Plastic Pressure Forming

Universal Plastics is a major custom plastic pressure forming company. Along with our thermoforming and vacuum forming expertise, we provide plastic pressure forming solutions for a wide variety of industries and applications. Universal Plastics also offers and provides extensive manufacturing, design and technical expertise based on a long history of pressure forming experience.

Plastic Pressure Forming Applications

Plastic pressure forming is an excellent alternative to injection molding or structural foam molding in many applications, especially in runs of moderate volumes. Pressure formed parts are available in a large variety of colors and different textures utilizing common thermoplastic materials. Universal Plastics has manufactured a wide variety of pressure formed parts such as:

• Pressure Formed Outdoor plastic housings
• Pressure formed medical enclosures
• Pressure formed POP displays and retail items
• Pressure formed recreational equipment

Pressure Forming Advantages

Pressure forming has several advantages over other processes such as injection or rim molding. Some of these advantages are:

• Lower tooling costs
• Cost effective for low to medium volume runs
• Faster to market with quick prototypes
• Cost effective for larger parts

Plastic Pressure Forming Capabilities

Universal Plastics can Pressure Form parts up to 48"x 96"

Plastic Pressure Forming Materials

Universal Plastic utilizes the following materials for our plastic pressure forming applications:

• ABS
• FR ABS
• PVC
• HDPE
• TPO
• HIPS
• PC/ABS
• Kydex

What is Plastic Pressure Forming?

Plastic pressure forming is a process used to form plastic sheet into a molded shape. It utilizes a single sided mold to create the formed shape using vacuum & pressure on opposing sides of the sheet. In normal vacuum forming, the forming pressure is limited to atmospheric pressure which is about 14.7 PSI. With pressure forming, we can apply air pressure to the opposite side of the sheet and effectively triple or quadruple the forming pressure.

This additional forming pressure increases substantially the amount of detail that can be picked up by the forming process. This is why pressure forming is more effective than vacuum forming for projects requiring more detail. Pressure forming is capable of creating up to four times as much pressure as vacuum forming.

With pressure forming we can create a part appearance on the mold side of the part that is comparable in appearance to an injection molded part. This includes such features as molded in textures, tight corners, ribbing, and embossed wording and logos.

Pressure forming is a good alternative to injection molding, especially for larger parts and lower volumes where tool cost would otherwise be prohibitive.

Plastic Pressure forming can be used to create a wide variety of custom plastic products including covers, equipment housings, bezels, bases, and other cosmetic components.