Silicone Rubber Extrusions › Profiles › P Section
Silicone Rubber P section Profiles
Advanced Materials manufactures silicone rubber P section profiles for a range of industries, including Construction, Pharmaceutical, Rail and Transport and Food and Beverage Processing.
Similar to D sections but unlike many standard sealing profiles, silicone rubber P section extrusions combine a flexible sealing bulb with an integral retaining tail. This design allows the profile to locate securely within machined grooves or retaining channels while providing consistent compression against a mating surface and excellent recovery after repeated compression.
P section profiles are widely specified for equipment enclosures, access doors, inspection hatches, cabinets and industrial machinery where reliable environmental sealing is required without the complexity of additional fixing methods.
Advanced Materials does not hold finished P sections as off-the-shelf stock. Each profile is manufactured to order, either from one of our existing extrusion dies or from a completely new bespoke tool, in the required hardness, material grade and colour.
Example Silicone Rubber P section Profile Drawings and PDFs
Silicone Rubber P section Drawings
Many engineers begin by reviewing our existing P-section tooling drawings to determine whether an established die provides a suitable dimensional match, or can be used as a starting point for product development, and then later adapted with bespoke dimensions for their intended application.
Advanced Materials has manufactured silicone rubber extrusion profiles for more than 30 years and maintains an extensive library of existing tooling drawings covering a wide variety of P section bulb diameters, tail widths and retaining geometries. In many cases an existing profile can provide a close dimensional match, helping reduce tooling costs and shorten project lead times.
However, where no suitable profile exists, our in-house tooling department can design and manufacture a completely new extrusion die to meet your exact sealing requirements.
If you are unsure which profile is most suitable, our technical team can review your drawing, CAD model or sample and recommend the most practical manufacturing solution.
For other sealing geometries, explore our complete range of silicone rubber extrusion profiles.
Silicone Rubber P section Applications
P section profiles combine a compressible sealing bulb with an integral retaining tail, allowing the seal to locate securely within a groove or channel while providing reliable compression sealing. The bulb compresses against the mating surface to create an effective environmental seal, while the retaining section helps keep the profile correctly positioned during installation and repeated opening and closing. This makes P sections particularly suitable for access doors, equipment enclosures, cabinets and industrial machinery where dependable sealing and straightforward installation are important.
If one of our existing tool profiles suits your application, we can manufacture it to your required specification, including Shore A hardness, colour, silicone grade and production quantity.
Our silicone rubber P section profiles are commonly specified for:
Cabinet door seals
P section profiles provide an effective seal around industrial cabinets, control panels and electrical enclosures, helping to prevent the ingress of dust, moisture and contaminants while reducing vibration and protecting sensitive equipment.
Access panel seals
Frequently used on removable access panels, P sections create a consistent compression seal that maintains enclosure integrity while allowing panels to be opened repeatedly for inspection and maintenance.
Equipment enclosure seals
Industrial equipment often relies on P section seals to protect internal components from dirt, water and airborne contaminants, improving reliability and helping to extend equipment service life.
Inspection hatch seals
P section profiles provide dependable sealing around inspection hatches on processing equipment, tanks and machinery, helping maintain environmental protection while allowing convenient access for servicing and routine inspections.
Oven door seals
Manufactured from high-temperature silicone grades, P section profiles help retain heat within industrial ovens and processing equipment while maintaining flexibility and compression performance over repeated operating cycles.
HVAC access panel seals
Heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems use P section seals to minimise air leakage around service panels and access doors, helping maintain system efficiency and reducing the ingress of dust and moisture.
Refrigeration door seals
P section profiles provide effective sealing around refrigeration units and chilled storage equipment, helping maintain stable temperatures, improve energy efficiency and reduce the loss of conditioned air.
Environmental sealing
Where protection from the surrounding environment is essential, P section seals help prevent the ingress of water, dust, dirt and other contaminants into equipment, enclosures and fabricated assemblies.
Dust and splash protection
In manufacturing and industrial environments, P section profiles provide a reliable barrier against airborne dust and occasional water splashes, helping protect electrical and mechanical components.
Weather sealing
Suitable for external applications, silicone rubber P sections resist UV, ozone and temperature extremes while helping create durable weather-resistant seals around doors, access panels and outdoor equipment.
Machinery guarding
P section profiles can be used around machine guards and protective covers to reduce gaps, minimise contaminant ingress and provide a flexible sealing interface between moving or removable components.
General-purpose compression seals
The combination of a compressible bulb and retaining tail makes P section profiles suitable for a wide variety of static compression sealing applications where reliable performance and straightforward installation are required.
Static sealing applications
P section profiles are particularly well suited to applications where two surfaces remain fixed once assembled, providing long-term sealing performance through consistent compression and excellent recovery characteristics.
Custom Silicone Rubber P section Manufacture
Every silicone rubber P section is manufactured at our West Sussex production facility where tooling, extrusion, inspection and quality control are all managed under one roof. This enables us to maintain close control over dimensional accuracy, material consistency and production lead times while providing complete traceability throughout the manufacturing process.
Whether you require prototype quantities for development work or ongoing production volumes, we manufacture every order to the same quality standards.
Custom Silicone Rubber P section Extrusions to Your Specification
Our in-house tooling department designs and manufactures bespoke extrusion dies for customers requiring a completely custom P section profile.
