Plastic Injection Molding Process
Plastic injection molding process requires the use of an injection molding machine, raw plastic material, and a plastic mold. In this process, the plastic is melted in the injection molding machine and then injected into the plastic mold, where it cools and solidifies into the final part. Plastic injection molding process is getting popular today.
Plastic injection molding process produces thin-walled plastic parts for a wide variety of applications. Injection molding is also used to produce several everyday items such as toothbrushes or small plastic toys. Many medical devices, including valves and syringes, are manufactured using injection molding as well. The following information will describe in greater detail of this plastic injection molding process.
The first step of plastic injection molding process is the clamping of the mold. The clamping unit is one of three standard elements of the injection machine. They are the plastic mold, the injection unit, and the clamping unit. The clamp is what really holds the mold while the melted plastic is being injected, the plastic mold is held under pressure while the injected plastic is cooling.
Injection molded parts that are used in plastic injection molding process can vary greatly in size and therefore require these measures to cover a very large range. As a result, injection molding machines are designed to each accommodates a small range of this larger spectrum of values.
Injection molding machines have many components and are available in different configurations, including a horizontal configuration and a vertical configuration. On the other hand, regardless of their design, all injection molding machines utilize a power source, injection unit, mold assembly, and clamping unit to perform the four stages of the process cycle.
Injection molding machines that can be used in plastic injection molding process are typically characterized by the tonnage of the clamp force they provide. The necessary clamp force is determined by the expected area of the parts in the mold and the pressure with which the material is injected.
Thus, a larger part will require a larger clamping force. Also, certain materials that require high injection pressures may require higher tonnage machines. The size of the part must also comply with other machine specifications, such as shot capacity, clamp stroke, minimum mold thickness, and platen size.
Next step of plastic injection molding process is the real injection of the plastic which is melted. The plastic regularly begins this process as pellets that are put into a large hopper. The pellets are then fed to a cylinder; here they are heated until they become molten plastic that is easily forced into the mold. The plastic stays in the mold, where it is being clamped under pressure until it cools.
As with any process, there are advantages and disadvantages associated with plastic injection molding process. The advantages be more important than the disadvantages for most companies; they contain being able to keep up high levels of production, being able to reproduce a high tolerance level in the products being produced, and lower costs for labor as the bulk of the work is done by machine. Injection Molded Plastic Parts also has the added benefit of lower scrap costs because the mold is so precisely made.
However, the disadvantages of this plastic injection molding process can be a deal breaker for minor companies that would like to use plastic injection molding as a way to manufacture parts. These disadvantages are, that they equipment needed is expensive, therefore, increasing operating costs.
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