For a cutlery series made of a new biopolymer, three full hot runner molds with digital process monitoring were developed in close cooperation with mold maker Uniform and hot runner specialist Ewikon.

The 16-drop family mold on the machine. The removal and packaging of the parts are fully automated

16:9

Complete Digital Hot Runner Solution for Automated Biopolymer Processing

Spritzgießen

Kunststoffverarbeitung: Verfahren

Condition Monitoring / Prozessüberwachung

Instandhaltung

Spritzgießwerkzeuge

Kunststoffverarbeitung: Maschinen und Komponenten

Werkzeuge für die Kunststoffverarbeitung

Biokunststoffe

Kunststoff Werkstoffe

Virtual Reality für die Qualitätssicherung

Industrie 4.0

Industrie 4.0 für die Qualitätssicherung

Heißkanalsysteme

Komponenten für die Kunststoffverarbeitung

Process Reliability Is Crucial

Pipette tips feature a challenging wall thickness/length ratio, an inner geometry that is key for analysis results, and a tip opening just a few tenths of a millimeter wide. They have been in extremely high demand during the coronavirus pandemic, which is why the mold construction and hot runner specialist Männer has developed a mold with an innovative cluster concept.

At the Männer test center in Bahlingen, Germany: an injection mold for manufacturing pipette tips, shown here in operation. Automation of the system is currently being set up

Pipette Tips: Männer Presents a Mold with Replaceable Clusters

Medizintechnik

Medizinprodukte

Maintenance During (Nearly)  Uninterrupted Production

Aside from offering high mechanical strength, versatility and durability, polymer materials are ideal for applications in the electrical industry because of their ability to isolate electrical current.

For the conduction cooled MicroTCA systems, Harting processes LCP, a material that is flame-resistant, dimensionally stable at high temperatures, chemically resistant, and has only a low thermal expansion

Connectors for Industrial Lifelines: High-Tech Injection Molding at Harting

Hybridtechnik

Polymere, flüssigkristalline

Thermoplaste

Stanzen

Verfahren für die spanlose Fertigung

Schneiden

Hybrid-Spritzgießen (Metall / Kunststoff)

Steckverbinder

Elektromechanik

Well-Balanced Hot Runner Technology for LCP Processing

Electrical components are made from conductive and nonconductive materials. Pressure of competition makes it necessary to reduce the number of components and work steps and to streamline assembly. The moldmaker Mühlbeyer uses a hybrid technology for manufacturing stators and rotors, in which the contact material and plastic are permanently bonded in one production step.

Various plastic-coated stators. During overmolding of the sheet components, not only insulation but also technical functions can be incorporated

Overmolding as a Prerequisite for Cost-Efficient, High-Quality Electric Motors

Elektromotoren

Antriebe

Dienstleistungen

Werkzeug-, Formen- und Modellbau

Injection Molds for Insulating  Stators and Rotors

Over past months, many in-house workflows and development processes have slowed down and also changed. Nevertheless, time has not stood still, also not in injection molding technology. The debate and development have been shaped by two themes: digitalization and the circular economy. Below are some examples of developments and projects that underpin this trend.

Two displays are seamlessly integrated into the continuously 3D-formed instrument panel

Innovative Injection Molding in Times of Pandemic

Schaumspritzgießen

Künstliche Intelligenz für die Qualitätssicherung

Steuern, Regeln

Software

Mehrkomponenten-Spritzgießen

Folientechnik (IMD, IML, FIM, u.a.)

Digitale Transformation

Wirtschaft

Innovationen und neue Technologie

Spritzgieß-Sonderverfahren

Nachhaltigkeit

Umweltmanagement

Spritzgießsimulation

Simulation

Schnecken und Plastifiziersysteme

Spritzgießmaschinen

Industrie 4.0 für die Kunststoffverarbeitung

Machine Learning / Künstliche Intelligenz für die spanende Fertigung

Industrie 4.0 für die spanende Fertigung

Kunststoff-Recycling

Kunststoff-Aufbereitung

Lasermarkieren

Oberflächentechnik

Laserbearbeitungen

Inline- / Online-Messsysteme

Qualitätssicherung

Qualitätssicherung Kunststoff

Kreislaufwirtschaft

There Is More beyond the Horizon

Family molds belong to the state-of-the-art in injection molding – at least when wall thicknesses and volumes of individual components vary considerably. Using a trial mold soon ready for series production, Synventive demonstrates that – though demanding – optimal process control can be achieved using the right technology. The filling of each mold cavity is controlled individually and in real time. The Kunststoffe editorial team were among the first guests at the new Tech Center.

