Composite curing oven with integrated vacuum bagging system for
hydrofoil surfboard manufacturing
Foil surfboarding is becoming a hot new trend due to the
unique sensation of floating on top of the water. Hydrofoil wings also expand
surfboarding beyond the big waves of the coast to the inland lakes.
Increasing demand for foil surfboards creates production
challenges.
Due to rapidly increasing demand, a manufacturer of these boards reached out to Despatch for
a solution for curing the resin shell of the boards. They needed an oven that was large
enough to keep up with their production schedule. The boards are long, and bulky, making
oven volume and fast unloading and loading of boards a concern. The boards are made of
composite materials which require vacuum bagging while in process. And because there are
solvents present, the oven also had to carry a Class A rating.
Despatch TFD3-48 high-capacity composite curing oven with
integrated vacuum bagging.
The DespatchTFD3-48 walk-in ovenwith 476
cubic foot capacity is large enough to accommodate the customer’s daily production goals and
make the loading and unloading of boards a safe and efficient operation. Despatch TFD Class
A ovens are specifically designed to meet NFPA 86 requirements for applications that include
flammable solvents. These ovens are equipped with a modern touchscreen controller. The
controller can be programmed with up to 40 ramp/soak profiles. Data-logging functionality
enables reporting and analyzing, and data files can be exported via the controller’s USB
port. A vacuum pump skid, manifold, piping, and transducers were fully integrated and ready
to be connected to the customer’s vacuum line.
Despatch provides turnkey solution that meets customer
requirements
Despatchwas able to provide a turnkey solution for this process
critical application. The customer will be able to realize an ROI much sooner due to the
increased production a large oven will provide. Having the oven equipped with the vacuum
system will allow for easy, and rapid start up. Lifting lugs were added for easy loading and
unloading into the confined entry to the customer’s production facility. With ITW EAE’s
streamlined manufacturing process, the lead time for this modified oven was much less than
other providers could offer.