3D Printed Rubber Seal Rapid Prototyping
Most custom rubber seals require tooling that allows us to turn your sample or dimension drawing into a die that can be used in our rubber extruders. This step is essential before we can proceed with extruding the bulk production quantity of your profile. In some cases, tooling and the minimum order quantity associated with the chosen rubber compound may not be suitable for some projects that are in their infancy, working to a limited budget or require an overnight service.
Seals Direct have invested in 3D print technology that enables us to rapid prototype some rubber profiles using a flexible rubber-like filament. This offers several advantages over traditional tooling and the longer production associated with using other rubber materials.
One of the primary benefits is cost efficiency. Traditional tooling involves creating a die which usually costs between £150 and £400, depending on the size and complexity of the profile. For small prototype runs or projects where the exact requirements of the end product are still unknown, the cost of this tooling can be prohibitively high. Our 3D printing capabilities allow us to completely eliminate the development of an extrusion tool and significantly reduce initial setup costs.
Our rapid prototyping service also greatly reduces the speed of production. Traditional manufacturing methods can take a long time to develop and refine the initial extrusion tool. However, a 3D printed prototype allows for rapid prototyping that enables designers to produce and test multiple profiles in a matter of days. This accelerated timeline is often important for quickly refining designs and developing multiple sealing solutions suitable for the final application.
Flexible Rubber Filaments
To prototype rubber sections, we use a TPU-95A filament which is a Thermoplastic Polyurethane with a 95 Shore hardness. In simple terms, it is a blend of rubber and PVC with a hardness that is roughly comparable to the rubber on a car tyre. It offers the necessary flexibility to create rubber-like seals that can stretch and return to their original shape without deformation.
This material provides all the benefits of TPU with a high elasticity that is easy to print. It also offers excellent layer-to-layer bonding. Our TPU-95A filament is available in a large selection of colours including black, grey, white, blue, green, orange, red, pink, yellow and purple.
Seal Design Service
We offer a custom rubber seal design service if your sealing requirements cannot be met by one of our standard sections. Using our 3D CAD facilities, our team is able to work with you to design and manufacture the best sealing solution for your project. If you do not have a sample or technical dimensioned drawing, our Design Engineers can develop a custom solution based on your requirements.
Case Study: Rubber Seal Prototyping
Our technical team has extensive experience working with customers to develop reliable sealing solutions for their projects. We were approached by a long-standing customer who was looking for a bespoke solution. They needed a custom profile that could be inserted between roofing panels to minimise the amount of water that entered an outbuilding. Although the final product would require tooling and production using a rubber material such as EPDM, they were pressed for time from their client to demonstrate a working solution.
The technical team at Seals Direct helped work with this customer to develop a profile that could be inserted between these panels. This section had a central void that allowed the profile to compress when initially inserted into the gap. Once it place, the gap was large enough for the section to expand and adequately hold itself in the gap without the need for adhesive or mechanical fixings.
We decided to rapid prototype this section using our 3D printer and a flexible TPU filament. This allowed us to manufacture a short length within 2 hours of the CAD design being approved by the client. A number of test samples were then sent to the customer for testing and evaluation. They concluded that the profile was suitable for the end application and instructed us to proceed with tooling to manufacture a significantly larger quantity in EPDM.
Prototyped seals have diverse applications across several industries. Rapid prototyping these types of profile with a flexible filament allows us to test our clients designs under various conditions to ensure optimal performance and durability before committing to full-scale production
Contact Us With Your Requirements
With over 50 years’ experience within the rubber seal industry, our team has extensive experience in identifying the best rubber seals, trims and gaskets for our customers. We are able to work with you to develop the best sealing solution for your project.
Complete the form below for a no-obligation free quote. Our experienced team will look into whether your requirements can be met by an off-the-shelf product or provide a quotation for a custom made solution. Please include details of the seal, including dimensions, materials, hardness and how many metres you require.