Every element of the profile can be tailored to suit the final application, including:
- Bulb diameter
- Tail width and thickness
- Retention geometry
- Shore A hardness
- Silicone material grade
- Colour
- Overall profile dimensions
Because tooling is designed and manufactured at our Littlehampton factory, we avoid many of the delays associated with outsourced tool manufacture while maintaining complete control over dimensional accuracy.
In addition to standard continuous extrusions, we can also modify P sections to suit your assembly requirements.
For example, we can punch fixing holes through the retaining tail to accommodate bolts, hinges or mechanical fixings, while profiles can also be supplied as joined rings or fabricated frames where required.
Self-adhesive backing can also be applied to suitable flat surfaces where installation requires additional positional support.
Material Grades and Performance Options
P section profiles are manufactured from silicone rubber, with the material grade selected according to the demands of the application.
Advanced Materials supplies a wide range of specialist silicone compounds including:
- General purpose silicone
- FDA-compliant grades for food and beverage applications
- UL94 V-0 flame-retardant silicone
- Drinking water approved grades
- Translucent silicone
- EN45545 rail-compliant low smoke and low toxicity materials
- Platinum Cured silicone
- Bespoke colours
- Low temperature and high temperature grades
- High Tear strength
- Soft grades down to 20 Shore A
Silicone rubber provides excellent long-term resilience and compression recovery, making P sections particularly suitable where repeated opening and closing occurs without permanent deformation.
Depending on the selected material, P section seals can provide reliable protection against:
- Moisture
- Dust
- Dirt and contamination
- Weather exposure
- UV
- Ozone
- High and low temperatures
- Vibration
You can get expert advice on the correct material selection by contacting our team. Or visit our Resources section for full technical details.
Compression Recommendations for Silicone Rubber P Section Seals
Achieving the correct amount of compression is one of the most important factors in ensuring a reliable seal. In most static sealing applications, silicone rubber P section profiles typically perform best when the sealing bulb is compressed by approximately 20–30% of its original height, although the optimum compression will depend on the material grade, Shore hardness and operating conditions.
Insufficient compression may result in an ineffective seal, allowing the ingress of water, dust or air. Conversely, excessive compression can increase closing forces, accelerate compression set over time and reduce the service life of the seal.
For the best sealing performance, we recommend:
- Designing the enclosure or door to achieve approximately 20–30% bulb compression
- Selecting the appropriate Shore A hardness for the required sealing force and compression recovery
- Allowing for manufacturing tolerances and thermal expansion within the assembly
- Avoiding over-compression, particularly where doors, hatches or access panels are opened and closed frequently
Our technical team can advise on the most appropriate bulb size, material grade and profile geometry to achieve reliable sealing performance for your specific application, helping ensure the seal performs consistently throughout its service life.
From Tooling to Production
Every new P section profile begins with our in-house tooling department.
Using customer drawings, CAD files or physical samples, our engineers design an extrusion die that delivers the required finished profile while accounting for silicone flow characteristics and manufacturing tolerances.
Once approved, tooling is manufactured at our Littlehampton facility before progressing into production, where every extrusion is produced under our ISO 9001 quality management system.
We provide:
- ISO 3302-1 Class E1 cross-sectional tolerances as standard
- Visual inspection throughout manufacture
- Material traceability
- Batch consistency checks
- Retained production samples
- Laser marking where identification is required
By controlling the entire process from tooling through to finished extrusion, we maintain consistent quality across both prototype and repeat production orders.
See our guide to in-house tooling explained for a detailed overview of the tooling process.
Explore All Silicone Rubber Extrusion Profiles
P section profiles represent just one of the many silicone extrusion profiles manufactured by Advanced Materials.
Alongside P sections, we manufacture a comprehensive range of standard and bespoke silicone rubber extrusion profiles for sealing, protection and industrial applications, including D sections, U channels, glazing seals, cord, tubing and fully custom profile designs.
Whether you require an existing profile or a completely bespoke extrusion, our engineering team can help identify the most suitable solution for your application.
Why Choose Advanced Materials for Silicone Rubber P section Profiles?
Advanced Materials has over 30 years’ experience manufacturing bespoke silicone rubber extrusions for industrial, regulated and safety-critical applications.
Rather than supplying standard stock products, we work closely with engineers and purchasing teams to manufacture P section profiles that meet the exact technical, dimensional and material requirements of each project.
Customers choose us because we offer:
- Extensive existing extrusion tooling
- Bespoke in-house tool manufacture
- ISO 3302-1 Class E1 tolerances as standard
- ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 accredited manufacturing
- UK production
- Technical support from our experienced technical sales team
- Prototype through to high-volume manufacture
- Fast quotation turnaround
Get in Touch for Silicone Rubber P section Enquiries
If you have a drawing ready, send it to our team for review.
If you are still at the concept stage, we can help refine the geometry for manufacture.
Request a custom P section quote
Speak to our Technical Team
Request a Free Sample
Arrange a meeting to discuss your project
All silicone rubber P section extrusions are manufactured at our West Sussex facility, where quality, traceability and technical accuracy are maintained throughout production.
If you cannot find the exact silicone rubber P section profile you require, contact us and we will design and manufacture one to suit your application.