Molding has changed the way manufacturing world used to operate. With highly efficient methods like plastic injection molding, making parts for various applications has been faster and economical. However, it is essential to consider a few things about molds that help in manufacturing of simple or complex plastic parts. In fact, molds for producing parts with metals also exist and they help in manufacturing of metal components. For instance, a wine cap mold is slightly different that allows molding of metals and alloys for producing wine caps.
Let’s consider the design of plastic molds here and discuss a few key points about its design:
· The mold design must consider the shrinkage coefficient of the materials being used. Different materials have different shrinkage rate so the plastic mold should have a reasonable shrinkage.
· Plastic mold should be designed with sufficient rigidity so that it doesn’t deform when mold is under pressure.
· Mold must feature an appropriate demolding method along with a reasonable location and number of ejectors to ensure ejection doesn’t damage the product.
· The water channel for cooling in the plastic mold gets is related to the product shape, size, holding time, and plasticity.
· Plastic mold should have a reasonable exhaust position and control amount to obtain perfect material, not an unfilled plastic material.
· The selection of injection channel should also be reasonable so that the material reaches the cavity evenly. Also, there must be enough space to ensure the plastic is replenished well during shrinkage.
· Injection molding is preferred because it avoids the need for post-processing of plastic mold material. Heat treatment of the parts should be avoided, as it can deform the plastic component.
Insert mold
Insert molding is one of the highly popular processes of plastic molding. The process requires molding thermoplastic materials around an already formed component, called an insert, to create a final finished part. As one can understand, the finished part is made of multiple materials. The inserts used in the process are typically metal inserts, which also reinforce the mechanical properties of the plastic part. In insert molding, precise mold inserts are placed into the mold, and thermoplastic is injected later into the mold for production of a complete part.
The process gives a complete part so it doesn’t require post-processing or post-molding process. The use of molded-in inserts is cost saving in the sense that it avoids the need for secondary installation of inserts.
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