Product Development

We provide full concept-thru-delivery product development, or any of the steps along the way.

Our strength is in applications and products where world-beating performance matters
(and conversely, if you’re looking for mass production of low-grade goods, we’re not likely your candidate).

Starting with a product concept, the process includes:

Understand the product environment and goals
Identify, evaluate, & prioritize the key factors in a winning product
Define baseline & optimization goals for properties, with measurable performance parameters (e.g., strength, weight, toughness, cost, finish, manufacturability, etc,).
Define the scope and scale of the development program
Specify / develop tests to measure those properties
Identify short-list of candidate materials, structures, & processes
Fabricate and test prototypes,
Select and understand performance of best candidates,
Refine within scope of development program
Evaluate components & processes to see what can can be eliminated/consolidated
Select winning material, structure, and process
Define detailed manufacturing and QA process
Create production tooling as necessary
Start production
Ship product
Apply Continuous Improvement throughout product life cycle

Any or all of these processes can be applied to your project, and/or worked in collaboration with your team.

Tooling & Molds

Tooling and molds are developed and built in-house using a maximally digital process.
This minimizes the process distance between your finished product and the ideal 3D computer model.

Leapfrogging the traditional methods involving fabricating master parts, then makig frames & molds off of the masters, etc., we utilize advanced tooling materials and 3D CAD, CAM and CNC (computer aided design, computer aided manufacturing, computer numeric control) machining to cut the molds directly from the 3D models.
This:

Significantly reduces the cost and time from design to first part,
Reduces risk by eliminating entire classes of potential errors, and
Yields unprecedented precision in manufacturing composite parts and product

Structural & Syntactic Foam & Cores

Structural foams are cellular engineering-grade plastics with high strength, high toughness, and light weight. They superficially resemble wood, but with much higher strength and durability, no grain, and a wide range of available densities.

Syntactic foams incorporate micro-balloons which create a material that is buoyant yet able to withstand the compressive forces in the deepest ocean trenches.

Carbon fiber structures often include structural foam core sections to multiply the stiffness of a structure with a trivial weight increase.

In underwater vehicle applications, structural or syntactic foams can be used alone or with composite shells to form the buoyant and hydrodynamic components.

The exceptional properties of these materials come with significant fabricating and machining challenges – we have the extensive experience required to reliably and effectively design and manufacture complex components from these materials.

Process Technology Capabilities

3D CAD/CAM --Computer Aided Design & Mfg.-- forms the basis of all projects and products
CNC machining within precise tolerances – molds, fixtures, components, final parts, and more can all be machined
Custom fixture design & fabrication to precisely hold work for machining
High temperature curing processes up to 600F/315C
Ambient temperature cure processes
High-skill layup and wrap processes
Prepreg, film infusion, wet layup, VARTM infusion and more
Closed-mold and open-molding processes
High pressure curing technologies including high vacuum and press compaction
Open-mold and multi-element closed molds
High-performance adhesive and bonding
Unique carbon coloring and weave technologies
Multi-process surfacing & coating for molds & finished parts
Functional and/or cosmetic coatings

Email

[email protected]

Phone

866-700-2002

Delivery/Post:

Prime Composites LLC
98 Franklin Street Ext.
Suite One
Derry, NH 03038