Hayward Blog|Your Blog About Hayward
Nov
18
Filed Under (Furniture) by
Richard Hayward asked:
Fibreglass mouldings are specifically designed products manufactured from glass reinforced plastic.
Fibreglass mouldings can be manufactured for most applications in industry, these industries sectors range from, construction, leisure, marine, aerospace, defence, automotive and much more.
Designers, architects, and end-users alike have found that Fibreglass mouldings has few constraints or limitations when it comes to design and can be manufactured to any size, shape, or colour required, these moulded components can display a superior moulded finish that can be made to replicate bronze, stone, wood, granite or any BS or RAL colour required, these great moulded finish’s can also be UV stabilised and can withstand environmental extremes when used for outdoor application, also, one of the great things that makes Fibreglass the material of choice is that it can be specifically tailored to meet the end users requirements, be it fire-retardantcy, chemical-resistance, corrosion resistance, or product that can be tailored to withstand specific loads and stresses, basically the applications for Fibreglass mouldings are varied, further more.
Fibreglass mouldings are manufactured with the aid of a mould, the mould is a reverse of the product, the mould can be male or female depending upon the design of the product, the mould is normally made from fibreglass, but can also be made from timber, latex rubber or metal, the mould will require several coats of a mould release agent, remember before you run the mould an additional coat of PVA (Poly Vinyl Alcohol) release agent is also good practice, this will enable the first product to release from the mould with out the risk of sticking.
Now the mould is prepared and ready to go to work, its time to manufacture a Fibreglass moulding,
1. This process starts with the mould being painted or sprayed with gel-coat of the desired colour; the polyester gel-coat is the coating that will provide the pre-coloured finish to the moulded component, the gel-coat is allowed to cure, but will remain tacky, this is good, the tacky finish will enable a good bond for the laminate,
2. Once the gel-coat has cured, a layer of glass fibre is then applied to the back of the gel-coat, the layer of glass-fibre is then saturated with resin, the saturated glass-fibre is then rolled with a special roller, this is to remove any trapped air, and to consolidate the glass-fibres, more layers of glass-fibre can be applied and consolidated until the required thickness is achieved, the laminate is then left to harden and cure.
3. Once the laminate has cured, the product can be released from the mould, the product is normally left in the mould for twenty four hours, this ensures that the product has no imperfections, like, print through from the glass-fibre, shrinkage in the gel-coat ect, but remember, if there are any defects like the one’s just mentioned, these can all be rectified by a skilled operative.
As discussed at the beginning of this article, Fibreglass mouldings are manufactured for a wide variety of end user applications, some of which are,
Architectural components, Boat hulls and associated components, Water slides and Theme park rides, Motorcycle fairings, Lorry wind deflectors and body kits, Shower trays and Baths, Aircraft cowlings and components, Race car body work, Modular buildings, Walkways and Bridge cladding, Mobile phone mast enclosures, Airport furniture, Signage and Display, Train bodies and interior components,
And so on.
So whether you are a designer, architect or end-user and you require an innovative solution for your next project, the answer is simple, Fibreglass, this truly innovative material can be moulded to meet your requirements at an economic cost……
CREMONA
Fibreglass mouldings are specifically designed products manufactured from glass reinforced plastic.
Fibreglass mouldings can be manufactured for most applications in industry, these industries sectors range from, construction, leisure, marine, aerospace, defence, automotive and much more.
Designers, architects, and end-users alike have found that Fibreglass mouldings has few constraints or limitations when it comes to design and can be manufactured to any size, shape, or colour required, these moulded components can display a superior moulded finish that can be made to replicate bronze, stone, wood, granite or any BS or RAL colour required, these great moulded finish’s can also be UV stabilised and can withstand environmental extremes when used for outdoor application, also, one of the great things that makes Fibreglass the material of choice is that it can be specifically tailored to meet the end users requirements, be it fire-retardantcy, chemical-resistance, corrosion resistance, or product that can be tailored to withstand specific loads and stresses, basically the applications for Fibreglass mouldings are varied, further more.
Fibreglass mouldings are manufactured with the aid of a mould, the mould is a reverse of the product, the mould can be male or female depending upon the design of the product, the mould is normally made from fibreglass, but can also be made from timber, latex rubber or metal, the mould will require several coats of a mould release agent, remember before you run the mould an additional coat of PVA (Poly Vinyl Alcohol) release agent is also good practice, this will enable the first product to release from the mould with out the risk of sticking.
Now the mould is prepared and ready to go to work, its time to manufacture a Fibreglass moulding,
1. This process starts with the mould being painted or sprayed with gel-coat of the desired colour; the polyester gel-coat is the coating that will provide the pre-coloured finish to the moulded component, the gel-coat is allowed to cure, but will remain tacky, this is good, the tacky finish will enable a good bond for the laminate,
2. Once the gel-coat has cured, a layer of glass fibre is then applied to the back of the gel-coat, the layer of glass-fibre is then saturated with resin, the saturated glass-fibre is then rolled with a special roller, this is to remove any trapped air, and to consolidate the glass-fibres, more layers of glass-fibre can be applied and consolidated until the required thickness is achieved, the laminate is then left to harden and cure.
