PRODUCTION FACILITIES
Our creative people are empowered by the awesome facilities we have in our 145,000 sq ft production studios. Here are some of the machines we use every day with a little bit of information on how we use them! We’re experts with them and have over 16 years of experience.
We know that machines are only as good as the designers and operators that use them, so we’ve mastered the processes involved. We keep up to date and are always experimenting with new machinery and learning with every project.
CNC Milling Machines
Our CNC milling machines are an invaluable bit of kit in our workshop at EPH Studios. They’re so useful, we have two different types!
Our CNC milling machines are used as a tool to increase efficiency and accuracy while also reducing build cost. They are one of the parts that help link our design and production departments.
In their most basic form, our CNC’s can be used to cut out simple profiles and shapes, such as lettering and logos, however, we have mastered these machines and can offer much more! From giant 3D sculptures right through to flat pack assemblies and complex finishes.
Sculpting CNC Machine
This is our biggest CNC which we use to mill out polystyrene and foam. It has a huge cutting area, allowing a block size of 3m (wide) x 1.5m (high) and is able to cut to a depth of 39cm.
This is perfect for up-scaling 3D models of products or making full-scale figures and characters. If that wasn’t enough, it also has a 4th rotational axis, this allows a 1.2m diameter cylinder at 2.5m to be cut into.
Joinery CNC Machine
We use this CNC for wood, plastic and metal. This sits in the centre of our joinery department at EPH studios and is our busiest CNC. It has a cutting area of 2.5m (wide) x 1.5m (high) and can cut to a depth of 12cm.
As well as using this machine to cut, we also experiment with different tooling and use this machine for engraving, decorative routing and delicate reliefs.
Hot Wire CNC Machine
This humble machine is amazing, like our joinery CNC is the heart of our woodwork department, the Hotwire CNC is the most used machine for our sculpting team. It can cut to a huge size of 2.5m (wide) x 2.5m (high) x 2.5m (deep).
With this machine we can cut shapes and 2D profiles. It’s perfect for large scale lettering and logos, using depth to give a premium feel. However, when you start combining cutting profiles and using different angles, that’s when this machine really starts to impress!
Plastic Spray Coating Machine
One of our very interesting and unique finishes comes from our plastic spray coating machine.
We achieve an unmatched high level of finish with this machine which has come from a lot of practise and our very skilled team. This finish can be a great alternative to GRP surface finishing, which can come with a higher labour cost. We have mastered the use of this surface finishing technique and have used it on numerous Event Prop Hire builds.
With any bespoke build or product, surface finish is a very important factor. When we design and build at EPH Studios, it’s something we like to discuss early and show the different final finishes available. Chosen finish tends to be defined by project budget and the use and aesthetic of the end product.
Specialist Paint / Spray Booths
At EPH Studios we have 10 specialist painting and spray booths, these are designed to help us get amazing paint finishes.
EPH Studios Print Shop
At EPH Studios we also have a very busy print shop that offers printing services. We use large format ‘roll to roll’ printers to provide colour prints on a full range of materials, such as adhesive vinyl, pvc banner and various papers.
Depending on requirements, we also have vinyl cutting machines. They can turn our colour prints into stickers or alternatively can cut shapes and lettering from solid colour and special effect vinyls. We also use them to create stencils for our painting team, helping us achieve difficult and delicate finishes.
3D Printing
We embrace our inner nerd and love 3D printing. We have fully comprehensive knowledge of what possible and are always keeping up to date with this ever advancing method of manufacture.
