It’s a familiar scenario: You’ve just received a shipment of a mystery resin about which you know very little. Have you ever worked with it before? Not sure. What are the processing parameters? Without any accompanying information, you don’t have a clue. So you start a production run after “guestimating” the processing parameters. Not a…
Filed Under:Plastic Injection Molding News
Bumper covers: you see them every day but probably don’t give them much thought. Made of either plastic or fiberglass, they have two primary jobs: protect the bumper, and by extension, the entire automobile and its occupants. Their second job is simply to give a very utilitarian object (i.e. the bumper) a certain elan, thus…
Filed Under:Automotive Plastic Injection Molded Parts
Yep, it’s true: size matters. But in the case of particulate additives, (unlike, ahem, other instances) smaller is definitely more beautiful. In fact, nano-sized or even particles measured in micrometers are much less problematic for fabricated plastic products than adding pure organic polymers. The smaller particulate additives not only can lower the cost of plastic…
Filed Under:Plastic Injection Molding Methods
On this blog, we love plastics — all sorts of plastic, especially the plastic-injected molded kind. But there comes a time when plastic doesn’t have the metal, eh, mettle, to get the job done right. Plastic parts that have to be assembled and re-assembled multiple times, for example. Plastic threads just won’t cut it, in those…
Filed Under:Plastic Injection Molding Methods
Plastic injection molding companies throughout the region are licking their lips at the news of Foxconn’s decision to build a massive new manufacturing facility in Kenosha, WI. The reason is simple: the new plant will require equally massive amounts of plastic digital device cases, TV housings and other plastic items to support their operation. Because…
Filed Under:Uncategorized
A good working definition of process standardization in plastic injection molding: Creating a repeatable process with 100% efficiency that results in standardized products with little or zero scrap. Any real process requires consistent variables. These include — but are not limited t0 fill time, peak pressure, barrel temperature and fill temperature. Paying attention to such…
Filed Under:Plastic Injection Molding Methods
Steel yourself: plastic is becoming increasingly more popular as a material for machine gears. In fact, in some gearing applications, plastic is even superior to metal! Advances in polymers have made this all possible. Industrial designers have a better grasp of their benefits and limitations. Today, plastic gears can be manufactured by hobbing or stamping…
Filed Under:Automotive Plastic Injection Molded Parts
Too good to be true, you say? Believe it: the latest production monitoring systems are increasingly internet-based (usually wi-fi) and can be installed by even the most non-techie executive. The goal? Saving money, of course, by utilizing real-time data from the plastic injection molding process, then turning around and making that process more efficient. And…
Filed Under:Uncategorized
During the last decade or so, consumer packaged goods companies have done a good job on improving the recycle-ability of paper packaging. The same really can’t be said for using recycled content in plastic packaging. However, this “post-consumer recycled (PCR) content,” as it is technically knows, is making serious inroads in our industry, especially in…
Filed Under:personal care product packaging
Perhaps the most important part of any plastic drug container is the cap — if it isn’t secure, the integrity of the pharmaceutical inside could be compromised. And that could be a matter of life or death. Or, at the very least, a compromised closure could lead to government regulatory sanctions and legal liability. Often…
Filed Under:Plastic Caps and Closures , Plastic Injection Molding Medical Parts