About Sheet Plastic

The Sheet Plastic process group models the costs associated with manufacturing thermoformed Sheet Plastic components, including alternative routings, processes, materials, and machines, as well as the tooling costs associated with manufacturing the mold and any additional tooling pieces, such as plugs or pressure boxes.

The thermoforming process involves the following stages:

1. A thermoplastic stock sheet is loaded onto a thermoforming machine and clamped across a single-sided positive (convex, or 'male') or negative (concave, or 'female') mold.

2. The sheet is heated until it is pliable.

3. The sheet is inserted into the mold for forming using vacuum and air pressure techniques. Optionally, a plug is used to assist the flow of material into or around the mold. In addition, moveable tooling actions may be used to form undercuts.

4. The part is allowed to cool and removed from the thermoforming machine.

5. A CNC router creates any cutouts that are required. The router also trims off any excess stock material from the perimeter of the part.

These steps represent the basic operations supported in aPriori, with numerous additional process setup options available to refine your thermoforming cost estimate. See Sheet Plastic Processes for examples of combinations of tool types and optional processes.

Thermoforming is typically used for mid to low production volume parts. It is cost effective at low volumes, especially when compared to other techniques such as injection molding.

Numerous industrial sectors use thermoforming processes for manufacturing parts, including the agriculture, automotive, construction, consumer durables, and medical sectors.

The Sheet Plastic process group is a separately licensed module. Please contact your aPriori Account Executive or aPriori Customer Support if you require these features in your aPriori solution.