVC, the micrAgard PLUS
material surpassed the strength of PVC. When the test was done with 50mm wide material micrAgard PLUS was 17% stronger, holding 190kgs before ripping and when the 200mm width material was used micrAgard
PLUS was in fact 12% stronger, holding 500kgs before ripping. MicrAgard PLUS can be put under a lot more pressure and can withstand more vigorous use.
Lighter
One metre square of PVC and another of micrAgard PLUS were weighed and again micrAgard PLUS came out on top. It is in fact, 34% lighter than PVC weighing 360g compared to PVC’s weight of 540g. A paramedic’s backpack has a restriction of 15kg, so with micrAgard PLUS you could actually fit more into the bag or even just make their load significantly lighter.
Fire Retardant
MicrAgard can withstand flames and although the surface was slightly burnt and discoloured the material was left with a shiny surface. PVC on the other hand burnt away quickly, releasing unpleasant fumes.
Quality Guarantee
We at Openhouse are so confident in our micrAgard PLUS and the high quality of our products that we allow a limited lifetime guarantee.
Get in touch with our design team