Compressed air up to 5 bar – approximately 5× the pressure in conventional vacuum forming
More detailed surfaces and sharper radii than pure vacuum forming
No solvents – limited environmental impact
WHAT IS HIGH PRESSURE VACUUM FORMING?
Vacuum forming with overpressure
High Pressure is vacuum forming with additional overpressure. A negative tool is placed at the bottom of the machine, and a sheet of thermoplastic is heated and pressed into the mold using air pressure and vacuum.
It provides significantly finer surfaces and sharper details than pure vacuum forming – on par with injection molding, but at a fraction of the tooling cost. The process has a limited impact on the environment as the material does not contain solvents or lead to hazardous emissions.
TYPICAL APPLICATIONS
Medical equipment, lighting, doors, hatches, front panels and parts for airplanes, boats, cars and trains.
HOW IT WORKS
High Pressure in four steps
1. Forming tools
The tool is placed in the High Pressure machine. The sheet is fed in.
2. Heating
The plate to be shaped is heated with top and bottom heat.
3. Vacuum forming
The hot and soft sheet is pressed into the tool using compressed air, at a pressure of up to 5 bar. This is approximately five times the pressure used in vacuum forming.
4. Cooling
Once the plate is shaped, it cools down and is ready for further processing.
MORE ABOUT VACUUM FORMING
See also
Vacuum forming
Twin Sheet
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about High Pressure
A further development of vacuum forming in which compressed air up to 5 bar — approximately five times the pressure in conventional vacuum forming — is combined with vacuum and heat to press the thermoplastic sheet into a negative tool.
The higher pressure results in significantly finer surfaces and sharper details, radii and geometries — on par with injection molding, but at a fraction of the tooling cost.
When you need detailed surfaces in small or medium series and want to avoid high tooling costs. Current for medical equipment, lighting, front panels and decorative parts.
Most common thermoplastics — ABS, PC, PETG, PMMA, HIPS, etc. We help with selection based on requirements for strength, optics, temperature and surface.
Yes. High Pressure uses no solvents and produces no hazardous emissions. Surplus material is 100% recycled.