Injection molding is a process by which we take raw plastic material in the form of small pellets (also referred to as resin), heat it gently to the point where it will flow under moderate pressure, and inject it (push it with a plunger) into a mold.
The mold is made up of two separable halves. After allowing enough time for the plastic to cool off, the mold opens (separates). and the molded part is removed.
The process utilizes specialized equipment naturally called injection molding machines. These can be quite large, usually much larger than one would expect relative to the sizes of the parts they can make.
The size range of machines is usually stated in tons, which refers to the clamping pressure that they can apply to the mold halves.
PCM has machine capacities from 40 to 1000 Tons. Suitable for plastic parts up to 400 oz.
The injection mold is the precision tool that makes the magic of injection molding come alive. Indeed some injection molds can be very expensive, but they don't all have to be.
For products of lesser precision or simpler design, we use standard mold sets and aluminum materials to create affordable shorter run toolings.
This is not to say that all injection jobs can be done in standard tool sets, or with soft alloy tooling materials. The tooling options are constrained by (among other factors), the physical dimensions, the final finish, and the intended plastic material, of your project.
For the physical dimensions, we will keep things simple and talk only about the draw depth.
What I am referring to here is the thickness of the part, and how deeply it will be set into the mold.
Generally if a part is set in the mold more that 1/8" it will be difficult to remove without the assistance of what we call knock-out pins. Knock-out pins are most often an essential component of an injection mold. And their design, placement and accommodation are a significant part of tooling costs.
The foregoing discussion is not intended to be a technical article on injection molding.
It's purpose is to give you a little background on the process, and to help you with some of our terms.
Get more information about injection molding at PCM.
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We'd love to discuss your project needs and help you to make the proper decisions in your injection molding needs! Phone 815-675-1370
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