1/8" White polycarbonate sheet
The opaque polycarbonate that keeps a guard, enclosure or cabinet interior bright instead of dim, and reads as finished rather than industrial.
White polycarbonate sheet, cut to your exact size from 12" to 48" per side. Pick a standard size or enter custom dimensions, add flame- or diamond-polished edges, and see the price instantly — no quote for straight cuts, no minimum order. Note: polycarbonate should not be laser cut.
- High impact strength — far tougher than acrylic
- Standard-grade virgin polycarbonate, fully opaque
- 6 thicknesses, 1/16"–1/2"
What white polycarbonate is for
White polycarbonate is specified when a job needs an opaque panel that keeps the space around it bright. A guard, enclosure or cabinet lined in black absorbs the light that reaches it, and the working area behind it goes dim; the same part in white throws that light back, so an operator can still see what they are doing and an interior stays easy to inspect. That is why white is the usual choice for machine enclosures and cabinet interiors, equipment fascias and back panels, retail fixtures, and the lab, medical and food-adjacent rooms where a surface is expected to look clean and intentional. It is the same Lexan underneath — it bends and absorbs a hit rather than shattering — in the colour that reads as finished.
The trade is that white shows what black hides. Scuffs, tool marks and grime are visible on it, which cuts both ways: on a surface that is meant to be wiped down, that is the point — dirt you can see is dirt that gets cleaned — but on a panel that will be knocked about and never looked at, black is the better choice. Where white does go, it also carries labels, warning decals and printed graphics legibly; on black, most markings disappear.
Thickness works the same as the other colours: thin sheet for liners, lids, dividers and backer panels, heavier stock where the sheet spans a distance or has to take a real knock.
Why 1/8" specifically
1/8" is the workhorse thickness and the one most people mean when they say Lexan. It is rigid enough to stand in a frame over a useful span, thin enough to cut and drill without special tooling, and it carries polycarbonate's whole reason for existing: it takes a hit that would put a crack straight through acrylic. Machine guarding, safety glazing, equipment windows, and covers that get knocked all land here.
Do not cut polycarbonate in a laser
Polycarbonate absorbs the beam instead of cutting cleanly: it scorches brown along every edge, melts and re-welds, gives off fumes you should not breathe, and can catch fire. It also coats the optics. This is true of every laser and every thickness — CO2 and diode alike, and it is not a settings problem.
Cut polycarbonate mechanically — saw, router or shears — or tell us the finished size and we will cut it for you. If the part is going in a laser, you want acrylic instead; the craft & laser range is set up for exactly that.
Questions
White or black polycarbonate for a machine guard?
Both are opaque and equally tough, so the choice is about the space, not the material. White keeps the work area lit and the inside of the guard easy to inspect; black hides marks and makes the area feel closed in. If the guard will be wiped down and looked at, choose white. If it will be knocked about and ignored, choose black.
Can you see through white polycarbonate?
No. This is opaque solid-colour sheet, in the same family as black — a panel, not a window. Anything that needs to be seen through, or seen through with the glare cut, is clear or smoked polycarbonate.
Can I label or print on white polycarbonate?
Yes, and it is a large part of why white is chosen for equipment panels and fixtures: labels, warning decals and vinyl graphics read clearly on a white ground where they disappear on black. The sheet is cut to size before it ships, so apply graphics to the finished part rather than cutting through them — and never laser cut polycarbonate, before or after labelling.