What Is the Difference Between Vacuum Forming and Pressure Forming?

Injection molding is a highly common production method used for plastic products. However, two thermoforming methods are much more beneficial to plastic manufacturers. Here’s some information about these alternative methods and how they differ and benefit individuals in the plastic manufacturing business. 

What Are the Different Types of Thermoforming?

As you can likely tell by the name, thermoforming methods of manufacturing plastics involve using heat. The manufacturer uses heat to ignite plastic sheets and mold them into specified shapes.

The two most common thermoforming methods are vacuum-forming and pressure-forming processes. Draped, matched-mold, twin-sheet, and billow-folding methods also exist, but this piece will cover the two most common alternative methods. 

The Benefits of Thermoforming Methods

Many benefits come along with using thermoforming methods to produce plastics. One advantage is that there’s much less of a tooling expense involved. Another benefit of moving in the direction of thermoforming processes is that the products are typically corrosion-resistant.

You will also have the ability to recycle the products you make, and they will require little maintenance. Additionally, you’ll have much more flexibility in the sizes of products you can manufacture. Thus, you can easily create products of up to 8 x 12 feet. Moreover, you’ll have the benefit of impact resistance. As you can see, you can save your company money on tool expenses, create better products, and give yourself a wider variety of production creation options. 

What’s the Difference Between Vacuum Forming and Pressure Forming? 

Several differences exist between vacuum-forming and pressure-forming methods. Vacuum-forming methods make use of a vacuum for sheet shaping. The first step is heating the sheet to give it flexibility. Next, the vacuum device removes the air and forces the sheet into the mold. This process is the most financially beneficial, and the engineer can do it quickly. 

The pressure-forming method is very similar to the vacuum-forming method in the beginning steps. However, a pressure tool adds extra pressure to the sheet after the vacuum removes the air. The benefit of using this process is the quality of shape. The extra step in pressure-forming methods gives the finished product a better shape and allows it to maintain it. Thus, this method is best when the plastic products need to have much more detail in them than typical products.  

Which Process Is Better for My Company?

Deciding which process is best requires you to review the products you need to make and how frequently you must make them. Vacuum-forming methods can increase your productivity while saving you money. Pressure-forming methods will give you the fine details you need and will be better if the majority of products need elaborate detailing. You can also opt for both processes. 

Now you can see that these plastics manufacturing methods have their advantages. Use the information mentioned above and choose the most suitable method for your business and the products you need to produce. You will be content with the results, as they can save your establishment a significant amount of money and increase your production speed. 

Categorised in: Plastic Fabrication

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