At Vipa Designs, we offer a full turnkey jewellery casting and manufacturing service, from one-of-a-kind pieces for commissions, jewellery students, and bespoke jewellery manufacturers, to large production runs, making casting accessible for all. When our clients choose us, they know they’re working with an expert team that believes in quality above all else. Our award-winning master craftspeople utilise state-of-the-art equipment to capture every intricate detail and dimension, taking pride in our stringent quality standards throughout the entire casting process, and the level of craftsmanship that goes into every piece we produce.
With over 40 years of specialist experience, we offer a variety of approaches to the lost wax jewellery casting process, with flexibility and adaptability at the forefront of what we do. From casting your own hand-carved or injected waxes, to jewellery patterns in wax, resin, metal or natural objects, to working with you to mould a metal or CAD master for repeated production runs, we’re here to help with all of your casting requirements – no matter how complex, unusual or challenging. Understanding that design security is paramount, we are also proud to provide a secure mould storage service for our clients to enable faster repeat production.
“Meet the masters behind our jewels: Vipa Designs is the casting house where the majority of our jewels begin their journeys into fruition. To cast a new ring, Vipa begins by creating a CAM print.
From this print, they cast a metal master pattern with a sprue – a ‘feeding’ channel through which metal is later poured. A rubber sheet is packed tightly around this master pattern and placed into a heated press to create a mould. Using a surgeon’s scalpel and a bent fork held in a vice, this rubber mould is then cut with painstaking care to create a mould locking device and parting lines.
Next, wax is injected into the mould before being carefully removed, now moulded into the form of a ring.
Then it’s time to prepare the investment material, a formula very similar to Plaster of Paris but able to withstand much higher temperatures and pressure. The material is poured into a flask, covering and surrounding the wax ring, before the flask is put into a furnace. Furnaces are fitted with temperature controllers that have been carefully calculated to give the optimum burnout cycle, bringing the flasks to the correct casting temperature. A complex extraction system ensures all toxic fumes are removed from the area. Meanwhile, raw metal is poured into a crucible ready to melt and pour into the flask.
The sprue can now be clearly seen in the investment material, offering a hole leading down to the casting. At this stage the flask is several hundred degrees hot, ready to accept the molten metal, which is poured into the sprue to fill the cavity in the investment, creating the casting. Once the flask’s been left long enough for the metal to solidify, it’s removed from the furnace and plunged into water. When submerged the investment material ‘explodes’ off, leaving behind a ‘slurry’ and – most importantly – the casting. The sprues are cut with a hand-held hydraulic cutting tool and the casting is carefully checked to ensure perfection.
Any visible mould lines and surface imperfections in the casting are filled, and file marks are removed with the help of fine grade sanding paper. Large sprues are sawn off and a spinning polishing tool ensures a gleaming, mirror-like surface is created. Et voila!“
From haute couture jewellery houses and international chains to independent jewellery designers and jewellery students, we provide high quality casting services for long production runs, short runs and one-off bespoke designs alike. Get in touch with the Vipa Designs team today, and discover how our end-to-end jewellery casting service is the perfect match for your requirements.
