There’s an old saying that “Money Doesn’t grow on trees” but did you know that the valuable resource of Rubber does?  Found abundantly in India, Thailand and Indonesia, rubber is also known as Amazonian or India rubber or Latex.  Drawn from trees as sap in a process called Tapping the latex is a milky, white, sticky liquid that is cut from the bark of the tree. Weirdly, Dandelion milk also contains latex though the wild varieties only produce a small amount which makes it not really worth harvesting.  The liquid latex is then refined and can be used in many different applications, sometimes combined with other materials or purely on its own. Rubber is waterproof, can stretch to a high ratio and has a high-pressure tolerance and resilience.  Rubber is also very flexible and in its different forms, makes it extremely useful for lots of different products such as, tyres, hoses, shock absorbers, rainwear, diving gear, protective gloves, balloons, balls, and cushions.

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The liquid latex is then poured into many different shapes of metal moulds and the process of Rubber Moulding is then performed.  These shapes can create whatever a customer requires, this elite process can be carried out by professional companies such as https://www.meadex.co.uk/rubber-moulding/.  There is more than one way to mould rubber and the three most common ways are called Transferring, Compressing, and Injecting.  Engineers can use these different methods to work with rubber and create all sorts of products for use in various industries including, Medicine, Food/Beverage, and Chemical.  In the field of medicine there are countless ways in which rubber is used including, seals, gaskets, and tubing.  In the food and beverage industry the very high standards and regulations of the Food and drug Administration, (or the FDA) have to be met and strict hygiene rules on sanitization and cleaning adhered to, rubber is the perfect product to use to meet these criteria.

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In the chemical industry rubber is used in the agricultural, and pharmaceutical businesses as well as for paint and petroleum.  The Hard rubber used in these industries is made with a high ratio of sulphur because it makes it highly resistant to corrosion.  From babies dummies to hot water bottles, wellington boots and condoms, rubber can be put to use, so it really is a lucrative industry and the money made from this natural resource literally does “Grow on Trees”