Injection molding is a versatile plastic manufacturing process. It produces items from small precision medical components to large automobile parts.
The molded plastic parts are then finished with various finishing techniques, including coloration and texture, to alter the appearance and physical properties of the details. This allows a designer to achieve a wide range of aesthetic and functional results in a single product.
Design
Plastic injection molding is a process that allows manufacturers to produce strong, tensile, and high-quality components repeatedly. It is a cost-effective and efficient way to make parts.
Plastic injection mold makers ensure that each manufactured part meets the customer’s specifications and is free from defects. This can be accomplished by establishing a comprehensive design for manufacturability (DFM) process early in the product development cycle.
During this process, plastic injection mold makers collaborate to establish the appropriate product specifications, material selection, and component functionality. They also identify potential design constraints or geometries that could introduce technical issues.
Once the appropriate materials and molds have been selected, trials are conducted to determine the optimal temperatures, times, pressures, and speeds for the injection molding process. The samples that meet the customer’s requirements are then submitted for approval.
Tooling
Injection molding is a highly productive method for fabricating plastic parts. However, a part’s success depends on its tooling.
Mold tooling is a customized tool that produces identical parts consistently. It requires a high initial investment and requires modification after each use.
To minimize the cost of tooling, you should design your parts for efficiency and long-term success. This will reduce the time and money you spend on rework or failure.
The first step is to identify your parts’ main features. These can include bosses, ribs, snap-fits, and other hidden structural elements vital to your product’s functionality.
Next, you can design your parts’ external features. These can include embossed text, logos, warnings, diagrams, and instructions. Make sure the lettering is raised 0.5 mm above the part surface for better visibility.
Manufacturing
The role of plastic injection mold makers in manufacturing is to create a high-quality, accurate tool for producing parts in large quantities. This requires significant expertise, which costs a lot of money.
First, the team develops a sample of the part’s specifications, ensuring the mold can produce accurately and without issue. This phase usually involves several trials and approvals by the customer.
Second, the injection unit’s hopper, barrel, and screw inject the molten plastic into the mold. It is then pumped through the sprue, runners, and gates to each mold cavity.
The resulting part has a finished appearance and hardly needs additional work once it’s out of the mold. This reduces the amount of scrap plastic produced by this process, an essential factor in reducing production costs.
Testing
Injection molding is a highly efficient method of making molded parts. It can create hundreds of identical parts an hour, making it a cost-effective solution for many applications.
However, this method has its challenges. It requires much time to design and test, and its initial lead times can be long (5-7 weeks to manufacture tooling and 2-4 weeks to produce and ship the part).
Mold testing is critical during manufacturing because it helps ensure the final part is free from defects. It tests the parts’ ability to be molded and determines whether the machine produces them as expected.
A sound quality control system can help improve your company’s overall productivity and reduce the risk of defective products making it to market. It also increases your employees’ awareness about quality and ensures that everyone is working to deliver high-quality results.