View into the mold space of the Engel Duo 2700 at the Tech Center. In the background, a 6-axis robot with 180 kg load-bearing capacity which removes the components.

Single-Shot Injection Molding of Heterogeneous Components

Schröder, Susanne

Leading-Edge Process Control

Susanne Schröder will become editor-in-chief of the magazines Kunststoffe and Kunststoffe international on December 1, 2020. The current editor-in-chief Dr. Karlhorst Klotz will leave the company by mutual agreement.

Susanne Schröder will become editor-in-chief of the magazines Kunststoffe and Kunststoffe international on December 1, 2020. Until now she has been editor-in-chief of the trade journal FORM+Werkzeug

Werkzeuge für Leichtbauwerkstoffe

Präzisionswerkzeuge

Tiefziehwerkzeug

Werkzeugüberwachung

Toolmanagement

Werkzeugwechselsysteme, Spritzgieß

Werkzeug- und Formenbau

Modulare Werkzeugsysteme

Absaugungen für Werkzeugmaschinen

Betriebsausrüstung / Betriebsmittel

Absaugvorrichtungen

Fluorkunststoffe

Werkzeugverwaltungssoftware

Prüfen von Kunststoffen

Messtechnik

Presswerkzeuge, Kunststoff

Werkzeugreinigung, Kunststoffe

Standardkunststoffe

Kunststoffverarbeitung

Lohnfertigung

Technische Kunststoffe

Füllstoffe für Kunststoffe

Kunststoff

Bauwesen

Baustoffe

Kunststoffhandel

Handel

Betriebstechnik für Kunststoffverarbeitung (Peripherie)

Kunststofffasern

Verstärkungsstoffe

Hochleistungskunststoffe

Change in the Chief Editorial Office of Kunststoffe

A solution, which is unique in Europe, significantly increases productivity and comprises the production from a 12+12 stack mold with fully automated in-mold labeling and removal with visual 100 % inspection of the parts.

Before relocation to the production site, extensive functional tests and the final trial were carried out at the roth technical center

Fully Automated Production Line with Stack Mold and In-Mold Labeling

Award-Winning Packaging Solution Increases Productivity

A tool logbook on paper is often not to hand just when you need it most. Or it is incomplete, since it is time consuming to keep the information up to date. A cloud-independent, electronic tool log, which is directly integrated into the tool could make all the relevant data available directly.

The installed ImPro module in use on a demonstrator tool under production conditions 

The Electronic Tool Logbook as a Combination of Operating Manual and Check List

Werkzeuginnendrucksensoren

Sensoren / Messwertaufnehmer

Messdatenerfassung und -verarbeitung

Papierlose QM-Dokumentation

Qualitätsmanagement

Dokumentationsmanagement

Werkzeugkonstruktion

Mobile Datenerfassung

Logistik

Lagertechnik

Fernwartung / Ferndiagnose

Dokumentenmanagement, CAQ

Data Management at the Tool

Marbling is often a real eye-catcher in plastic components. However, the effect is difficult to create and there are some pitfalls when it comes to reproducibility. Novel nozzles for injection molding machines in combination with a special dosing technology allow marbled molded parts to be produced far more easily in a much more robust process.

Marbling leads to attractively designed molded plastic parts, but is not so easy to implement in production

A 3D-Printed Nozzle and Modified Dosing Method Deliver Reproducible Marbling  in a Robust Process

Kunststoffe

Photonik

Optik

Additive Fertigung

Farben, flüssig

Additive

Exciting Design instead of  Exciting Manufacturing

The toolmaker Siebenwurst uses injection molding simulation to optimize part design and production processes in its routine workflows. Among other things, Simcon’s software ensures the quality and dimensional accuracy of the plastic frame for the first series-produced injection molded e-bike.

