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RP Technologies are approached on what seems to be a daily basis to discuss overmoulding as a process for prototype tooling and injection moulding, and whether it is suitable for low volumes.

The overmoulding process has been around for many years but with the market trend to improve the feel and functionality of co-moulded parts growing at an alarming rate we have seen many more enquiries over the last few years. The continued development of soft polymers such as TPE’s and TPV’s also plays a part to the increase of overmoulded components.

What is Overmoulding?

Overmoulding is an injection moulding process in which two materials are combined to produce a single part. Typically, the part seamlessly binds a rigid plastic (the substrate) with a TPE elastomer (the overmoulding)

To produce an over moulded component two mould tools are manufactured. A substrate tool which produces a rigid component, and an over-mould tool in which the rigid component is manually inserted in to so that the TPE can be overmoulded.

With continuous in-house development and a close partnership with several TPE/TPU material suppliers, we have gained extensive experience with overmoulding projects and have seen extremely good results. This extensive knowledge enables us to provide advice to our customers when considering overmoulding at prototype stage.

Our material suppliers have a wealth of knowledge when it comes to providing material that is suitable for overmoulding. TPEs are extremely versatile and can be supplied to cover a wide range of product areas. They can be offered with medical approvals, for toys and sporting items, for automotive interior & exterior parts, and where flame-retarded or WRAS-listed materials are required.

Overmoulding Considerations

One of the most important things to consider with overmoulding is how the overmoulded material will attach itself to the substrate. There are two different options to consider:

Chemical Bond
The most successful option is chemical bond however it’s vital to select two materials that have the correct compatibility to ensure the materials don’t come apart once cooled.
As standard, TPEs will bond very successfully to Polypropylene (PP) (including talc or glass filled) but modified grades are also readily available which allow overmoulding onto a much wider range of substrates such as ABS, PC, PC/ABS, PET-G, ASA, SAN, PA6, PA66, PPA and PA12. Bond strengths on PP are very high, and are also very good on PC and PC/ABS but some other materials have lesser bond strengths in overmoulding.