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Mould tool repair & new tooling · Glasgow

Mould tools repaired, cut and run in-house.

A Govan toolroom since 1993. Repairs from two days, new tooling from four weeks, and a breakdown turned round in 24 hours when it has to be.

Talk with us See the plant list
Elevated view of the injection moulding floor showing the machine line at Xplora Mould Tools, Govan
1993
Trading since
5
Moulding machines
100–150t
Clamp force range
24hr
Fastest breakdown repair
McAlpine Plumbing Products logo
Customers

Our tooling is in production use with McAlpine Plumbing Products, the Glasgow plumbing manufacturer — one of the largest names in the trade.

What we do

Four things, done properly.

Tool repair

Stripped, assessed and re-proven — typically two to fourteen days. Including tools we didn't build.

Detail →

New mould tooling

Designed and cut in our own toolroom in four to eight weeks, from your CAD or from a sample part.

Detail →

Precision machining

Three-axis machining centres, manual mills and lathes, spark erosion and surface grinding.

Detail →

Moulding runs

Production runs from 2,000 upwards across five machines, with in-house assembly.

Detail →
Why us

Nothing leaves the building

Tool design, toolmaking, hardening, moulding and assembly all happen in Govan. One point of contact, one place to phone when something needs changing.

Repairs are real work, not a favour

A single worn insert or a full retool — both are core business. We reverse-engineer from the part when there are no drawings left.

Recent work

Two jobs, start to finish.

Grey-scale render of the in-house mould tool developed for McAlpine's rotary nut-moulding process

Machine breaking downA £1m machine couldn't keep up

Our mould tool did
  • The old fix: The customer had already spent over £1m on a rotary machine that moulded and unscrewed plastic nuts automatically — it broke down constantly
  • The idea: instead of a whole separate machine, we built that same continuous mould-and-release capability directly into a single tool
  • Since: running reliably across their three factories, and still selling
  • Beyond this part: the same approach adapts to other threaded or unscrewing plastic components
CAD render of the bending arc core-puller mechanism repaired and reverse engineered for this job

Production downCore-puller mechanism cracked under pressure

2–3 weeks
  • The break: a segment of a 5–6 part core-pulling mechanism cracked, stopping production
  • No help available: no drawings, no CAD, original manufacturer overseas and unable to assist
  • What we did: 3D-scanned the broken part, reverse-engineered and rebuilt it, machined to 0.01mm
  • Since: back in production first time, no trial runs — repeat replacements now take days

Send us the part, the drawing, or just the problem.

Photographs of a worn component are enough to start a conversation. We'll tell you honestly whether it's a job for us.

Request a quote or call 07498 506973
Services

Repair and new tooling, done in-house.

Repair & maintenance

Tools we didn't build are just as welcome as tools we did. Strip, assess, repair, re-prove — usually two to fourteen days depending on what we find. Where the original drawings are long gone we measure the part and work backwards.

Close-up of injection mould tool core inserts and cooling channels, Xplora Mould Tools
Repair & maintenance
Tools acceptedAny manufacturer
Reverse engineeringFrom sample or worn part
Typical turnaround2 – 14 days
Fastest to date24 hours
AssessmentStrip and report before quoting
Quote turnaroundOne working day
Re-provingOn our own machines

New mould tooling

Tools designed in SolidWorks and Fusion 360, then cut in our own toolroom — typically four to eight weeks, faster if you need it and are willing to pay for it. Because the same building runs the tool afterwards, problems get found at first-off rather than six months into production.

Finished injection mould tool half showing precision-machined cavity features, Xplora Mould Tools
New tooling
Design softwareSolidWorks · Fusion 360
File formats acceptedAny — STEP preferred
Max tool weight2 tonne
Max tool sizeGoverned by weight (2 tonne)
Typical lead time4 – 8 weeks
Expedited lead timeAvailable at additional cost
Quote turnaroundOne working day
Tool triallingOn our own machines
Recent work

Repair and new tooling, in practice.

