Acronym and details: UF
Group: thermoset
Developed: patents taken out 1915 but only becomes practical for commercial use as thiourea urea formaldehyde in 1925; improved to urea formaldehyde in 1929; role taken by other plastics by 1950s
Trade names: Beetle; Beatl; Bandalasta; LingaLonga; Plaskon; Scarab
Manufacturing process: compression moulding
Cost: medium
Colour: naturally white but any slightly muted or pastel colour; also speckled and marbled effects
Transparency: opaque or translucent; never transparent
Rigidity: rigid
Feel: hard
Smell: usually none but occasionally a faint smell of urine
Other: brittle; less than a high gloss
Typical uses: domestic wares, picnic sets; jewellery; electric fittings and casings
Degradation: dulls, discolours, cracks; acquires an orange peel effect on the surface; badly affected by hot water; otherwise reasonably stable