Material guide Trade names
Perspex, Lucite, and Plexiglass are not three plastics. They are trade names for acrylic sheet — poly(methyl methacrylate), PMMA. Buyers use whichever name their market grew up with. A factory that only reads the nickname can still ship the wrong route, because none of the three words says cast or extruded.
The short answer
Working answer. Perspex, Lucite, and Plexiglass are names for acrylic. Treat a brief that uses any of them as a PMMA request, then ask cast or extruded. Do not price them as three materials, and do not assume the named brand is the sheet that will be used unless the quote says so.
The three names
Plexiglass is the everyday spelling of Plexiglas, an acrylic brand that became the generic word in much of English. An email that says plexiglass almost always means “clear acrylic sheet,” not a specific mill.
Perspex is another acrylic brand name, heard most often from UK-linked buyers and from older specifications. In a display RFQ it still means PMMA. It does not, by itself, mean a particular thickness or a cell-cast sheet.
Lucite is a further acrylic brand name, still met on blocks, awards, and some US briefs. Again the polymer is PMMA. A “Lucite cube” in a retail brief is an acrylic cube until the sender names a brand and a grade.
Other names exist — Acrylite is one buyers also meet. The pattern is the same: brand first, generic later, polymer unchanged.
What each word does and does not say
| Word on the email | Safe reading | Still unstated |
|---|---|---|
| Plexiglass / Plexiglas | Acrylic sheet, PMMA | This brand or generic; cast or extruded; thickness |
| Perspex | Acrylic sheet, PMMA | Same gaps; common in UK-linked specs |
| Lucite | Acrylic, PMMA — often a block or a cube in casual use | Sheet or block; brand or generic; grade |
| Acrylic / PMMA | The material, without a brand | Route, thickness, tint, finish |
ISO 7823-1 is the cast PMMA sheet standard. ISO 7823-2 is the extruded one. Neither standard is implied by Perspex, Lucite, or Plexiglass. If the face will be polished or solvent-bonded, the route matters more than which nickname arrived in the subject line.
Why the word changes by market
The split is habit, not chemistry.
- A UK or Commonwealth buyer often writes Perspex and means the acrylic they have always specified.
- A US buyer often writes Plexiglass, or Lucite when the part is a block, an award, or an embedment.
- A factory in a third country may stock none of those brands and still make the part in PMMA.
Translating the word and then asking two questions — PMMA, and cast or extruded — avoids a false “we don’t have Perspex” refusal, and avoids a silent generic substitution when the brand was actually required.
What they are not
- Not glass. The “glass” in Plexiglass is a nickname. Scratch behavior, weight, and breakage stay those of PMMA, and still depend on grade and thickness.
- Not polycarbonate. Lexan is a polycarbonate name. A clear photo does not separate them.
- Not a performance claim. Writing Lucite or Perspex on a drawing does not set light transmission, impact, or outdoor life. Those need a grade and a method, or they should not be quoted as numbers.
- Not a guarantee of that brand. Unless the quote names the mill and the grade, “Perspex” on the RFQ is a material request, not a brand lock.
What to write on the RFQ
- Polymer: PMMA / acrylic.
- Route: cast or extruded.
- Thickness by member, colorless or tint.
- Edge and joint, if it is a case or a stand.
- Brand only if you truly require that mill — and then name the grade, not just Perspex or Lucite.
A plain-language note is fine: “acrylic, also called Perspex / Plexiglass in our market.” That line aligns a buyer and a factory. It is not the specification.
Sanait fabricates acrylic displays, boxes, and trays in Dongguan. A brief that says Perspex, Lucite, or Plexiglass is read as PMMA unless you say another polymer. How a brief is taken is on the FAQ. Scope is on the about page. Typical parts: boxes, trays, and stands.
FAQ
Are Perspex, Lucite, and Plexiglass the same?
Same polymer family: acrylic, PMMA. Different trade names. Not automatically the same brand, grade, or cast-versus-extruded route.
Which name should I use with a factory?
Acrylic or PMMA. Add the trade name your team uses, as a note, so nobody thinks you changed materials.
If I write Perspex, will I get that brand?
Only if the quote says so. Otherwise you should expect PMMA of the route you specified, which may be a different mill.
Is Lucite better than Plexiglass?
The names do not rank the sheet. Cast versus extruded, grade, and thickness do. A brand name without a grade is not a quality tier.
Is any of them polycarbonate?
No. Polycarbonate is a different polymer. Lexan is a polycarbonate trade name, not an acrylic one.
Why do quotes come back at different prices for the same nickname?
Because the nickname did not fix cast or extruded, thickness, or finish. Align those before you compare the numbers.
Sources
The names are trade names for PMMA. Confirm a specific brand on the mill’s own sheet. These references identify the polymer and the public names only.
- ISO 7823-1:2003, Plastics — Poly(methyl methacrylate) sheets — Part 1: Cast sheets. iso.org
- ISO 7823-2:2003, Plastics — Poly(methyl methacrylate) sheets — Part 2: Extruded sheets. iso.org
- “Poly(methyl methacrylate).” Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org
- “Plexiglas.” Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org
- “Perspex.” Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org
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