CUSTOM
MOULD MAKING
We have been undertaking the manufacturing
of an increasing number of custom moulds for soaps,
chocolates, candles, plaster and concrete.
We are now in a position to quote on
individual custom mould work. Our main difficulty
up to date has been in convincing people that the
master moulds from which we make, say our $5.95 range
of vacuum formed plaster moulds, costs our company
an estimated average price of $250.00 to $300.00 to
produce. We have to amortise this cost into a pay
back from sales over many years before we turn a profit.
For the simpler type of latex or plaster
mould it is not economic to have us make your moulds
unless you can work this kind of cost into your sales
program. Better for us to provide you with the knowledge
on how to make your own moulds and use your own free
labour. Of course not every type of production mould
can be made this way and this is where we can help
with our computer programs and computer aided machinery.
We are now in a position to offer good
prices on custom made silicone, polyurethane and vacuum
formed plastic moulds.
MOULD MANUFACTURING METHODS
There are many ways to make a mould
and largely it depends on what the finished product
is like, which mould type and casting method is used.
If the original was a sculpt in clay
to make a delicate figurine we may use the destructive
plaster technique to make a polyurethane or silicone
mould and so it goes on. This makes it very difficult
to give a ball park figure for mould making.
Moulds using company logos usually start
with a drawing or sketch or sometimes with finished
artwork that we can use by vectorising. We then make
a computer generated 3D version to use for the mould
master after machining.
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO HAVE
A MOULD MADE ?
Please send us details of what you require
and we will give you an estimate followed by a firm
quote once we have received all the material.
As every job is different all we can
do is give you some indication of what we charge for
different types of moulds. A flat backed vacuum formed
mould of an original 30cm figurine resized to 20cm
but not altered in any way cost $235.00 plus GST for
total computer and CNC machining time for production
of the master mould. Each mould cost $5.95 from then
on. A 250gm Chocolate Bar devided with 4 logos had
a master mould that cost $350.00 for computer &
machining time due to the fine nature of the lettering.
Working from design drawings for our
own moulds at least an additional hours computer work
would have had to be added to cater for our internal
specifications.
We calculate custom mould making costs
on a time basis; Computer time $100.00/hour, CNC machine
time $60.00/hour, Laser Engraving $60.00/hour and
Sandblasting $60.00/hour plus the cost of materials.
If the mould was required to be made
in silicone the cost of the set up time to pour the
silicone and the cost of the silicone would need to
be added..
A straightforward flat backed silicone
mould of an original say 10cm diameter would require
say 15 minutes set up time and the cost of the silicone
required. Total $45.00 plus GST. A 4 cake silicone
hand soap work mould was recently costed at $85.00
+ GST.
REORDERS
We retain all production materials,
master moulds and computer files in case additional
working moulds are required, which are charged out
at the same rate as our stock mould series. For plastic
hobby vacuum formed moulds charges are $5.95,$8.95
and $10.95. For pavers, prices start at $15.00 depending
on size and plastic type and thickness used. ABS plastic
moulds would start at $35.00 for a 400x400x40mm mould.
All custom mould orders require a 50%
deposit with the balance payable prior to dispatch.
Delivery is usually from 2-3 weeks for the finished
work mould.
