Make · process

Composite layup + autoclave

Prepreg plies stacked by angle, cured under heat and pressure

The aerospace gold standard. Fibre pre-impregnated with resin (prepreg) is laid ply by ply at chosen angles, bagged under vacuum, and cured in an autoclave under heat and pressure — producing the highest-quality, lowest-void laminates there are.

Low
Volume
High — mould + autoclave
Tooling
Hours
Cycle
Tight
Tolerance
How it works
  1. 1
    Lay prepreg plies onto a mould, one at a time, at the design fibre angles.
  2. 2
    Bag the layup under vacuum to draw out trapped air.
  3. 3
    Cure in an autoclave under heat and pressure.
  4. 4
    Cool, demould, then trim and inspect.
Strengths & limits
Strengths
  • Highest fibre content and lowest voids
  • Full control of fibre angle, ply by ply
  • The best mechanical properties per kilogram
  • Large, aerospace-grade structures
Limits
  • Slow and labour-intensive
  • Autoclave and tooling are expensive
  • Prepreg needs frozen storage and has a shelf life
  • Low throughput
Typical parts & materials

Typical parts: Aircraft wing and fuselage structure, F1 chassis, satellite parts

Commonly run in — open one for its cited properties:

AS4/3501-6T300/5208Carbon fibre (IM7)AS4/PEEK

Part of the Make map of manufacturing processes. Browse the cited database, or see where these parts end up in the application domains.