The frames give the e-bikes an extraordinary design, with robustness comparable to steel or aluminum

Controlling Complex Development and Manufacturing Processes, Using Simulation

Composite-Halbzeuge

Halbzeuge und Zwischenprodukte

Kunststoff-Halbzeuge

Verbundwerkstoffe / Werkstoffverbunde

A Bike Frame from an Injection  Molding Machine

At the 2019 K fair, Arburg and Simcon showcased a filling process proceeding in real-time, as a 3D animation, on the display of a machine control panel, for an example of sunglasses, made of PA12. All that was needed to prepare this, was to load the simulation model, as well as the geometry of the part, directly onto the machine controls. This sounds almost too easy to be true. Right?

The Interviewees Dr. Paul Filz (left) an Dr. Eberhard Duffner

Interview with Eberhard Duffner and Paul F. Filz by the Magazine Kunststoffe

Doriat, Clemens, Dr.

Interview

Hybrid production chains have been increasingly in the spotlight in recent years. This also applies to the combination of conventional manufacturing and additive processes in tool construction. With the example of an injection molding tool, it is shown how mold inserts produced by additive manufacturing can greatly shorten cycle times, and thereby significantly reduce unit costs. The important thing is to find a suitable combination of processes from the variety available.

Tool insert for a spacer of a glass fiber-reinforced PA66. The example shows that hybrid manufacturing is suitable and provides added value, even with comparatively simple parts

Additive Manufacturing and Hybrid Molds in Combination with Conventional Machining

HSC- / HPC-Bearbeitung

Spanende Verfahren

Anlagen Additive Fertigung / 3D-Druck, Metall

Anlagen für die Additive Fertigung

The Potential of Redesign and  Part Consolidation

Starting with the systematic design of manufacturing processes and the precise simulation of part manufacture, through smart tooling technology and sophisticated melt guidance, to efficient mold temperature control, numerous exhibitors have many innovations in the field of tooling technology on offer at K 2019.The current debates concerning marine pollution as well as anthropogenic climate change and its consequences seem to be having an effect at this world-leading trade show for plastics processing in Düsseldorf, Germany. A number of companies are noting the growing customer interest in sustainable, carbon-neutral and resource-efficient modes of production, and offering products and services intended to satisfy this interest.

Resource-Efficient and Environmentally Friendly Products Are the Trend in  Tooling Technology

Temperiergeräte

Gießanlagen

Temperiertechnik

Normalien für die Kunststofffertigung

Normalien

Kaltkanalsysteme

Exhibitors See Green

The new Reverse Cube developed by Foboha manufactures various components or multi-component parts from varying materials in one step and assembles individual parts into finished products independently from the cycle time using an integrated handling robot. The automated process improves quality, accelerates cycle times by up to 40 % compared to separate injection molding and assembly processes, and thus enables substantial productivity gains at lower costs.

Two thermally separated cube molds rotate in opposite directions at a 90° angle. Bottom: injection and cooling of component 1 (roller made of PP) and component 2 (female connection made of POM), staggered by 180°

Manufacturing and Installing Multi-Component Parts on a Two-Part Cube Mold

Montage

Montagetechnik

Werkzeugtemperatursensoren

Industrieroboter

Reverse Rotation

Walther Faltsysteme Combines Three Mold Technologies from the Haidlmair Group

In plastics processing, efficient production methods are required, especially for articles with high volumes and exacting quality requirements, and these must be constantly optimized. The container specialist Walther Faltsysteme has been working together with the Austrian moldmaker Haidlmair for many years, and now, for the first time, two other companies from the Group have come into play in current projects, helping Walther to achieve higher productivity and production efficiency.

In plastics processing, efficient production methods are required, especially for articles with high volumes and exacting quality requirements, and these must be constantly optimized. The container specialist Walther Faltsysteme has been successfully working together with the Austrian moldmaker Haidlmair for many years.

