As industries push towards more efficient and scalable composite part production, manufacturers face limited material choices for tooling that must perform reliably under autoclave conditions without exceeding budget constraints. The HiFill GF-PET fills this gap, delivering thermal stability and dimensional accuracy at an accessible cost, making it ideal for intermediate temperature tooling applications needed in the marine, automotive, wind, and aerospace industries.
HiFill GF-PET for dimensional accuracy
Designed for Large-Format Additive Manufacturing (LFAM), HiFill GF-PET provides low and consistent thermal expansion and is supported by a dataset needed for tool shape compensation with ADDITIVE3D, a comprehensive physics-based virtual twin developed at the Composites Manufacturing and Simulation Centre at Purdue University. This enables users to anticipate dimensional changes during post-processing and autoclave cycling, improving the precision and repeatability of printed tools.
“HiFill GF-PET addresses a persistent challenge in the additive tooling space – a cost-effective material with dimensional and thermal stability for tooling with operating temperatures of up to 250°F (121°C),” said Jenna Hunt, business manager of engineered compounds for additive manufacturing at Techmer PM. “By pairing this material with the dataset required for tool shape compensation, characterised by the Purdue team, we provide engineers with the tools to design with confidence, achieving the tolerances required for high-performance composite part production. At the same time, we’re offering a material that fits both the performance and cost profile needed for intermediate-temperature applications.”
From data to deployment
HiFill GF-PET’s mechanical properties and thermal expansion behaviour have been characterised across print orientations and temperature ranges. When combined with the simulation capabilities of ADDITIVE3D, this data enables accurate tool shape compensation by accounting for anisotropic behaviour and directional effects inherent to the additive process. ADDITIVE3D is available to members of the CAMS consortium at Purdue University.
Center Street Technologies played a key role in testing HiFill GF-PET, validating its performance in real-world tooling applications. “Glass-filled polyester (PET) offers a unique combination of strength, stiffness and heat resistance I need for printing parts for structural and tooling applications, without resorting to more exotic engineering resins,” said Bob Berardino, senior materials engineer at Center Street Technologies. “The print quality is excellent, the material machinable to final tolerances and the parts are sturdy and dimensionally stable. This balance of mechanical properties, processing performance and affordability makes it a worthy addition to my materials portfolio.”
Purdue University echoed the significance of the material’s capabilities. “The material card developed for tool shape compensation with HiFill GF-PET’s unlocks new levels of precision and reliability in additive tooling; powered through simulation-driven design with our virtual twin ADDITIVE3D,” said Eduardo Barocio, Ph. D, director of Composite Additive Manufacturing and Simulation (CAMS) Consortium. “This material system exemplifies the kind of innovation that bridges practical manufacturing needs with advanced science and engineering.”
The material is now commercially available, and Techmer PM is actively partnering with OEMs and service providers for expanded tooling trials. Technical documentation, processing guidelines and data for shape compensation are available upon request.
about Techmer PM
Founded in 1981, Techmer PM, LLC, is a materials design company that specialises in modifying and fine-tuning the properties of technical polymers. The company thrives on partnering and collaborating with plastics processors, fabricators, designers, specifiers and brand owners. Drawing on a broad portfolio of resins – from polyolefins to PEEK – Techmer PM helps manufacturers enhance product function and appearance in scores of end-use markets. The award-winning firm operates 7 North American plants and has extensive expertise in virtually every plastics- and fibre-related process, from additive manufacturing and blown film to nonwovens, injection moulding and sheet extrusion. Techmer PM has been recognised by Plastics News on its “Best Places to Work” list 6 times since 2014.
about Purdue CMSC
The Composites Manufacturing and Simulation Centre (CMSC) at Purdue University unifies deep expertise in characterisation, modelling and simulation of composite manufacturing processes – ranging from traditional autoclave curing to emerging methods such as Large-Format Additive Manufacturing (LFAM). The CAMS consortium, operated through CMSC, is dedicated to advancing confidence in LFAM by developing predictive simulation tools and grounding process improvements in scientific rigour. CMSC is equipped with a Thermwood LSAM 105 system, located in its dedicated Thermwood LSAM Research Laboratory.
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