Reinforcements

Our range of composite reinforcement materials, including Kevlar®, Dyneema®, glass and carbon fabrics, and covers the broad spectrum of textile technologies including woven fabrics and tapes, knitted multiaxials, braids and non-woven technical veils.Additional fabric processing and finishing facilities are available, including powder coating with epoxy or polyester. Powder coating stabilises the weave, preventing distortion and enables the fabric to be cut without fraying. The thermoplastic powder coating can be used to bond layers together as in manufacturing of preforms for RTM processing. We also provide materials for cosmetic applications, including aesthetic grade carbon fabrics. These fabrics are woven to the highest standard and inspection.

Fabric development

In addition to our standard range, we have extensive experience in developing bespoke woven and non-woven fabrics and will work together with clients in order to design their ideal solution. We can use speciality materials, such as stainless steel, quartz and basalt, to provide unique qualities, create new hybrid wovens and new weave patterns. We can also combine technologies, such as non-woven veils and woven fabrics to create a unique and truly innovative product that behaves as required in the end component. Get in touch with our sales team to discuss a bespoke project today. 

Narrow tapes and braids

Our range of narrow woven tapes and braids are available in widths from 10mm-350mm, from carbon, aramid, glass, polyester and hybrid fibres. We supply unidirectional woven tubulars with elasticated weft fibres, and braided tubulars. A recent development, we can also offer state-of-the-art spiral woven tapes and braids, and 3D woven profile structures for preforms, where fibres are woven in a 0/90° orientation and also in 3D, right-angled on warp and weft; providing x, y & z reinforcement in the component.

Multiaxial Fabrics

Within our standard range of reinforcements, we stock a comprehensive selection of multiaxial fabrics which are ideal for heavyweight components, where the high weight of the fabrics, together with the ability to orientate the fibres at different angles, enables fewer layers to be used. PRF stocks a range of high quality multiaxial fabrics in materials such as carb and glass, in a variety of configurations and weights. Materials such as aramid are also available.

Non-woven Technical Veils

Providing a cost-effective means of realising the advantage of high performance speciality fibres in a variety of composite structures, the non-woven technical veils supplied by PRF are available in a large range of fibres, with an area weight range of 4 to 200 g/m² (depending on the fibre type). We are uniquely experienced in using these products to their fullest potential, tapping into their technical properties to produce innovative composite materials, such as materials incorporating lightning-strike protection or materials that provide EMI/RFI shielding.

Kitting

PRF also offer laminating and slitting services for the materials we supply. We can also cut a large range of woven fabric, including multiple layers of ballistic grade Kevlar®, on our CNC cutting machines. Two-dimensional CAD drawings are accepted by email and we nest for optimum material use. Kits are supplied bagged, labelled, to the customer’s requirements, and ready for use.