3. Once the laminate has cured, the product can be released from the mould, the product is normally left in the mould for twenty four hours, this ensures that the product has no imperfections, like, print through from the glass-fibre, shrinkage in the gel-coat ect, but remember, if there are any defects like the one’s just mentioned, these can all be rectified by a skilled operative.
As discussed at the beginning of this article, Fibreglass mouldings are manufactured for a wide variety of end user applications, some of which are,
Architectural components, Boat hulls and associated components, Water slides and Theme park rides, Motorcycle fairings, Lorry wind deflectors and body kits, Shower trays and Baths, Aircraft cowlings and components, Race car body work, Modular buildings, Walkways and Bridge cladding, Mobile phone mast enclosures, Airport furniture, Signage and Display, Train bodies and interior components,
And so on.
So whether you are a designer, architect or end-user and you require an innovative solution for your next project, the answer is simple, Fibreglass, this truly innovative material can be moulded to meet your requirements at an economic cost……
CREMONA
Comments Off
Mar
16
Filed Under (Furniture) by
Richard Hayward asked:
GRP,(Glass Reinforced Plastic) Moulding is a process which enables the manufacture of specifically designed products from Glass reinforced plastic, better known as fibreglass; these moulded products can be manufactured for a wide range of industry applications, such as, Building, Construction, Leisure, Marine, Aerospace, Automotive, and much more.
GRP moulded products can be manufactured to meet most requirements and specifications, further-more these mouldings can be manufactured to any size, shape, and can match any BS or RAL colour required with either a gloss, matt , smooth or textured finish’s, in some cases peripheral components can be incorporated into this process, such as threaded inserts which can be bonded into the product to provide a fixing solution, or metal work which can be incorporated into the moulding to provide a mount for internal components such as electronics ect, During this innovative process, additional reinforcements can be incorporated into specific areas which will be under load or receive additional stresses; this is done during the laminating process, when additional layers of reinforcement can be applied into the required areas, or sub mouldings can be bonded in, in short, fibreglass moulded components can be tailored to meet any requirement, but lets talk about the process that makes it all possible GRP Moulding.
GRP Moulding is a process that starts off with the manufacture of a pattern also known as a plug or buck, this is a model made from Polyurethane foam or MDF (Medium Density Fibreboard) or another material, this model will replicate the required product exactly, with regards to the dimensions and surface finish, once the pattern has be manufactured and prepared the mould can be manufactured from it, the mould can be male or female depending upon the design of the product.
The manufacture of the mould requires a certain amount of skill and understanding, its this experience that will enable the correct tooling materials to be chosen and employed during the mould construction, the mould may need to be more than one piece depending upon the design of the product (flash lines, undercuts, intricacy ect are all thing to give thought to) if the mould is to be more than one piece, then locators will be required on the flanges to ensure the mould section align.
Now the mould has been manufactured and allowed to cure, the pattern can be removed from the mould, the use of compressed air or wedges may be required to break the seal between these parts, once the pattern has been released, the mould can be prepared with several coats of mould release wax, remember before you run the mould a coat of PVA (Poly Vinyl Alcohol) release agent is also good practice and will help the first product to release from the mould with out the risk of sticking.
Now the mould is prepared and ready to go to work, its time to go GRP Moulding,
1. This starts with the mould being painted or sprayed with gel-coat of the desired colour; the polyester gel-coat is the coating that will provide the pre-coloured finish to the moulded component.
2. Once the gel-coat has cured, a layer of glass fibre can be applied to the back of the gel-coat, the layers of glass-fibre is then saturated with resin, the saturated glass-fibre is then rolled with a special roller, this is to remove any trapped air, and to consolidate the glass-fibres, more layers of glass-fibre can be applied until the required thickness is achieved, the laminate is then left to harden and cure.
3. Once the laminate has cured, the product can be released from the mould, the product is normally left in the mould for twenty four hours, this ensures that the product has no imperfections, like, print through from the glass-fibre, shrinkage in the gel-coat ect, but remember, if there are any defects like the one’s just mentioned, these can all be rectified by a skilled operative.
Congratulations, you now have an understanding of GRP Moulding, a truly innovative process for manufacturing fibreglass components, and remember you probably see products every day made from GRP, but you didn’t realise it, that was until now!
HOUSH
GRP,(Glass Reinforced Plastic) Moulding is a process which enables the manufacture of specifically designed products from Glass reinforced plastic, better known as fibreglass; these moulded products can be manufactured for a wide range of industry applications, such as, Building, Construction, Leisure, Marine, Aerospace, Automotive, and much more.
GRP moulded products can be manufactured to meet most requirements and specifications, further-more these mouldings can be manufactured to any size, shape, and can match any BS or RAL colour required with either a gloss, matt , smooth or textured finish’s, in some cases peripheral components can be incorporated into this process, such as threaded inserts which can be bonded into the product to provide a fixing solution, or metal work which can be incorporated into the moulding to provide a mount for internal components such as electronics ect, During this innovative process, additional reinforcements can be incorporated into specific areas which will be under load or receive additional stresses; this is done during the laminating process, when additional layers of reinforcement can be applied into the required areas, or sub mouldings can be bonded in, in short, fibreglass moulded components can be tailored to meet any requirement, but lets talk about the process that makes it all possible GRP Moulding.
