Engineering
Mould tools
We are out and out mould toolmakers. Everything we are about and all our processes have been honed over time to deliver extremely high quality tooling, quickly, and at a reasonable cost.
From working with you on component design, to designing the tools themselves through to the finished product we offer a complete end to end service. We can look at a component and see the tool in our head. This enables us to have efficient conversations with customers without the need for them to pay for any tool design at the quote stage. We give our customers peace of mind by them knowing our tooling will arrive on time, to budget, and work in their facility first time.
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Explore Our Range Of Mould Tools
For us vac forming and tooling was where it all started. We vac form ourselves in-house which means we really understand what works, how to push the boundaries but also some golden rules. That knowledge is something that our customers really value, also trusting that we never compete with them as 99% of our vac forming is in the confectionery industry.
We can create vac tooling across all metals and modelling board depending on the application. We have a variety of finishes from polished to shot blast to textured – all with smooth surfaces and blemish free. Our mantra is always to simplify where we can but if required can also provide highly complex tooling. Most of our tooling is machined from billet and is shelled to reduce weight but we also cast tools if needed for a specific application / depth of draw. We frequently temperature control tools and can work across all vac form machine models.
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Pressure form vac form tools are a particular specialism of ours. Using positive pressure to force plastic into a tighter radius, achieve an even well thickness or take texture from the surface of the tool is extremely effective but can also seem prohibitively expensive.
We design extremely simple but effective tooling to achieve high quality plastic parts. This can often be in combination with a textured finish on a vac tool, for example with Standex, who we work with regularly. Most pressure form tools will involve detailed machining with an excellent surface finish, a temperature controlled tool sat in a bolster of some kind and a lid with seals to maintain pressure. We deliver all of this fully assembled with no fuss that works first time.
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Our long term experience in injection mould tools helps us to simplify what can be a very complex process, through smart design and precise machining.
There are many aspects to consider. This could be the material being moulded – every material has different characteristics which affects tool design and material. It could be the complexity of the component shape which affects the flow of the material or the volumes required which affects the tooling material.
We will take them all into consideration when we are designing our injection mould tools with you. We utilise the latest mould flow analysis software to ensure the best possible parts will be created from the tooling and we will simplify tool design wherever possible.
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Delivering high quality heated press tooling has become a core part of our business and is one of our biggest growth markets. We can produce both heated and non-heated press tools and have vast experience in working with a wide range of pressed materials.
We also offer a quick turnaround aluminium tooling service which benefits from a long production life whilst offering significant savings in comparison to steel.
We approach machining press tools intelligently and vary our machining strategies according to the materials being pressed. If a less fine finish is acceptable we will make changes to save machining time and pass cost savings onto the customer.
We design with specific attention on how the parts will be trimmed – via 5 axis water-jet trimming or the through die-cutting. In addition, we design and supply full die sets that compliment all our press tools.
We are experienced in designing and manufacturing tooling for PU foam with quick turnaround times and support for
rapid prototyping.
We pay close attention to areas of shut off to reduce the chances of leaks, particularly with low viscosity material. Tooling design is thought through to maximise flow and aid venting to achieve a quality fill in the cavity.
Temperature controlled tools are provided as a standard to give consistent mouldings every time. We will support the customer’s process for dosing the foam, whether that is an open or closed pour system. We frequently demonstrate the value in properly CAD-cut aluminium tooling over GRP tooling.
We are also experience in working with more intricate mouldings requiring moving cores/loose pieces or where over-moulding of existing components is needed.
Composite tooling is a growing part of our business and has become a mainstream part of what we do. This includes:
- Heated or non-heated composite tools.
- Aluminium or steel tooling dependent on the requirements of the job.
- Key attention to surface finish and detail to ensure high quality parts are produced. We can work to a specific Ra up to mirror finish.
- Supporting a wide range of processes and materials.
- End of part marking and design solutions for making the production of first-offs easy / remove the need for additional fixturing.
We are often asked for a quick solution to customers who have lost or damaged tooling and need a quick replacement. Alternatively it could be an opportunity to provide a sample to a customer quickly that can help you win work but you need quick tooling.
Every project is different but through a combination of 3D laser scanning, clay modelling, solid/surface modelling, machining of modelling boards and resin/FDM 3D printing we can accommodate a wide range of quick turnaround projects that can help you to wow customers.
We’ve bult our business on asking “how can we make this happen”, not focusing on the reasons something might be difficult to turn around and we apply that to our prototyping work which our customers find refreshing.
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We have significant experience in delivering a wide range of tooling finishes to suit customer requirements and can make creative suggestions to solve problems.
- In-house capability for a wide range of shot blast finishes through to polished finish.
- Long term relationship with Standex for customer-specified finishes, particularly for aerospace.
- HDPE (for example Teflon) finishes for increased tool life or to reduce drag to support ejection.
Finishes can be supported to a specified Ra Micron.
Tool Making Services
We have a long track record in working in the aerospace, automotive, mass transport, earth moving equipment and medical sectors. Geographically we have a wider customer base in the UK, Ireland mainland Europe and North America.
We can import all files and formats and daily work with STP, CATIA, XT and STL files. We run Powershape and Solidworks for technical CAD, and Geomagic Freeform for creative CAD (with haptic arm). We use Powermill for milling and Vectric for flat routing. In essence though we can take models from most formats and turn them into quality tooling, or create components from scratch.
We have 12 Hurco CNC machines - VMX30 (x2), 30s,
42i (x2), 50t, 50, 50i (x2), DCX 22i, VM10 and 10i; Romi d800; Maxicam M8 5 axis router/mill. We will shortly be commissioning a Roeders RXP501 HSM with 42K RPM spindle speed.
We can machine most metals up to 2200mm x 1600mm x 400mm 3 axis. Our 5 axis CNC can machine all model boards and some light aluminium work up to 2400mm x 1200mm x 500mm.
The vast proportion of our customers ask for Ureol/model board for prototyping and aluminium or steel dependant on the tooling. We work with a wide variety of model boards dependant on the application. Such is the volume of our purchasing for aluminium and model board we are very confident in our material costs on quotes and only charge a nominal handling charge on top. We do not mark up material costs.
Dependant on complexity of the job and capacity but we can go from receiving CAD data to delivery of tools and CNC fixtures in as little as 2 weeks, delivering ourselves where possible.
We’re accredited to ISO 9001 but see this as a baseline to improve from and set our targets for quality higher than the standard requires.
Who we work with…
Working alongside brands you know and love
We’ve helped the brands below with anything from creating parts for the next supercar, design a new plane seat or creating the next must-have chocolate. There’s never a dull day.
We’ve been designing, machining and delivering thermoform tooling for 30 years and constantly reinvest in our capability to ensure we
stay ahead.
Ready to start your next project with us?
