Midland Compounding & Consulting, Inc.

Christopher M Surbrook

Thayer A Brown, Jr

A chaff resistant and economically recyclable dunnage tray is disclosed. In one aspect, the dunnage tray includes a base portion formed from a first material and a top portion formed from a second material. The top portion is secured to the base portion, and defines at least one cavity or recess for supporting a machine component. The first and second materials are high density polyethylene (HDPE) materials with the second material including polyethylene elastomers, or plastomers. In one example, the dunnage tray is formed by thermoforming a co-extruded sheet including a first layer corresponding to the bottom structural portion and a second layer corresponding to the elastomer or plastomer portion. In one example, the dunnage tray is formed by thermoforming an extruded sheet to form the base portion and by attaching separately formed top portions with polyethylene elastomers, or plastomers to the thermoformed base portion. This invention provides solutions to chaffing or chipping of polyethylene dunnage trays, control of coefficient of friction and softness to minimize parts from sliding/abrading dunnage surfaces, and eliminates requirements for disassembly of dunnage trays and separation of materials prior to recycling.

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Midland, MI, United States of America

Christopher M Surbrook