Vacuum handling
Rubber and silicone suction cups
Moulded elastomer suction cups and vacuum pads for lifting equipment, robotic end-effectors, packaging lines and sheet handling. Produced to customer drawing, in a compound formulated for the surface the cup has to grip.
The problem is rarely the vacuum
A suction cup has to do three things that pull against each other: seal against an imperfect surface, hold the load without slipping, and release the part without leaving a trace of itself behind.
The first two are geometry and hardness. The third is compound chemistry, and it is where most suction cups fail commercially rather than mechanically.
Marking
A cup that leaves a mark on a painted panel, a polished sheet, a glass pane or a printed carton produces a rejected workpiece — not a rejected cup. Marking comes from plasticiser migration and from filler transfer at the contact face, both of which are formulation problems. Because we mix our own compounds, we can adjust the formulation against the surface rather than choosing the least bad option from a catalogue.
Grip against seal
A soft compound seals well on rough or curved surfaces but deforms under shear and lets the load slip. A hard compound holds shear but seals poorly. The working answer is usually a specific hardness for a specific surface, which is why we produce across 25 to 90 Shore A rather than offering a standard grade.
Service conditions
Cups working near ovens, in cold stores, in oily press shops or under continuous cycling all age differently. Temperature range, oil contact and cycle count change the material choice before the geometry is even discussed.
What we produce
| Item | Notes |
|---|---|
| Flat suction cups | Smooth, rigid surfaces — glass, sheet metal, panels |
| Bellows cups | Uneven or angled surfaces, and where vertical compliance is needed |
| Oval and rectangular pads | Long or narrow workpieces, profile handling |
| Sealing rings and mounting gaskets | Interface between cup and vacuum fitting |
| Bonded assemblies | Rubber-to-metal or rubber-to-plastic where the fitting is integrated |
| Family | Chosen when |
|---|---|
| NBR — nitrile | Oil and grease contact, press shops, machined parts |
| VMQ — silicone | Wide temperature range, low marking risk, clean environments |
| NR — natural rubber | High grip and resilience, general handling |
| EPDM | Outdoor, ozone and weather exposure |
| CR — chloroprene | Moderate oil combined with weather resistance |
Hardness 25–90 Shore A. Colour to requirement, including light and non-marking compounds. Injection moulded, or compression moulded for larger diameters and short runs.
For vacuum equipment manufacturers
If you build vacuum lifters, end-of-arm tooling or handling equipment and currently buy cups as a finished component, we can produce to your drawing under your part number, in your compound specification or in one we develop against your application.
Existing tooling can often be transferred and requalified — usually faster and cheaper than starting from a drawing. Compounding is inside our ISO 9001:2015 certified scope, and once a compound is approved the formulation is frozen: no change without prior written notification.
Send a drawing or a sample and we will comment on manufacturability and material before any tooling is committed.