Custom Lighting Extrusion from Drawing to Production

What to send

A complete enquiry needs surprisingly little. In priority order:

1. The cross-section drawing – DXF, DWG, STEP or a dimensioned PDF. A physical sample works if there is no drawing.
2. Material requirement – PC or PMMA, plus any UV, flame or diffusion requirement.
3. Optical requirement – transmission, haze, or beam distribution where relevant.
4. Annual quantity and expected order pattern.
5. Cut length and packaging requirement.
6. Application and compliance environment.

Missing items are not blockers. The two that matter most are the cross-section and the annual quantity – everything else can be discussed. There is a full checklist in what information should be included in a lighting profile drawing.

Stage 1 – Feasibility review (days)

Engineering reviews the section for extrudability and comes back with either a go, or a short list of proposed changes. Typical findings:

• Walls that are too uneven to cool consistently.
• Enclosed voids that cannot be vacuum-calibrated.
• Corner radii too small for the melt to fill or for the part to survive assembly.
• Tolerances tighter than the process holds, on non-critical dimensions.
• Features that need a secondary operation and should be quoted separately.

Changes at this stage cost nothing. This is the highest-value gate in the whole sequence – the profile that gets a real review here does not need a second die. Start at custom lighting extrusion.

Stage 2 – Manufacturing drawing and approval (days)

Your geometry is converted to a manufacturing geometry: die swell compensation applied, flow balanced, radii adjusted to what the melt will fill, non-critical dimensions set to what the process holds. You receive the adjusted drawing for approval. Nothing is machined until you sign it off.

Stage 3 – Material definition (days, in parallel)

Base polymer and grade are locked: UV-stabilised or not, FR class, diffusion level, and the colour standard. Where the fixture has a compliance requirement, it is matched to a grade that holds it and documented. Material definition runs in parallel with tooling so it does not add to the schedule.

Stage 4 – Tooling design and die manufacture (typically 3-5 weeks)

The die is designed – manifold, flow balance, land lengths – and machined from tool steel. For optical profiles the land is polished, because that surface is reproduced on every metre of profile. The vacuum calibrator is built in parallel. Complex co-extruded or micro-structured dies take longer. See custom lighting extrusion tooling.

Stage 5 – Trial and samples (days to a week)

The new die is run. Trial material is measured and the die adjusted until the section is correct, then samples are sent to you. This is where you check:

• Fit – board retention, end caps, fixing geometry.
• Optics – hotspot hiding, transmission, colour.
• Appearance – surface, colour, consistency.
• Dimensions – against the approved drawing.

Stage 6 – Sample approval and production (around 15 days)

Once samples are approved, the profile goes to a production line and is cut, inspected and packed. Standard lead time from approval is around 15 days. Line parameters are recorded so repeat orders match the approved sample – particularly important for colour and optical consistency.

Typical timeline at a glance

What slows a project down

1. Approving the manufacturing drawing without checking the fit against the mating parts.
2. Material named but optical requirement not stated – forces a second sampling round.
3. Compliance requirements raised after tooling has started.
4. Tolerances specified on dimensions that do not matter.
5. Colour approved from a screen rather than a physical standard.

Working from a sample instead of a drawing

If the profile exists but the drawing does not, send the sample. The cross-section can be measured, the material identified, and a drawing produced for your approval – then the sequence above runs normally. This is a common route for replacement and second-source work.

Send the drawing: request a quote. For joint development programmes see OEM / ODM.