Custom Flexible Heaters
Symtec designs and manufactures custom flexible heaters for demanding applications across aerospace, medical devices, electric vehicles, and industrial equipment. From prototype to high-volume production, we deliver precision-engineered heating solutions in polyimide, silicone rubber, and polyester substrates — all from our facility in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Engineered for Your Application
Every flexible heater we build starts with your specific requirements. Whether you need uniform heat distribution across a complex surface, rapid thermal response for medical instruments, or rugged durability for under-hood automotive environments, our engineering team works directly with you to develop a heating solution that performs exactly as needed. We handle everything from initial thermal modeling and material selection through prototyping, validation testing, and full-scale production.
Our flexible heaters are manufactured using etched-foil and wire-wound resistance elements laminated between flexible substrate materials. This construction allows the heater to conform to curved, irregular, or space-constrained surfaces where rigid heaters simply will not fit. We offer three primary substrate materials, each with distinct performance characteristics suited to different operating environments and temperature ranges.
Flexible Heater Materials
Polyimide (Kapton) Flexible Heaters
Polyimide flexible heaters deliver exceptional performance in thin-profile, high-temperature applications. Built with etched-foil resistance elements laminated between polyimide film layers, these heaters operate continuously at temperatures up to 200°C (392°F) with thicknesses as low as 0.2mm. They are the preferred choice for aerospace avionics, medical diagnostic instruments, semiconductor processing equipment, and EV battery thermal management systems where space is limited and reliability is critical.
Silicone Rubber Flexible Heaters
Silicone rubber flexible heaters combine excellent conformability with outstanding chemical and moisture resistance. Constructed with wire-wound or etched-foil elements embedded in vulcanized silicone rubber, these heaters withstand temperatures up to 232°C (450°F) and conform to curved or irregular surfaces. They are widely used in food processing equipment, outdoor enclosures, oil and gas pipeline heating, and freeze protection systems where environmental exposure and vibration resistance are essential.
Polyester (PET) Flexible Heaters
Polyester flexible heaters provide a cost-effective solution for lower-temperature applications up to 100°C (212°F). Using etched-foil elements on polyester film, these heaters are ideal for consumer electronics, automotive seat and mirror heating, point-of-care medical devices, and commercial appliances where moderate heat output and high-volume production economics are priorities.
Industries and Applications
Symtec flexible heaters are engineered for environments where off-the-shelf solutions fall short. Our team has decades of experience solving thermal challenges across industries that demand precision, reliability, and custom-fit form factors. From keeping EV battery packs within optimal temperature ranges to maintaining consistent heat across aerospace sensor arrays, we design heaters that perform under the conditions your application actually faces — not just lab conditions.
We serve clients in aerospace and defense, electric vehicle and automotive, medical devices and diagnostics, semiconductor and electronics manufacturing, industrial process equipment, food and beverage processing, and oil and gas. Whether your challenge is extreme temperature cycling, chemical exposure, tight geometric constraints, or high-volume production at tight tolerances, our engineering team will work with you from concept through full-rate production.