GRP Moulding is a process that starts off with the manufacture of a pattern also known as a plug or buck, this is a model made from Polyurethane foam or MDF (Medium Density Fibreboard) or another material, this model will replicate the required product exactly, with regards to the dimensions and surface finish, once the pattern has be manufactured and prepared the mould can be manufactured from it, the mould can be male or female depending upon the design of the product.
The manufacture of the mould requires a certain amount of skill and understanding, its this experience that will enable the correct tooling materials to be chosen and employed during the mould construction, the mould may need to be more than one piece depending upon the design of the product (flash lines, undercuts, intricacy ect are all thing to give thought to) if the mould is to be more than one piece, then locators will be required on the flanges to ensure the mould section align.
Now the mould has been manufactured and allowed to cure, the pattern can be removed from the mould, the use of compressed air or wedges may be required to break the seal between these parts, once the pattern has been released, the mould can be prepared with several coats of mould release wax, remember before you run the mould a coat of PVA (Poly Vinyl Alcohol) release agent is also good practice and will help the first product to release from the mould with out the risk of sticking.
Now the mould is prepared and ready to go to work, its time to go GRP Moulding,
1. This starts with the mould being painted or sprayed with gel-coat of the desired colour; the polyester gel-coat is the coating that will provide the pre-coloured finish to the moulded component.
2. Once the gel-coat has cured, a layer of glass fibre can be applied to the back of the gel-coat, the layers of glass-fibre is then saturated with resin, the saturated glass-fibre is then rolled with a special roller, this is to remove any trapped air, and to consolidate the glass-fibres, more layers of glass-fibre can be applied until the required thickness is achieved, the laminate is then left to harden and cure.
3. Once the laminate has cured, the product can be released from the mould, the product is normally left in the mould for twenty four hours, this ensures that the product has no imperfections, like, print through from the glass-fibre, shrinkage in the gel-coat ect, but remember, if there are any defects like the one’s just mentioned, these can all be rectified by a skilled operative.
Congratulations, you now have an understanding of GRP Moulding, a truly innovative process for manufacturing fibreglass components, and remember you probably see products every day made from GRP, but you didn’t realise it, that was until now!
HOUSH
Comments Off
Feb
15
Filed Under (Furniture) by
Richard Hayward asked:
GRP, Glass Reinforced Plastic, better known as fibreglass,
GRP, Glass Reinforced Plastic, offers designers unparalleled design freedom and flexibility, this unique composite material can be moulded into any products you can imagine, but what is Glass Reinforced plastic and what can it be used for?
GRP, Glass Reinforced Plastic opens up fantastic possibilities and delivers fantastic results……
Glass reinforced plastic (also known as fibreglass), is a composite material that consists of strands of glass fibre suspended in a polymer matrix, i.e. resin; which results in a material that combines the compressive strength of plastic and the tensile strength of glass fibre, thus resulting in a composite material that can withstand compressive and tensile loads, but this strength can be further enhanced with the addition of reinforcements or more exotic fibres such as Kevlar or carbon fibre, both of these fires can be woven into a cloth with various fibre orientations such as, uni-directional, bi-axial, tri-axial, and quad-axial weaves, but these cloths are normally employed in more hi-end products like formula one racing cars ect. The most popular polymer matrix of choice is normally polyester resin, but there are others available, Such as Vinyl-ester, epoxy, polyurethane, to mention but a few, but the fibre and resin choice is normally based on the end use of the moulded product and the criteria laid down by the client.
Glass reinforced plastic has few constrains or design limitations, the typical properties of this modern day material allow it to be easily moulded into products of any size, shape, or colour, yet fantastic results can be achieved at a competitively low cost when compared with other more conventional materials, further more, these moulded components can be light weight, strong, with low maintenance requirements, and can be manufactured to meet specific requirements like fire- retardantcy, chemical-resistance, or be resilient to environmental extremes, in short this outstanding modern day composite material has great potential for designers, architects, and end-uses alike, pushing the design boundaries further, so before you finalize your next design, consider Glass reinforced plastic composite as your material of choice.
Some Examples of Glass reinforced plastic moulded products,
Construction, architectural facades, internal & external cladding, canopies and columns, domed structures, bespoke building features, and much more…..
Leisure, water slides, theme park rides, play equipment, swimming pool liners and much more……..
Marine, boat hulls and other components, ship parts, life raft enclosures, pontoons, and much more….
Automotive, body shells, spoilers, body kits, truck wind deflectors, trailer shells, and much more….
Aerospace, fuselages, cowling, aircraft components, micro-lights, and much more….
Bespoke, enclosures, buildings, furniture, housings, specialist applications and much more…….
As you can see there are many uses for Glass reinforced plastic, you probably see various moulded products each day, but you never realised until now, so next time you go out, pick something that you walk past, it could be some thing simple like a post box or a canopy on the front of a building, give thought to how it could be moulded, how many pieces would the mould need to be, what materials would be appropriate for the product, and so on, this process can throw up some interesting problems for you to overcome, but the real test will be for you to mould a product in Glass reinforced plastic, give it a try.