Grey-scale render of the in-house mould tool developed for McAlpine's rotary nut-moulding process

Machine breaking downA £1m machine couldn't keep up

Our mould tool did
  • The old fix: The customer had already spent over £1m on a rotary machine that moulded and unscrewed plastic nuts automatically — it broke down constantly
  • The idea: instead of a whole separate machine, we built that same continuous mould-and-release capability directly into a single tool
  • Since: running reliably across their three factories, and still selling
  • Beyond this part: the same approach adapts to other threaded or unscrewing plastic components
CAD render of the bending arc core-puller mechanism repaired and reverse engineered for this job

Production downCore-puller mechanism cracked under pressure

2–3 weeks
  • The break: a segment of a 5–6 part core-pulling mechanism cracked, stopping production
  • No help available: no drawings, no CAD, original manufacturer overseas and unable to assist
  • What we did: 3D-scanned the broken part, reverse-engineered and rebuilt it, machined to 0.01mm
  • Since: back in production first time, no trial runs — repeat replacements now take days

Not sure if it's within our envelope?

Send the drawing or a photograph. We'll tell you straight away if it's not a fit.

Request a quote
Plant

What we've got, under one roof.

Every machine below sits in the same 11,000 sq ft factory in Govan — toolroom, moulding floor and assembly. Nothing gets subcontracted out.

Toolroom workbenches and machining area at Xplora Mould Tools, Govan
11,000sq ft, Govan
5moulding machines
20+machine tools
21staff

Injection moulding

5 machines · 100–150 tonne
BOY 125 E
125 tonne
×3
Ferromatik K-TEC
150 tonne
×1
Ferromatik VT10
100 tonne
×1
In-house assembly
Finishing & packing

Materials run: PP, ABS, nylon, PVC, TPE, TPU, rubber and low-density polymers.

Toolroom & machining

held to 0.01 mm
Matchmaker VMC-610
706 × 450 mm
3-axis ×1
Matchmaker VMC-860
910 × 560 mm
3-axis ×1
Harrison Alpha 1400XS
CNC / manual combination lathe
×3
Manual milling and turning
Range of machines
Surface grinding
XYZ 1020
×4
Spark erosion
Actspark SP1 EDM
Heat treatment
Hardening in-house
3D scanning
Reverse engineering
3D printing
Stratasys F170 · Bambu
Inspection
Micrometers, height gauges

Got a job for one of these?

Send the drawing or a photograph and we'll tell you straight away if it's a fit.

Request a quote
About

Six hundred square feet to eleven thousand.

1993 · Uddingston

A small unit and a lot of hours

Xplora began in a 600 sq ft industrial unit in Uddingston, cutting injection mould tools. That has been the core of the business ever since.

Growth

Three thousand square feet

The toolroom outgrew the unit and moved into a 3,000 sq ft facility. Moulding machines went in alongside the toolroom, so tools could be proven where they were built.

Along the way

Work outside the ordinary

Over the years the business has taken on jobs well outside standard injection moulding. Today the focus is firmly on injection mould tools and complex production tools.

Today · Govan

Eleven thousand square feet

Now an 11,000 sq ft factory in Govan with 21 staff, five moulding machines, a full toolroom and an assembly team.

DRAFT PLACEHOLDER ONLY -- AI-generated, not a real photo of Xplora staff -- must be replaced before publishing
DRAFT -- AI-generated, not real staff -- replace before publishing
Xplora Mould Tools building exterior, 58 Loanbank Quadrant, Govan, Glasgow
Where we are now

We build our own product, too

Alongside customer work, Xplora designs and sells its own consumer products. It means we understand a part from the first sketch through tooling, moulding and assembly to the finished item in someone's hands — not just the steel in the middle.

Tooling in production with McAlpine

Our tooling runs in production for McAlpine Plumbing Products, one of the biggest plumbing manufacturers in the country.

How we work

Enquiry to delivery.

You send what you have

CAD, a drawing, a photograph of a broken part, or a description over the phone. All of it is enough to start.

We tell you straight

If it's outside what we can do, we say so rather than stretching to fit. If it is, you get a quote and a realistic date.

It gets made here

Cut, proven, moulded and assembled in Govan. One phone number the whole way through.

Come and see the factory.

We're in Govan and happy to show you round the toolroom and moulding floor.

Get in touch
Contact

Request a quote.

The more you can tell us the faster we can answer — but name, company and a sentence about the part is plenty to get started.

We'll come back to you within one working day. Your files stay with us and aren't shared.

Enquiry sent

Thanks — we've got it. Someone will be in touch within one working day. If it's urgent, phone 07498 506973.

Tool down?

Phone rather than filling in a form. Breakdown work gets prioritised, and our fastest turnaround to date is 24 hours — 07498 506973.

  • Address58 Loanbank Quadrant
    Govan, Glasgow
    G51 3HZ
  • Phone07498 506973
  • Emailadam@xploramoulds.com
  • HoursMon–Fri, 7am–6pm