The Vacuum casting process uses silicone mould tooling and polyurethane resins to produce quick and economical copies of original components. The wide range of polyurethane materials and surface finishes ensures most plastics can be accurately mimicked using this process.
How does it work?
A component master is placed in a casting frame and a silicone mould is cast around this allowing for pouring gates & parting lines. Once the silicon mould is set, the mould is split down the parting line and the master is removed. The polyurethane resin and hardener are then mixed and poured, under vacuu m, into the mould cavity and allowed to set.
The silicone mould tool will last for approximately 50 castings and can accommodate single or multiple components dependent on the size. After this, a new silicon mould is cast from the original master. The surface reproduction of a silicone mould is excellent with fine detail being easily replicated.
This process is ideally suited for both prototyping and small batch production where the volumes do not justify the expense of an injection mould tool.
Benefits
- Cost effective small batch casting of Polyurethanes
- Variety of material types & properties
- Fast turnaround
- No expensive mould tool
- Minimal Financial Commitment
