MANUFACTURING MOULDED ARTICLES OF FIBRE-REINFORCED RESIN COMPOSITE MATERIAL

摘要

A method for manufacturing a moulded article of fibre-reinforced resin composite material comprises the steps of: a. disposing a body comprising fibrous reinforcement and resin into a mould cavity portion of a first mould part (84); b. locating a second mould part (86) relative to the first mould part (84) to form a mutually spaced configuration and to enclose the body within an intermediate mould cavity (100) defined between the spaced first and second mould parts; c. providing a peripheral hermetic seal between the first and second mould parts; d. applying a source of vacuum to the intermediate mould cavity (100) through at least one conduit (92) extending into the intermediate mould cavity (100), the vacuum extracting air from the intermediate mould cavity (100); e. moving at least one of first and second mould parts so as relatively to move the first and second mould parts together to define a final mould cavity; and f. heating the body to form the moulded article within the final mould cavity. An apparatus for manufacturing a moulded article of fibre-reinforced resin composite material is also disclosed. This manufacturing process has a low cost and a high quality product.