Custom manufacturing
We are set up for the awkward jobs.
A large part of our business is reverse customisation: a buyer sends a sample, a drawing, or a part that failed with another supplier, and we work backwards to a felt that behaves correctly.
The process
Five steps, no black box.
You will always know which stage your project is at, and what we are waiting for.
Send the brief
A sample, a drawing, a photo with dimensions — or just the application and the conditions it has to survive.
Material matching
We shortlist fibre, density, thickness and finish against your requirement, and tell you what will and will not work.
Sampling
Physical samples for fit, feel and bench testing, so the decision is made on material rather than on a datasheet.
Approval
The signed-off sample becomes the production reference for density, thickness, colour and cut.
Production
Needle-punch, finish, slit, die-cut, laminate or add adhesive — then pack to your carton requirement.
What you can change
Nine variables, all of them yours.
Felt is not a moulded part — its performance comes from how the fibre is blended, laid and needled. Because we run the line, each of these can move independently instead of being fixed by a supplier's catalogue.
- Fibre blend — wool, wool blend, PET, pre-oxidized PAN, carbon
- Density — from soft and absorbent to hard and dimensionally stable
- Thickness — pressed or needled to the dimension you need
- Colour — natural, or dyed to a supplied sample
And on the finished part
Cut, backed, packed.
- Width and roll length, slit to your machine
- Die-cut profile, kiss-cut on roll, or trimmed sheet
- Self-adhesive backing, film, foil or scrim lamination
- Surface finish — plain, calendered, brushed or needled
- Cartons, labels and private-label artwork
Why customisation is possible
Bonded by needles, not by chemistry.
Needle-punched felt is held together by fibre entanglement rather than a chemical binder. That means density, thickness and stiffness are set mechanically on the line — the reason a genuine one-off specification is practical rather than a special project.
- Opening and blending — fibre recipe set per order
- Carding and cross-lapping — basis weight and orientation controlled
- Needle-punching — the core process that sets density and cohesion
- Finishing, slitting and rolling — dimensions and surface stabilised
Bring us what you have
Any of these is enough to start.
A physical sample
The fastest route. We identify fibre, density and thickness, then match it.
A drawing
PDF, DWG or a dimensioned sketch. Tolerances welcome; we will flag what matters.
A failed part
Tell us how it failed — compressed, melted, clogged, worn — and we change the variable that caused it.
A photo and a ruler
Enough to start a conversation and shortlist a material before anything is posted.
A performance target
Temperature, compression, absorption, flow rate or acoustic goal — we propose the material.
A competitor's part
Common in this industry. We will tell you honestly what we can and cannot reproduce.
Sampling policy
Fast samples, straight answers.
Sample production is kept short and runs alongside the quotation, so you are not waiting on one to start the other. If a requirement needs third-party testing before we can commit, we say so at enquiry stage rather than after the order.
- Sampling runs in parallel with quoting, not after it
- Material recommendations come with the trade-off explained
- No certification claimed that we cannot document
- Approved sample becomes the production reference
Reverse customisation
Send the part. We will send the felt.
Photograph it next to a ruler, or post it to us. Either way, you will get a material recommendation and an honest answer on feasibility.