BLAIR
GRP, Glass Reinforced Plastic, better known as fibreglass,
GRP, Glass Reinforced Plastic, offers designers unparalleled design freedom and flexibility, this unique composite material can be moulded into any products you can imagine, but what is Glass Reinforced plastic and what can it be used for?
GRP, Glass Reinforced Plastic opens up fantastic possibilities and delivers fantastic results……
Glass reinforced plastic (also known as fibreglass), is a composite material that consists of strands of glass fibre suspended in a polymer matrix, i.e. resin; which results in a material that combines the compressive strength of plastic and the tensile strength of glass fibre, thus resulting in a composite material that can withstand compressive and tensile loads, but this strength can be further enhanced with the addition of reinforcements or more exotic fibres such as Kevlar or carbon fibre, both of these fires can be woven into a cloth with various fibre orientations such as, uni-directional, bi-axial, tri-axial, and quad-axial weaves, but these cloths are normally employed in more hi-end products like formula one racing cars ect. The most popular polymer matrix of choice is normally polyester resin, but there are others available, Such as Vinyl-ester, epoxy, polyurethane, to mention but a few, but the fibre and resin choice is normally based on the end use of the moulded product and the criteria laid down by the client.
Glass reinforced plastic has few constrains or design limitations, the typical properties of this modern day material allow it to be easily moulded into products of any size, shape, or colour, yet fantastic results can be achieved at a competitively low cost when compared with other more conventional materials, further more, these moulded components can be light weight, strong, with low maintenance requirements, and can be manufactured to meet specific requirements like fire- retardantcy, chemical-resistance, or be resilient to environmental extremes, in short this outstanding modern day composite material has great potential for designers, architects, and end-uses alike, pushing the design boundaries further, so before you finalize your next design, consider Glass reinforced plastic composite as your material of choice.
Some Examples of Glass reinforced plastic moulded products,
Construction, architectural facades, internal & external cladding, canopies and columns, domed structures, bespoke building features, and much more…..
Leisure, water slides, theme park rides, play equipment, swimming pool liners and much more……..
Marine, boat hulls and other components, ship parts, life raft enclosures, pontoons, and much more….
Automotive, body shells, spoilers, body kits, truck wind deflectors, trailer shells, and much more….
Aerospace, fuselages, cowling, aircraft components, micro-lights, and much more….
Bespoke, enclosures, buildings, furniture, housings, specialist applications and much more…….
As you can see there are many uses for Glass reinforced plastic, you probably see various moulded products each day, but you never realised until now, so next time you go out, pick something that you walk past, it could be some thing simple like a post box or a canopy on the front of a building, give thought to how it could be moulded, how many pieces would the mould need to be, what materials would be appropriate for the product, and so on, this process can throw up some interesting problems for you to overcome, but the real test will be for you to mould a product in Glass reinforced plastic, give it a try.
BLAIR
Comments Off
Feb
10
Filed Under (Furniture) by
Richard Hayward asked:
GRP Mouldings are products manufactured from a modern day composite material, GRP stands for Glass Reinforced Plastic, GRP is also known as FRP, which stands for Fibre Reinforced Plastic, but the most widely used term for this truly unique material is Fibreglass.
GRP Mouldings are designed and manufactured for use in most industry sectors, these industry sectors range from, construction, leisure, marine, aerospace, automotive, defence, and much more.
Designers, architects, and end-users alike have found that glass reinforced plastic has few constraints or limitations when it comes to design and is only limited by your imagination, GRP Mouldings can be manufactured to any size, shape, or colour required, these moulded components display a superior moulded finish that can be made to replicate bronze, stone, wood, granite or any BS or RAL colour required, these great moulded finish’s can also be UV stabilised and can withstand environmental extremes when used for outdoor applications, also one of the great things that make GRP the composite of choice, is that it can be specifically tailored to meet the end users requirements, be it fire-retardantcy, chemical-resistance, corrosion resistant, or product that can be engineered to cope with specific loads and stresses, basically the applications for GRP Mouldings are varied, with new ideas taking shape daily.
GRP Mouldings are manufactured with the aid of a mould, the mould is a reverse of the product, the mould can be male or female depending upon the design, moulds are normally made from fibreglass, but can also be made from timber, latex rubber, or aluminium, once the mould has been waxed and prepared with the relevant release agents, the gel-coat can be painted or sprayed onto the mould face, once the gel-coat has cured, the glass fibre is laid into the mould against the gel-coated surface, the glass fibre is then impregnated with resin, the saturated glass fibre is then rolled with a special roller to remove the any trapped air and to consolidate the glass fibres, more glass fibre is then applied and saturated with resin until the desired thickness is achieved, the laminate is then allowed to harden and cure, once the laminate has cured the GRP Moulding can be released from the mould.
