A custom blister pack or thermoformed tray has no list price. The price comes from choices you make about the part, the mould and the order. This guide covers each one.
Aravinth Polymers makes blister packs, clamshells, trays and ESD trays in Chennai by vacuum forming. Our minimum order is 500 pieces.
Material and Gauge
Sheet plastic is usually the largest running cost.
We form seven polymers: ABS, HIPS, rigid PVC, APET, GPET, HDPE and PP. Clear retail blisters tend to use PVC, APET or GPET. Opaque trays for factory handling often use HIPS or ABS. HDPE and PP suit parts that need to flex or resist chemicals. Each polymer has its own price per kilo, which moves with the resin market.
We run sheet from 0.15 mm to 6.0 mm. A thicker sheet puts more plastic in every part and lengthens the heating and cooling cycle. Ask for the thinnest gauge that still protects your product in a drop or a stack.
Mould Type: MDF or Aluminium
Every custom shape needs a mould, which you pay for once. We make moulds in-house in two materials.
| MDF mould | Aluminium mould | |
|---|---|---|
| Upfront cost | Lower | Higher |
| Lead time | Shorter | Longer |
| Life | Short runs and trials | Repeat production |
| Surface detail | Good | Sharper, more consistent |
An MDF mould suits a first order, a trial or a product you may redesign. An aluminium mould costs more at the start but holds its shape across repeat orders, so it often works out cheaper per piece for a part you will reorder for years.
Repeat orders of the same part carry no new mould charge unless the design changes or the mould wears out.
Cavities and Nesting
A cavity is one formed part on the mould. A mould with several cavities makes several parts in each forming cycle, so each part takes a smaller share of machine time.
More cavities raise the mould cost, so the right number depends on volume. For a 500-piece trial, one or two cavities may be enough. For steady monthly orders, a multi-cavity mould spreads its cost over many parts.
Nesting is how tightly the parts sit on the sheet. Close nesting leaves less trim waste, and you pay for that waste as part of the sheet. Small changes to the part outline, such as rounding a corner or trimming a flange, can let more parts fit on one sheet.
Quantity per Order and per Year
Loading the mould, setting heat and vacuum, and checking first parts take the same time for a short run or a long one. A larger order spreads that setup over more pieces, so the price per piece drops as quantity rises.
Annual volume matters too. If you tell us your monthly need for the year, we can plan sheet purchases and pick the mould type and cavity count to match.
Sealing, Carding and Assembly
Each step after forming adds labour or tooling:
- Heat sealing a blister to a printed card needs a sealing tool and a coated card.
- Clamshells may need a hinge, snap locks or a hang hole.
- Trimming to a tight outline may need a cutting die.
- Placing your product inside the pack adds handling time.
Tell us which steps you need and which your own plant will handle.
Packing and Freight
Thermoformed parts are light but bulky. Trays nest and ship compactly, while clamshells and deep blisters take more carton space. Freight follows that volume, the delivery distance and whether you collect from our unit in Chennai.
Ask for the pieces per carton. That figure tells you what each part costs to move.
What to Send for an Accurate Quote
The more of this you send, the closer our first quote lands to the final price:
- A drawing, a CAD file or a physical sample of your product
- The polymer you want, or how the part will be used so we can suggest one
- Sheet thickness, if you know it
- Quantity for the first order and your estimated yearly volume
- Whether you need sealing, carding, a hinge or any assembly
- Clear, coloured or opaque, and any print or label needs
- Delivery location and the date you need the parts
Send these to us and we will reply with the mould options, a price per piece at your quantities and a lead time.