The development of customized reusable transport containers that are precisely tailored to the special requirements of customers is the art of Walther Faltsysteme GmbH: folding containers that are mechanically folded and unfolded in automated warehouses, foldable mega-packs made of lightweight plastic that make heavy wire mesh boxes redundant, flexfold containers made of conductive plastic for the transport of electronic components, inner packaging adapted to the millimeter that protects sensitive goods – the list could go on and on.

The traditional family business from Kevelaer is one of the few companies in its sector to have its own moldmaking shop, which is mainly used in development projects and in the production of prototype molds. In addition, Walther has been relying on the quality of Haidlmair’s injection molds for several years, especially when it comes to high volume or high-performance molds. In addition to the pure performance data, Dominik Lemken (Fig. 1), project manager and procurement leader at Walther Faltsysteme, appreciates above all the good cooperation with the moldmaker from Nussbach in Upper Austria, the adherence to the promises made and the commitment to meeting deadlines. For example, the simulations prepared in advance clearly show what results are to be expected. “These are clearly communicated and adhered to,” as Lemken points out, “and that is particularly important because these commitments serve as an important basis for our calculations.”

Since the spring of 2020, Walther has had two new molds in use, which for the first time combine Haidlmair’s know-how with two technologies that originally came from the mold maker’s development department. These are the hot runner system Flat Die Unit (FDU) and the digitalization solution Mold Monitoring. Behind the two innovations are two companies that now stand on their own two feet: the 100 % Haidlmair subsidiary FDU Hotrunner GmbH and Digital Molds GmbH, a 50/50 joint venture between Haidlmair and Siegfried Hofmann GmbH, Lichtenfels, Germany.

Hotrunner with Flat Die for Pallet Runners and Pallet Deck

The two molds in which both Mold Monitoring and the FDU system are installed are used to manufacture a pallet (Title figure). The first mold produces the three runners, the second the deck of the pallet. The reason for the division is due to the different materials used to produce the pallet. In the case of the runners, glass fiber is added to the plastic in order to achieve a more wear-resistant and bend-resistant design, while some recycled material is used for the deck.

These two factors pose several challenges for producers. In the case of the runners, the glass fiber must be evenly distributed in the product. Some of the advantages of the FDU come into play here. The flow channel in the nozzle is projected onto a flat nozzle (Fig. 2). This means that the plastic flows evenly into the cavity through a defined long gap instead of through a small point gate. The FDU promotes this even distribution of the material and thus increases the quality and durability of the runners.

In the past, the recycling material and its performance in the process was a potential drag on the pallet deck and caused problems. The friction in the mold, especially in the vicinity of the injection points, repeatedly resulted in local temperature peaks, degradation and, as a result, the material sticking. Walther is now solving this problem with the use of the FDU, as the slot nozzle brings the material into the mold more gently. In addition, the ratio of new raw materials to recycled material can be shifted in favor of recycled material, in order to be able to produce the product even more sustainably.

The two molds are currently running synchronously next to each other on two machines at Walther. In between, an articulated arm robot assembles the parts to make the finished pallet. Four years ago, Walther ordered the same mold set from Haidlmair. Since then, these molds, equipped with conventional round nozzles, have been running flawlessly and with excellent performance. At the end of 2019, Walther decided to expand its capacity with another production line. The manufacturer’s specialists took a very close look at the mold and tried to optimize the performance in terms of mold construction and through minor product changes.

But, after all the analysis, the issue of gating emerged as the bottleneck in the truest sense of the word. Approx. 6.5kg of material per pallet must be injected as quickly as possible. With conventional needle valve nozzles, the users quickly reach the limits. The FDU, with its significantly larger cross-section (in this case a FDU Midi with a blade width of 22 mm), enables the user to bring much more material into the mold in a short time and expands on the previous injection capacity limits, pushing the performance envelope further.

In the specific case at Walther, the cycle time could be reduced by approximately 10 %. Dominik Lemken is extremely satisfied with the performance so far: “We have already produced over 100,000 units since April without any problems worth mentioning and I would be happy if we could use the FDU for other molds we use, for example applying this to production process for roller plates or various folding boxes would also be ideal, because the improved performance and the extended process window clearly support doing this.”