As discussed at the beginning of this article, GRP mouldings are manufactured for a wide variety of end user applications, some of which are,
Architectural components, Boat hulls and associated components, Water slides and Theme park rides, Motorcycle fairings, Lorry wind deflectors and body kits, Shower trays and Baths, Aircraft cowlings and components, Race car body work, Modular buildings, Walkways and Bridge cladding, Mobile phone mast enclosures, Airport furniture, Signage and Display, Train bodies and interior components,
And so on.
So whether you are a designer, architect, or end-user, and you are looking at your next project, the answer is simple, GRP, this truly innovative composite material has real potential…….
DUNSEITH
GRP Mouldings are products manufactured from a modern day composite material, GRP stands for Glass Reinforced Plastic, GRP is also known as FRP, which stands for Fibre Reinforced Plastic, but the most widely used term for this truly unique material is Fibreglass.
GRP Mouldings are designed and manufactured for use in most industry sectors, these industry sectors range from, construction, leisure, marine, aerospace, automotive, defence, and much more.
Designers, architects, and end-users alike have found that glass reinforced plastic has few constraints or limitations when it comes to design and is only limited by your imagination, GRP Mouldings can be manufactured to any size, shape, or colour required, these moulded components display a superior moulded finish that can be made to replicate bronze, stone, wood, granite or any BS or RAL colour required, these great moulded finish’s can also be UV stabilised and can withstand environmental extremes when used for outdoor applications, also one of the great things that make GRP the composite of choice, is that it can be specifically tailored to meet the end users requirements, be it fire-retardantcy, chemical-resistance, corrosion resistant, or product that can be engineered to cope with specific loads and stresses, basically the applications for GRP Mouldings are varied, with new ideas taking shape daily.
GRP Mouldings are manufactured with the aid of a mould, the mould is a reverse of the product, the mould can be male or female depending upon the design, moulds are normally made from fibreglass, but can also be made from timber, latex rubber, or aluminium, once the mould has been waxed and prepared with the relevant release agents, the gel-coat can be painted or sprayed onto the mould face, once the gel-coat has cured, the glass fibre is laid into the mould against the gel-coated surface, the glass fibre is then impregnated with resin, the saturated glass fibre is then rolled with a special roller to remove the any trapped air and to consolidate the glass fibres, more glass fibre is then applied and saturated with resin until the desired thickness is achieved, the laminate is then allowed to harden and cure, once the laminate has cured the GRP Moulding can be released from the mould.
As discussed at the beginning of this article, GRP mouldings are manufactured for a wide variety of end user applications, some of which are,
Architectural components, Boat hulls and associated components, Water slides and Theme park rides, Motorcycle fairings, Lorry wind deflectors and body kits, Shower trays and Baths, Aircraft cowlings and components, Race car body work, Modular buildings, Walkways and Bridge cladding, Mobile phone mast enclosures, Airport furniture, Signage and Display, Train bodies and interior components,
And so on.
So whether you are a designer, architect, or end-user, and you are looking at your next project, the answer is simple, GRP, this truly innovative composite material has real potential…….
DUNSEITH
Comments Off
Feb
05
Filed Under (Furniture) by
Richard Hayward asked:
Fibreglass moulds are required for the production of fibreglass mouldings, but suppose you wanted to design and manufacture a boat hull, you would need to make a pattern also known as a plug or buck first, this is an exact model/replica of the end product, the pattern will have the exact dimensions and surface appearance of the finished product.
Fibreglass moulds are required for the production of fibreglass mouldings, but suppose you wanted to design and manufacture a boat hull, you would need to make a pattern also known as a plug or buck first, this is an exact model/replica of the end product, the pattern will have the exact dimensions and surface appearance of the finished product.
Once the pattern is made, it is prepared with several coats of mould release wax followed by a coat of PVA release agent, the pattern is now ready for the gel-coat to be applied, this will be painted or sprayed on depending upon the size of the mould to be made, but the gel-coat should be a tooling grade material and as such provide a long life for the production mould and good gloss retention, once the gel-coat has cured a second coat is applied and allowed to cure as well, the gel-coat will remain tacky, that is ok, the tacky surface of gel-coat will enable a good bond to the laminate to be achieved in the next process.
Now the gel-coat has cured but still a little tacky, the first layer of glass fibre is laid onto the back of the gel-coat and impregnated with resin, the saturated glass fibre is then rolled with a special roller to remove trapped air and consolidate the glass fibres, this initial layer is allowed to harden and cure, we call this process the first layer or skinning the mould, now the first layer has cured you can apply more layer of glass fibre impregnated with resin until the required thickness is achieved, these consecutive layers are also allowed to harden and cure, once these new laminates have cured the mould can be stabilised with either a timber or metal frame-work which is bonded to the back of the mould to keep it rigid and stable, but remember a mould can also be more than one piece, depending upon the design of the product (complexity of design , undercuts, flash line, ect) but if the mould is flanged into multiple pieces, you must ensure that locators are employed on all flanges to ensure all mould pieces align.
Now the mould is complete the pattern can be released, compressed air or wedges may be required to break the seal, once the pattern is released from the mould we start again by applying several coats of mould release wax to the new mould, remember its good practice to apply PVA release agent to the mould face of the new mould for the first pull, this will ensure that the first fibreglass product will come out with out sticking.
