Hoowaki custom designs and fabricates surfaces with micro structures that enhance the properties of products from extrusion tooling. The company is a leader in applying micro structures to common commercially extruded products. Adding these micro structures to existing tooling allows a manufacturer to offer a unique product in an often competitive marketplace. Hoowaki focuses on applications requiring low sliding frction. However, its surface enhancements can also address many other product improvements such as low drag, low tack and liquid repellency.

Many extruded products such as wire, cable, medical tubing or polymer tubing slide during installation and use. These products are often damaged by friction between the surfaces, or can damage the surrounding surfaces. Friction makes wire and cable difficult to install, and in medical applications this friction can be life threatening. Today's friction solutions are often expensive and may require material substitutions that interfere with the product's function. Hoowaki's surfaces have demonstrated a reduction in sliding friction fo up to 20% between dry surfaces, and up to 80% with lubricants. 

Not only do the company's surface affect friction, they also improve draining and lower drag. For example, in a medical catheter patients depend on proper draining to prevent infections.

The micro features are also used to improve productivity, or to facilitate processing of raw materials, for polymer producers. The enhanced tooling may replace additives or coatings from the producer that must be removed by their customers for processing, or may promote extrusion speed and enhance feel and appearance.

Hoowaki's micro structures are designed for incredible performance without changing the product's material structure or the extrusion process. The features are added directly to a customer's tool and transfer to the product during extrusion. Process parameters generally require minor adjustments for optimal transfer, but the output remains the same or increases. The company's design process takes into account material shrinkage and drawdown to provide features that are the optimal geometry on the final product. 

Unlike many other micro structure fabrication techniques, Hoowaki's technology applies to curved surfaces, including the inside and outside of tubing. It also applies to a range of tooling materials, including steel, nickel alloys, aluminum and copper. The company creates features in a range of geometries, including grooves and almost any 2D shapes as a holes into the surface or a pillar above the surface. Features sizes ranges from 25 micron to 1 mm on the tool, with even smaller sizes possible on the product.