Fluoropolymer Coatings and Compression Molding for Aerospace

Using standard and proprietary fluoropolymer blends, Thermech has coated, compression-molded, and machined parts for the U.S. Space Program, including the Apollo missions and the Space Shuttle. For example, when NASA required a custom valve for the Apollo program, Thermech engineered, formulated, and created custom valve seats. Thermech also machined nine components and bonded them with Teflon film to build a specialized duct to allow hydrogen venting in flight.  We also coated, compression molded and machined several parts for the Space Shuttle Main Engine and external tanks.

Thermech carries out development and production work for NASA and major aerospace companies, including:

The most common compression-molded parts that Thermech manufactures for aerospace applications are fluoropolymer seals (Teflon® PTFE, FEP, NEOFLON™ PCTFE, TECfluorfil custom blends), but we also manufacture other specialized parts and use other engineered plastics such as PEEK / VICTREX®, PI / Vespel®, PEI / ULTEM™, PAI / Torlon®, PPS / Ryton®, PBI / Celazole®, PES and our TECthermalon family of custom blends.  An example would be an isolator made of compression-molded ULTEM™ PEI to withstand the temperature extremes of space on a satellite.

Thermech’s rigorous quality management system is AS9100D with ISO 9001:2015 registered.  Thermech is a long-standing approved vendor for NASA and major aerospace companies and routinely passes their quality system audits at our facilities.

We use a full range of coating materials and techniques, which translates into the best solution for your project, even for tough-to-coat parts that are extremely small or large or very complex in nature.  For the most challenging projects, we apply our unique expertise in severe-service coatings that withstand extreme heat or cold, minimize wear, and maximize lubricity and insulation.

We frequently reinvest in our business and are constantly improving our processes and quality control programs. We participate in joint research projects to develop new materials and processes. We have developed many proprietary techniques to ensure application control, repeatability and consistency. We will handle your project with the utmost precision, security and traceability.