Which Resin Is Right for Your Application

Different resin systems provide different levels of chemical resistance, structural performance, fire protection and durability. This guide provides a simple starting point for choosing the right resin for pultruded profiles and GRP gratings.

Resin Selection Guide

The resin helps determine how a composite product responds to chemicals, moisture, impact, heat, fire and long-term outdoor exposure. Use this simple guide as a starting point when selecting pultruded profiles or GRP gratings.

Polyester

Cost-effective all-round choice

A practical and economical resin for many standard commercial and industrial environments.

Best suited to
  • General industrial structures
  • Platforms and walkways
  • Standard pultruded profiles
  • Commercial GRP gratings
Key benefits
  • Economical
  • Good general corrosion resistance
  • Widely available
Best for standard applications

Vinyl Ester

Enhanced corrosion protection

A higher-performance choice for wet, marine and chemically aggressive environments.

Best suited to
  • Chemical processing facilities
  • Marine and coastal environments
  • Wastewater facilities
  • Corrosive industrial areas
Key benefits
  • Excellent chemical resistance
  • Good moisture resistance
  • Improved long-term durability
Best for harsh environments

Epoxy

High structural performance

Commonly selected for specialised composite profiles where structural performance, bonding and fatigue resistance are important.

Best suited to
  • High-performance structural profiles
  • Fatigue-sensitive components
  • Specialised engineering applications
  • Highly loaded composite parts
Key benefits
  • Excellent adhesion
  • Low curing shrinkage
  • Strong fatigue performance
Best for specialised structures

Phenolic

Fire-focused performance

Used where fire, smoke and toxicity requirements are more important than appearance or general-purpose economy.

Best suited to
  • Transport infrastructure
  • Fire-sensitive facilities
  • Enclosed public environments
  • Selected offshore applications
Key benefits
  • Low flame spread potential
  • Low smoke generation
  • Improved fire performance
Best where fire safety is critical

Polyurethane

Toughness and impact resistance

A specialised resin option for pultruded profiles requiring toughness, impact resistance and good damage tolerance.

Best suited to
  • Impact-prone structural profiles
  • Heavy-duty industrial components
  • Wear-sensitive applications
  • Specialised pultruded products
Key benefits
  • High toughness
  • Good impact resistance
  • Good abrasion resistance
Best for impact and wear
Important selection note

Resin type is only one part of material selection. The final choice should also consider chemical concentration, operating temperature, fire requirements, UV exposure, loading, surface finish and expected service life. Material compatibility should be confirmed for each project.