Amber Composites extends tooling prepreg range new products aid large tool making

Amber Composites announced that it has added three products to its popular HX series prepreg range. The expanded range provides more choice of outlife and cure schedules to tool manufacturers, enabling larger and higher quality tooling for complex composite structures. The new tooling systems are designed to work seamlessly with Amber's growing range of component prepreg.

HX series tooling has been in use worldwide for nearly twenty five years and is known for excellent performance and ease of use. New additions to the line include HX32 and HX40, which enable larger tools with extended outlife, and HX44 with similar properties but specially formulated for glass tooling.

Amber Composites won recognition from the British government recently when it chose Amber as one of the stars of British manufacturing. And, the UKTI has recently acknowledged Amber for its strong export business.

"We are developing new component prepreg, including fire retardant systems, toughened systems, and out-of-autoclave systems while extending our tooling range," said Jonathan McQueen, Managing Director at Amber Composites. "The second half of 2012 will see quite a few new component and tooling prepregs coming to market."

"After successfully using Amber's HX42 tooling system, we tested their new HX32 tooling prepreg, in both 200gsm and 650gsm. The handling of the material has been easy, with good tack and drapability. Curing at 70°C for 12 hours was convenient and yielded a good surface finish and tool quality. For tools made to mould 120°C parts, we will now be using this material in production." said Jean-Baptiste Mouton, Composites Engineer at Multiplast.