Hot drape formers
Form composite layups without the wrinkles.
Hot drape formers shape multi-ply carbon fiber prepreg over intricate tooling with uniform heat and vacuum.
Explore the components
Why drape form
Better parts, less labor
Many intricate aerospace parts, like stringers and C-beams, once made from aluminum, are now built from many plies of carbon fiber prepreg shaped over tooling. Forming the material by hand around sharp or abrupt tool edges is costly, and parts often suffer from stress wrinkles or waves.
A hot drape former applies uniform, controlled heat over the whole part as the drape lowers over the part and tool, then applies vacuum. The heated prepreg forms quickly to the tool without the defects of a manual layup.
Common uses
Forming, debulking, and curing
Thermal forming
Form multi-ply prepreg layups over stringers, C-beams, and other intricate tools.
Carbon fiber debulking
Consolidate plies with heat and vacuum before cure.
Out-of-autoclave curing
Cure select honeycomb-core parts without an autoclave.
Contact
Spec your drape former.
Tell us your part and tool sizes. We will design a hot drape former for your layup process.