ECS Engineering
Providing innovation For Over 60 Years
ECS Composites was established over 60+ years ago with the mission of engineering and delivering the highest quality shipping and foam cushioning solutions available. Our company was founded out of a desire to provide better options for protecting high valued items during transit, rather than the standard practice of using corrugated boxes or wood crates. Unlike others in the industry, ECS has always maintained an in-house engineering staff, and we manufacture all of our products within our grants pass, Oregon facility.
At ECS we recognize the importance associated with continuously investing in the latest technologies, and we regularly allocate capital towards the purchase of manufacturing equipment and design software. To fulfill the diverse requests of our clients, we have struck partnerships with other vertically integrated suppliers, giving us a wide array of service offerings.
ECS utilizes leading edge technology to deliver turn-key systems that provide end users with secure, transportable, and scalable environments for housing computer systems, unmanned drones, communications equipment, and other sensitive items.
The engineering team at ECS is providing high quality, cost effective support and solutions to your projects ensuring completion in the required timescale. Our team of highly skilled and professional personnel are dedicated to meeting customer requirements, as well as overcoming all obstacles in domestic or international operations. Our engineers are continually working along with our clients to provide functional solutions and process improvements for quality assured service
Expanding The Compression Molding Market
THE PROCESS:
ECS uses a wet compression molding process utilizing an elastomeric core and heated aluminum molds. The aluminum mold produces the A-side of the part, with finishes that can range from dull (media blasted) to high gloss (polished). The B-side of the part matches our elastomeric core tool, which generally produces a higher-grade finish than a peel ply/bag B-Side. This combination of core and mold also allows for 15 to 60-minute cycle times depending on the material.
The Market:
Where our product excels is in replacing sheet metal products or VIP produced laminates with fiber reinforced polyester or vinyl ester plastic. Compression molded parts typically cost less than VIP products but have a higher cost than an unreinforced plastic injection part. When a reinforced plastic is needed, our process is a cheaper alternative that still offers the advantages of a composite system.
The Niche:
Using an elastomeric tool presents its own design challenges in comparison to match metal tooling. However, there are some physical benefits that set it apart from its process brethren. An elastomeric core can allow for materials and thicknesses to be adjusted to allow for alternative laminates without re-tooling. This can allow for the same part to be built using the same mold but with a different material and/or thickness.
The engineered core is also great at moving resin through the part, helping to eliminate those pesky resin rich areas. It also can allow parts to have some vertical walls in the direction of pull.
Design Constraints:
Parts need a single direction of pull, but not all walls need a draft, so vertical walls can be designed in. Since the process requires a ram to supply the compression force, the physical limitation is the equipment envelope. The overall mold dimensions need to fit within:
Small – 34L X 23W X 22H
Medium – 49L X 36W X 36H
Large – 75L X 70W X 32H
Wet Compression Molding Highlights
INTERNAL TOOLING
ECS creates the tooling we use, in house, on-site. Our engineering team oversees the product design, tooling design, tool creation, and manufacturing for the products we produce.
LONG-LASTING ALUMINUM TOOLS
We setup our materials to work with aluminum tools. Making your investment last longer.
NO-DRAFT WALL COMPRESSION
Need a vertical wall in direction of pull? we can design for that.
HEATED MOLDING PROCESS
Heated molds speed up the process time and reduce cost. Cycle times as low as 15 minutes are achievable on some resin systems.
MATTE TO GLOSS FINISHES
No gel coat system reduces cost and allows for various gloss levels.
