Hard Coated Polycarbonate & Acrylic

Polycarbonate and Acrylic are both popular transparent substrates used in a wide range of industries, prized for their lightweight, clarity, and versatility.

Polycarbonate, while durable in impact and heat, is relatively soft and susceptible to scratching.
Acrylic (PMMA) offers excellent optical clarity and is lighter than glass, but in demanding or high-use environments, it may need protection to preserve appearance and durability.

At Diamond Coatings, we specialise in hard coatings (also called anti-scratch or scratch-resistant coatings) that enhance the mechanical, chemical, and optical performance of both substrates to meet rigorous industrial, retail, safety, and aesthetic demands.

What Are Hard Coatings / Anti-Scratch Coatings

A hard coating is a surface treatment applied to plastics (polycarbonate or acrylic) to:

Increase scratch resistance to approach or approximate the hardness of glass, especially for polycarbonate.
Improve resistance to wear, abrasion, chemical exposure, and environmental factors.
Maintain optical clarity, potentially combining hard coatings with anti-reflective (AR) or other optical coatings such as our Diamox ITO Coating range.

Hard Coatings for Polycarbonate & Acrylic

Properties and Benefits

Significantly improved scratch resistance, bringing substrates closer to glass in hardness.
Retained benefits of polycarbonate: strong impact resistance, heat resistance, good mechanical toughness.
Can be combined with other coatings (e.g. anti-reflective, conductive ITO) as needed.
Adds high scratch resistance (e.g. via coatings such as DIA.HC-KRF Hard-Coat) to acrylic, helping protect its cosmetic finish and prolong aesthetic quality.
Improves weather, UV, and chemical resistance.
Maintains excellent optical clarity, particularly important where visual quality is crucial.

Typical Applications

Coated polycarbonate is used in:

Eyewear lenses & safety eye wear
Electronic / opto-electronic displays, automobile instrument clusters
Exterior lighting fixtures
Shielding filters (EMI / RFI), security camera domes, public display screens

Retail displays, point-of-sale fixtures, signage
Safety glazing, camera lenses, display screens
Environments exposed to frequent handling, public use, or potentially abrasive or harsh conditions.

Comparative Summary: Polycarbonate vs Acrylic with Hard Coatings

Property / Factor	Polycarbonate + Hard Coating	Acrylic + Hard Coating
Impact / Mechanical Strength	Very high — inherently tougher material.	Reasonably robust; enhanced by hard coating.
Optical Clarity	Good; may require AR or optical coatings.	Excellent; usually superior optical performance.
Weight & Handling	Relatively lightweight; good toughness.	Lighter still; easier to handle and transport.
Use in Harsh Environments	Excellent when coated; polycarbonate is resilient.	Very good; with coating to protect wear & weather.

Our Hard Coating Solutions

Anti-Scratch Coating for Polycarbonate: Designed to make polycarbonate almost equal to glass in terms of hardness; improves durability in heavy use or exposed settings.

Diamond Coatings Datasheet DIA.HC-KR Hardcoat

Diamond Coatings Datasheet DIA.HC-SON Hardcoat

Diamond Coatings Datasheet DIA.HC-OPG Hardcoat

Diamond Coatings Datasheet DIA.HC-MAKAB Hardcoat