Also fibreglass moulds are manufactured for moulding products in pre-cast concrete, these moulds are called pre-cast concrete moulds, and are used to produce paving slabs, sea-defence sections and components that are to intricate for the mould to be formed in timber, in short fibreglass moulds come in all shapes and sizes and are used to manufacture products for a wide range of applications in industry, some of these products range from,
Boat hulls and associated components, water slides and theme park rides, architectural columns and arch’s, Lorry wind deflectors and body kits, airport furniture, pre-cast concrete moulds, wind turbine blades, planters, enclosures, shower trays and baths, modular buildings, machine guards and covers, and so much more…
Congratulations, you now have a brief understanding of fibreglass moulds, and the process’s employed to manufacture a basic mould, but you must also be mindful of material choice and mould design, as discussed before, some moulds will need to be more then one piece and hence need to be flanged into multiple pieces, so design criteria at the product stage is key, but don’t be put off by this, fibreglass is a great composite material that allows designers the scope to achieve products that are stunning and cost effective.
FRITCH
Fibreglass moulds are required for the production of fibreglass mouldings, but suppose you wanted to design and manufacture a boat hull, you would need to make a pattern also known as a plug or buck first, this is an exact model/replica of the end product, the pattern will have the exact dimensions and surface appearance of the finished product.
Fibreglass moulds are required for the production of fibreglass mouldings, but suppose you wanted to design and manufacture a boat hull, you would need to make a pattern also known as a plug or buck first, this is an exact model/replica of the end product, the pattern will have the exact dimensions and surface appearance of the finished product.
Once the pattern is made, it is prepared with several coats of mould release wax followed by a coat of PVA release agent, the pattern is now ready for the gel-coat to be applied, this will be painted or sprayed on depending upon the size of the mould to be made, but the gel-coat should be a tooling grade material and as such provide a long life for the production mould and good gloss retention, once the gel-coat has cured a second coat is applied and allowed to cure as well, the gel-coat will remain tacky, that is ok, the tacky surface of gel-coat will enable a good bond to the laminate to be achieved in the next process.
Now the gel-coat has cured but still a little tacky, the first layer of glass fibre is laid onto the back of the gel-coat and impregnated with resin, the saturated glass fibre is then rolled with a special roller to remove trapped air and consolidate the glass fibres, this initial layer is allowed to harden and cure, we call this process the first layer or skinning the mould, now the first layer has cured you can apply more layer of glass fibre impregnated with resin until the required thickness is achieved, these consecutive layers are also allowed to harden and cure, once these new laminates have cured the mould can be stabilised with either a timber or metal frame-work which is bonded to the back of the mould to keep it rigid and stable, but remember a mould can also be more than one piece, depending upon the design of the product (complexity of design , undercuts, flash line, ect) but if the mould is flanged into multiple pieces, you must ensure that locators are employed on all flanges to ensure all mould pieces align.
Now the mould is complete the pattern can be released, compressed air or wedges may be required to break the seal, once the pattern is released from the mould we start again by applying several coats of mould release wax to the new mould, remember its good practice to apply PVA release agent to the mould face of the new mould for the first pull, this will ensure that the first fibreglass product will come out with out sticking.
Also fibreglass moulds are manufactured for moulding products in pre-cast concrete, these moulds are called pre-cast concrete moulds, and are used to produce paving slabs, sea-defence sections and components that are to intricate for the mould to be formed in timber, in short fibreglass moulds come in all shapes and sizes and are used to manufacture products for a wide range of applications in industry, some of these products range from,
Boat hulls and associated components, water slides and theme park rides, architectural columns and arch’s, Lorry wind deflectors and body kits, airport furniture, pre-cast concrete moulds, wind turbine blades, planters, enclosures, shower trays and baths, modular buildings, machine guards and covers, and so much more…
Congratulations, you now have a brief understanding of fibreglass moulds, and the process’s employed to manufacture a basic mould, but you must also be mindful of material choice and mould design, as discussed before, some moulds will need to be more then one piece and hence need to be flanged into multiple pieces, so design criteria at the product stage is key, but don’t be put off by this, fibreglass is a great composite material that allows designers the scope to achieve products that are stunning and cost effective.
FRITCH
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Feb
01
Filed Under (Furniture) by
Richard Hayward asked:
What is fibreglass and what makes it so versatile and widely used?
Fibreglass offers a high degree of design flexibility and is a material that can be moulded into products that can be used for virtually any application.
Fibreglass opens up fantastic possibilities and delivers fantastic results…..
Fibreglass (also called glass-fibre) is made from strands of silica-based glass extruded into very fine fibres, these fibres are held together with a binder, there are normally two kinds of binder available, powder or emulsion, it’s this binder which holds the fibres together to produce chop strand matt , chop strand matt is just one of the many kinds of glass-fibre reinforcements available, there are more exotic fibres available, such as Kevlar and Carbon fibre, these are used for more high-end applications.
Glass-fibres when combined with a polymer matrix i.e. resin; will result in what is classed as a composite material, but this composite is better known as GRP (Glass Reinforced Plastic) or FRP (Fibre Reinforced Plastic) but the most popular and widely used term is Fibreglass.
