Injection Molding
Injection molding is a process used in the manufacturing of plastic parts. Injection molding machines take solid or liquid plastic pellets, melt them down, and inject them into a mold cavity to create shapes and parts. Parts created this way come out with a virtually-seamless, high-quality surface finish.
Injection molding is one of the most widely used techniques for producing plastic parts. While parts can be produced from single-part molds, usually the most complex and interesting parts are produced from multiple-cavity injection molds. Common applications for injection molding include automotive, medical, robotics, and industrial components. It is especially useful for producing a large number of parts of identical size and shape, with tight tolerances and high precision.
The advantages of injection molding include time and cost savings; when multiple parts with identical design are produced, the cost of tooling is low. Shorter production runs are also possible, which can save in materials costs and design time. Additionally, injection molding is a relatively fast process, with most molds being able to produce a single part in a few seconds. After parts are molded, further finishing operations such as painting, drilling or stamping may be necessary.
Injection molding is a complex manufacturing process and involves many variables that need to be exacted. The mold is the most important part of the process, and must have precise dimensions and be well-designed to ensure accurate and consistent parts throughout the production run. The mold consists of two parts – the fixed half, usually called the cavity, and the movable half, usually called the core.
In the injection molding process, the pellets are placed in a hopper and fed into the injection molding machine heated barrel. The molten plastic is then injected into the mold cavity where it will cool to form the part. After the part is cooled, the injection mold opens and the part is ejected out of the mold. Any excess material is trimmed and the part is transported to the next stage in the process.
Injection molding is a highly versatile technology, capable of producing parts ranging from miniscule electronic components to large vehicle parts. Its strength, accuracy and speed make it an ideal choice for a variety of applications across many industries. Additionally, injection molding is extremely cost-effective and requires relatively little setup time, making it a great choice for low volume production runs. As technology and machinery continue to evolve, the range of application for injection molding is only expected to increase.
