Thermoforming
Thermoforming, or Vacuum Forming, is a molding process that involves heating a sheet of plastic to a temperature that is workable and placing the sheet over the top of a mold, then using a vacuum to generate pressure to suck the molten sheet of plastic down across the mold to generate the formed part. At Complete Prototype Services, we have been able to use this process to provide another alternative to injection molding. Some of the advantages of using Vacuum Forming are the low tooling costs to attain workable parts, ability to produce large volumes of parts without costly machinery and tooling, and relative ease for engineering changes to the part. Vacuum Form molds can be made from multiple materials ranging from wood (such as mahogany) to metal (such as aluminum).