The most popular polymer matrix of choice is normally polyester resin, but there are others available, Such as Vinyl-ester, epoxy, polyurethane, just to mention but a few, the fibre and resin choice is normally based on the end use of the moulded product and the criteria laid down by the client.
Examples of fibreglass mouldings,
Construction, architectural facades, internal & external cladding, canopies and columns, domed structures, bespoke building features, and much more…..
Leisure, water slides, theme park rides, play equipment, swimming pool liners and much more……..
Marine, boat hulls and other components, ship parts, life raft enclosures, pontoons, and much more….
Automotive, body shells, spoilers, body kits, truck wind deflectors, trailer shells, and much more….
Aerospace, fuselages, cowling, aircraft components, micro-lights, and much more….
Bespoke, enclosures, buildings, furniture, housings, specialist applications and much more…….
Fibreglass is a composite material that has few constrains or design limitations, the typical properties of this modern day material allow it to be easily moulded into products of any size, shape, or colour, yet these fantastic results can be achieved at a competitively low cost when compared with other more conventional materials.
Fibreglass moulded components can be light weight, strong, with low maintenance requirements, and can be manufactured to meet specific requirements like fire- retardantcy, chemical-resistance, or be resilient to environmental extremes, in short this outstanding modern day composite material has great potential for designers, architects, and end-uses alike, pushing the design boundaries further, so before you finalize your next design, consider fibreglass, as your material of choice…….
HAVIS
What is fibreglass and what makes it so versatile and widely used?
Fibreglass offers a high degree of design flexibility and is a material that can be moulded into products that can be used for virtually any application.
Fibreglass opens up fantastic possibilities and delivers fantastic results…..
Fibreglass (also called glass-fibre) is made from strands of silica-based glass extruded into very fine fibres, these fibres are held together with a binder, there are normally two kinds of binder available, powder or emulsion, it’s this binder which holds the fibres together to produce chop strand matt , chop strand matt is just one of the many kinds of glass-fibre reinforcements available, there are more exotic fibres available, such as Kevlar and Carbon fibre, these are used for more high-end applications.
Glass-fibres when combined with a polymer matrix i.e. resin; will result in what is classed as a composite material, but this composite is better known as GRP (Glass Reinforced Plastic) or FRP (Fibre Reinforced Plastic) but the most popular and widely used term is Fibreglass.
The most popular polymer matrix of choice is normally polyester resin, but there are others available, Such as Vinyl-ester, epoxy, polyurethane, just to mention but a few, the fibre and resin choice is normally based on the end use of the moulded product and the criteria laid down by the client.
Examples of fibreglass mouldings,
Construction, architectural facades, internal & external cladding, canopies and columns, domed structures, bespoke building features, and much more…..
Leisure, water slides, theme park rides, play equipment, swimming pool liners and much more……..
Marine, boat hulls and other components, ship parts, life raft enclosures, pontoons, and much more….
Automotive, body shells, spoilers, body kits, truck wind deflectors, trailer shells, and much more….
Aerospace, fuselages, cowling, aircraft components, micro-lights, and much more….
Bespoke, enclosures, buildings, furniture, housings, specialist applications and much more…….
Fibreglass is a composite material that has few constrains or design limitations, the typical properties of this modern day material allow it to be easily moulded into products of any size, shape, or colour, yet these fantastic results can be achieved at a competitively low cost when compared with other more conventional materials.
Fibreglass moulded components can be light weight, strong, with low maintenance requirements, and can be manufactured to meet specific requirements like fire- retardantcy, chemical-resistance, or be resilient to environmental extremes, in short this outstanding modern day composite material has great potential for designers, architects, and end-uses alike, pushing the design boundaries further, so before you finalize your next design, consider fibreglass, as your material of choice…….
HAVIS
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Jan
06
Filed Under (Furniture) by
Richard Hayward asked:
Fibreglass moulding is a process which enables the manufacture of specifically designed products from glass reinforced plastic; these moulded products can be manufactured for use in many industry sectors, such as, Construction, Leisure, Marine, Aerospace, defence, Automotive, and much more.
Fibreglass moulded products can be manufactured to meet most requirements and specifications, further-more these mouldings can be produced to any size, shape or colour with either a gloss, matt , smooth or textured finish, in some cases peripheral components can be incorporated into the moulding process, such as threaded inserts, these can be bonded into the product to provide a fixing solution, or metal work can be incorporated into the moulding to provide a mount for internal components such as electronics ect. During this innovative process additional reinforcements can be incorporated into specific areas which will be under load or receive additional stresses; this is done during the laminating process, when additional layers of reinforcement can be applied into the required areas, or structural sub mouldings can be bonded in, in short, fibreglass moulded components can be tailored to meet any requirement, but lets talk about the process that makes it all possible, Fibreglass moulding.
Fibreglass moulding is a process that starts off with the manufacture of a pattern also known as a plug or buck, this is a model made from Polyurethane foam, or MDF (Medium Density Fibreboard) or another material, this model will replicate the required product exactly, with regards to the dimensions and surface finish, once the pattern has be manufactured and prepared the mould can be manufactured from it, the mould can be male or female depending upon the design of the product.
