We machine optical-grade PMMA and acrylic into clear, dimensionally exact parts. Tolerances to ±0.005 mm, polished flanks, no clouding at the cut. Send a STEP file and get DFM feedback plus a quote within 12 hours.
Most rejects in PMMA come from heat, clamping and tool choice, not from the machine.
Acrylic is brittle. A dull cutter or a feed rate that is too aggressive lifts material instead of shearing it. You get micro-cracks along the edge that fail a visual check, and the part is scrap before it ever reaches assembly.
PMMA softens near 100 °C. Without enough coolant or with a trapped chip rubbing the wall, the cut turns gummy. The surface goes white and hazy, and no amount of polishing brings back the clarity the drawing calls for.
Clamping pressure and deep cuts leave internal stress in the material. The part measures fine on the bench. Then it crazes near a screw boss or a bonded joint after it has been in the field. That is a warranty problem, not a cosmetic one.
A 2 mm acrylic wall moves under tool pressure. If the shop machines it like aluminium, the wall bows and the flatness callout is missed. Thin sections need light radial passes and support, or the geometry walks.
Three things decide the outcome: cutter geometry, heat control, and how the part is held.
We cut PMMA with polished single-flute and two-flute end mills made for plastics. High rake angles shear the material cleanly instead of pushing it. Spindle speeds run higher than on metal, feed per tooth stays light, and we clear chips fast so they never rub the finished wall.
Coolant and air blast keep the cutting zone below the softening point. On deep pockets we program helical entry and trochoidal paths to spread the load. The goal is a flank that comes off the machine clear, not one that needs sanding to hide a burn.
Acrylic shows every clamp mark. We hold parts on soft jaws, vacuum chucks or custom fixtures machined to the part profile. Clamping force is set low and spread over a wide area, so the material is not compressed at the contact point.
Finishing is done dry where possible. We flame-polish or vapor-polish when the drawing calls for optical clarity, and we mask edges before any secondary operation. Laser marking uses a low-power setting so the mark reads clearly without a heat-affected halo.
PMMA is not the only transparent option. The right choice depends on impact, temperature and sterilization.
| Material | Best For | Watch Out For |
|---|---|---|
| PMMA (acrylic) | Optical clarity, light guides, display windows | Brittle; cracks under impact |
| Polycarbonate (PC) | Impact resistance, protective covers | Lower clarity; scratches easily |
| PMMA cast sheet | Thick windows, machined lenses | Stress crazing if machined hot |
| PMMA extruded sheet | Flat panels, lower cost | More internal stress than cast |
One shop for the machining, the finish and the inspection.
Complex acrylic geometry cut in one setup. Contoured windows, angled faces and undercuts without repositioning.
Flat panels, pockets and profiles. The right choice for plate work where the tolerance is tight but the geometry is simple.
Cylindrical lenses, bushings and spacers. Mill-turn centers handle turned features and cross-holes in one cycle.
One-off PMMA parts for fit checks and design reviews. Production can start within 24 hours of approval.
Flame polishing, vapor polishing, bead blasting and laser engraving. We match the finish to the drawing callout.
100% inspection before shipment. Raw material check, in-process monitoring and final dimensional reports on request.
| Parameter | Range |
|---|---|
| Maximum part size | 4,000 mm |
| Standard tolerance | ±0.005 mm (±0.0002 in) |
| Best surface finish | Ra 0.2–0.8 μm |
| As-machined finish | Ra 1.6–3.2 μm |
| Order quantity | 1 piece to 10,000+ parts |
| Quotation turnaround | Within 12 hours |
| Typical shipment | 3–5 days after approval |
No claims without a measurement behind them.
Fifteen years of plastics and metals. PMMA behaves differently from PC and PA, and that experience shows up in the first cut.
Down to ±0.005 mm on PMMA features, with a 99.99% qualification rate across shipped orders.
16 simultaneous 5-axis centers, 12 four-axis mills and 27 three-axis machines. Capacity is not the bottleneck.
7,600 m² of manufacturing space in Dongguan and Singapore. We do not subcontract your acrylic parts.
Send a STEP file and get manufacturability feedback plus pricing within 12 hours. Production can start in 24 hours.
Every PMMA part is checked. Raw material, in-process and final inspection. Reports available on request.
Light guides clear enough for edge-lit displays. No visible burn marks at the coupling face.
Covers and fluidic manifolds machined to tight flatness. Clean finishes for visual inspection.
Machine guards and sight windows cut from thick cast sheet, with edges that survive handling.
Sensor brackets and mounts where the part must stay flat after machining and not craze in service.
Yes, for most features. We hold ±0.005 mm on PMMA, but the material has a higher coefficient of thermal expansion than aluminium. That matters on long parts.
For a 500 mm acrylic part, a 10 °C shop temperature swing moves the length more than the tolerance. We cut and measure at a controlled temperature, and we call out dimensions that should be checked at 20 °C.
Machined PMMA comes off the tool with a slightly frosted edge unless we polish it. A standard cut gives a fine matte finish, which is fine for hidden edges.
For visible edges and optical faces we flame-polish or vapor-polish. Tell us which faces are cosmetic on the drawing, and we will only polish those so we do not add cost where it is not needed.
Crazing is micro-cracking from internal stress, often triggered by coolant, solvents or a tight fastener. It usually appears after the part is assembled, not on the bench.
We reduce it by taking lighter finishing passes, avoiding chlorinated coolants, and annealing thick sections when the geometry allows. If your part sees solvent contact, say so at quoting so we can pick the right stock.
STEP, IGES and X_T are the usual formats. We can also work from native SolidWorks and DXF for flat plate parts.
Include the material, finish, and any cosmetic-face callouts. Drawings help for threads, tolerances and surface finish, but the 3D model drives the toolpaths.
Yes. There is no minimum order quantity, so you can order one prototype and then scale to a 10,000+ part run using the same fixtures and programs.
Prototypes ship in 3–5 days once the design is approved. If the design changes after the first part, we update the program and re-quote only the affected operations.
Uploads are secure and confidential. We can sign an NDA before you send files if your process requires it.
Production files stay on our internal network. They are not shared outside the machining and inspection teams working on your order.
We do flame polishing, vapor polishing, bead blasting and laser engraving. We do not apply hardcoat or anti-reflective coatings in-house.
If your drawing calls for a coating, we can machine and polish to the pre-coat dimensions and ship to your coater. Tell us the coating thickness so we can leave the right stock.
Our largest travel is 4,000 × 400 × 150 mm. That covers most machine guards, windows and long light guides.
Larger parts can sometimes be made in sections and bonded, but the joint will be visible. If the part is optical, a bonded joint usually fails the clarity requirement.
Upload a STEP file for manufacturability feedback and pricing within 12 hours. Order from one piece, every part inspected before it ships.
12-hour quote100% inspectionNo minimum order quantity
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Upload your 3D model or 2D drawing and get a quotation with a free DFM analysis. Maximum processing size 4,000 mm.
CNC Metals 13 grades
CNC Plastics 10 grades
Machines & processes 12 options
Surface & post-processing 10 options
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