Since 1974, Century Tool & Gage (CTG) has been building high-quality compression molds for the automotive, heavy truck, aerospace and personal watercraft industries. And today, we are solely focused on engineering and manufacturing of medium to large compression molds for composite materials. We specialize in exterior (Class A) and structural parts that require the highest precision and surface finish, such as headliners, door panels, package trays, acoustical components, trunk, trim applications and exterior body panels. 
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All molds and tools are designed and engineered in-house based on customer supplied part data. As a vertically integrated company, we maintain tight control over quality and can provide custom services to meet your total program needs. Our dedication to this technology has led to extensive process knowledge in the design and manufacturing of compression molds, enabling us to achieve complex geometries and exacting tolerances.
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Compression molding requires matching metal molds along with the application of external pressure. During the molding process, an engineered composite layup is placed in the open mold cavity, the mated mold is placed on top to close the mold and force is then applied. Pressure is applied to the mold throughout the curing cycle, which usually takes place in an oven.

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COMPRESSION MOLDMAKING PROCESS

ENGINEERING

​Engineers create 3D CAD models for customer review & sign-off.
 
All manufacturing/
assembly processes configured in 2D/3D design.

​Complete BOM created from CAD models.

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ROUGHING

​Steel blocks received and visually inspected.

Steel blocks squared to ensure correct center for machining.
 
90%+ material removal during roughing with up to 6mm stock allowance prior to stress relief.

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FINISHING

​Blocks are squared and prepared for finish cut.
 
Semi-finishing of blocks with 1mm stock allowance for finish machining.
 
Gun drilling of blocks to allow for steam, water, oil circuits.

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ASSEMBLY

​Ancillary components manufactured or purchased for mold assembly.
 
Mold is benched and polished to customer specification.

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TRY OUT

​Sample parts produced in presses to ensure conformity to standards.
 
After approval, mold is dis-assembled, prepped for plating, chrome-plated, reassembled, and hot fitted with final tryout.

INDUSTRIES WE PROUDLY SERVE

AUTOMOTIVE

MARINE

HEAVY TRUCK

AEROSPACE