A Range Of Tooling Options
We understand the importance of tooling in the manufacturing process.
Overmould can rapidly transform designs into prototype parts and mould tools, accelerating the design process.
We offer a range of tooling options with different levels of capability – from prototype, through to short pre-production runs, all the way to full production quantities.
Our team can select from a range of tooling options and strategies that range in cost and complexity according to your specific mould and volume requirements. The various tooling options deliver different benefits, depending on your final process, wants and needs, and the team here are happy to help guide you with your decision.
Overmould can handle your overmoulding project through from the initial concept all the way up to full scale production.
For us, low pressure moulding is an entire process. We turn devices into products, potting and en-casing in one hit to create a highly cost effective and rugged end result.
Why not call us or email us your STL file so we can provide you with a speedy quote and fast turnaround.
Why choose Overmould for your Tooling?
Overmould are the only experts in Low Pressure hotmelt overmoulding in the UK!
- The Overmould team has specialised in Low Pressure Moulding for over 20 years and understand all the subtle but critical differences between conventional high pressure injection mould tools and LPM mould tools.
- Our In house design and production keeps costs keen and enables our customers to set up their production with competitive pricing.
- We will advise on which of the two main categories of tooling would be right for you: soft or hard.
Soft tooling is a cost-effective tooling approach, ideal for low-volume production, prototyping and test units as these processes generally offer short lead times and fast processing.
Hard tooling is best for large-volume production as soft tools tend to wear out quickly, so they don’t make sense for volume runs.
Overmoulding Tooling Services
Prototype Tooling
When a small number of prototype parts are needed for initial feedback or approvals, 3D printed prototype tooling can be used to fill the gap between the design and initial production stages. This can provide a close-to-production part that looks, feels and behaves very similarly to a part produced from a metal tool, but without the large initial investment and waiting period required for metal tooling.
Within a matter of days, Overmould can have 5-10 parts moulded using the 3D printed tooling and shipped for inspection. These can then be used to inform decisions on what, if any, changes could be made to the design before moving on to machining a metal tool.
Development Tooling
Development Tooling is essentially the stop gap between prototype and production tooling. The tools are typically fully aluminium and are made to be as simple as possible (with the least number of parts) to reduce cost and decrease lead-time. They are used for initial part approvals and are often used into the low-level production stages, before being replaced by production tooling. A typical Development Tool can be used to produce between hundreds and low thousands per annum without issue, but when these numbers are regularly exceeded, a new tool will be required.
Overmould also offer four distinct surface finish types with our development tools:
- As machined (with tool marks)
- Brushed
- Polished
- Matte
Production Tooling
Production Tooling is designed with a different rational and is suited for applications where a low cycle time is key, as this enables a higher throughput of parts in any given time period. This is especially important in a production environment, where the time taken will directly reflect on piece part price, ultimately influencing the final product price. A typical production tool can be used to produce anywhere from 10,000-50,000+ parts a year without issue.
As for material choice, aluminium alloys, with their versatility and low cost, have traditionally been used for low volume tooling applications, but thanks to material advances it is now also becoming a popular choice for full scale production. Aluminium tooling is not only more cost-effective than steel tooling, but it also has superior heat dissipation, which we believe makes it the better choice for LPM tool cavities where it can be used. The downside is of course that most aluminium variants are ‘softer’ than steel which means that certain parts (i.e. steel connector housings) will cause the tool to wear more rapidly. For this reason, we use a combination of aluminium and steel for our production tools, essentially only using steel inserts where we know extensive wear will take place.
