Miscellaneous general and special-purpose machinery

Tender description

The National Composites Centre (NCC) is planning on procuring HTRTM equipment to enable the injection of a variety of preform types with high temperature resin systems at elevated temperatures and pressures. The National Composites Centre (NCC) is an independent, open-access national centre that delivers world-class innovation in the design and rapid manufacture of composites and facilitates their widespread industrial exploitation. Liquid Composite Moulding (LCM) is one of the core competencies of the NCC and High-Value manufacturing in the UK. In this context, the NCC has identified a need to procure a High Temperature Resin Transfer Moulding (HTRTM) Capability. This shall directly support key manufacturing and research development programs, whilst widening the potential applicability of LCM processes to a wider range of components and environments. This capability will be specified, procured and commissioned to ensure suitability for industrial research and development programs as well as supporting the maturation of emerging manufacturing technologies from academia towards industrial application. The addition of this capability within the NCC, shall allow for the injection of single component resins, including Polyimide based systems. In addition to heated hoses, closely controlled heated tooling shall allow for the preheating, injection, and cure of fibre reinforced polymer composites. The tool will be compatible for use within the existing PEI and Hare presses at the NCC. The injection unit will be self-contained and mobile to allow the simple integration with existing NCC equipment. A dedicated data acquisition module will be supplied to allow for the detailed assessment of all high temperature injection processes. Dedicated, heated, flat panel RTM cavity tooling shall be procured alongside the injection equipment, thus providing a robust turnkey solution for HTRTM.