The manufacture of the mould requires a certain amount of skill and understanding, its this experience that will enable the correct tooling materials to be chosen and employed during the mould construction, the mould may need to be more than one piece depending upon the design of the product (flash lines, undercuts, intricacy, ect, these are all things to contemplate) if the mould is to be more than one piece, then locators will be required on the flanges to ensure the mould section align.
Now the mould has been manufactured and allowed to cure, the pattern can be removed from the mould, the use of compressed air or wedges may be required to break the seal between these parts, once the pattern has been released, the mould can be prepared with several coats of mould release wax, remember before you run the mould an additional coat of PVA (Poly Vinyl Alcohol) release agent is also good practice and will help the first product to release from the mould with out the risk of sticking.
Now the mould is prepared and ready to go to work, its time to go Fibreglass moulding,
1. This starts with the mould being painted or sprayed with a gel-coat of the desired colour; the polyester gel-coat is the coating that will provide the pre-coloured finish to the moulded component.
2. Once the gel-coat has cured, a layer of glass fibre can be applied to the back of the gel-coat, the layer of glass-fibre is then saturated with resin, the saturated glass-fibre is then rolled with a special roller, this is to remove any trapped air, and to consolidate the glass-fibres, more layers of glass-fibre can be applied until the required thickness is achieved, the laminate is then left to harden and cure.
3. Once the laminate has cured, the product can be released from the mould, the product is normally left in the mould for twenty four hours, this ensures that the product has no imperfections, like, print through from the glass-fibre, shrinkage in the gel-coat ect, but remember, if there are any defects like the one’s just mentioned, these can all be rectified by a skilled operative.
Congratulations, you now have an understanding of Fibreglass moulding, a truly innovative process for manufacturing fibreglass components, and remember you probably see products every day made from fibreglass, but you didn’t realise it, that was until now!
BRIAR
Fibreglass moulding is a process which enables the manufacture of specifically designed products from glass reinforced plastic; these moulded products can be manufactured for use in many industry sectors, such as, Construction, Leisure, Marine, Aerospace, defence, Automotive, and much more.
Fibreglass moulded products can be manufactured to meet most requirements and specifications, further-more these mouldings can be produced to any size, shape or colour with either a gloss, matt , smooth or textured finish, in some cases peripheral components can be incorporated into the moulding process, such as threaded inserts, these can be bonded into the product to provide a fixing solution, or metal work can be incorporated into the moulding to provide a mount for internal components such as electronics ect. During this innovative process additional reinforcements can be incorporated into specific areas which will be under load or receive additional stresses; this is done during the laminating process, when additional layers of reinforcement can be applied into the required areas, or structural sub mouldings can be bonded in, in short, fibreglass moulded components can be tailored to meet any requirement, but lets talk about the process that makes it all possible, Fibreglass moulding.
Fibreglass moulding is a process that starts off with the manufacture of a pattern also known as a plug or buck, this is a model made from Polyurethane foam, or MDF (Medium Density Fibreboard) or another material, this model will replicate the required product exactly, with regards to the dimensions and surface finish, once the pattern has be manufactured and prepared the mould can be manufactured from it, the mould can be male or female depending upon the design of the product.
The manufacture of the mould requires a certain amount of skill and understanding, its this experience that will enable the correct tooling materials to be chosen and employed during the mould construction, the mould may need to be more than one piece depending upon the design of the product (flash lines, undercuts, intricacy, ect, these are all things to contemplate) if the mould is to be more than one piece, then locators will be required on the flanges to ensure the mould section align.
Now the mould has been manufactured and allowed to cure, the pattern can be removed from the mould, the use of compressed air or wedges may be required to break the seal between these parts, once the pattern has been released, the mould can be prepared with several coats of mould release wax, remember before you run the mould an additional coat of PVA (Poly Vinyl Alcohol) release agent is also good practice and will help the first product to release from the mould with out the risk of sticking.
Now the mould is prepared and ready to go to work, its time to go Fibreglass moulding,
1. This starts with the mould being painted or sprayed with a gel-coat of the desired colour; the polyester gel-coat is the coating that will provide the pre-coloured finish to the moulded component.
2. Once the gel-coat has cured, a layer of glass fibre can be applied to the back of the gel-coat, the layer of glass-fibre is then saturated with resin, the saturated glass-fibre is then rolled with a special roller, this is to remove any trapped air, and to consolidate the glass-fibres, more layers of glass-fibre can be applied until the required thickness is achieved, the laminate is then left to harden and cure.
3. Once the laminate has cured, the product can be released from the mould, the product is normally left in the mould for twenty four hours, this ensures that the product has no imperfections, like, print through from the glass-fibre, shrinkage in the gel-coat ect, but remember, if there are any defects like the one’s just mentioned, these can all be rectified by a skilled operative.
Congratulations, you now have an understanding of Fibreglass moulding, a truly innovative process for manufacturing fibreglass components, and remember you probably see products every day made from fibreglass, but you didn’t realise it, that was until now!
BRIAR
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