What Is Custom Plastic Injection Mold Prototyping?
When it comes to plastic injection molding, the number of available options is immense. But with all these options comes the risk of choosing the wrong material or building a part that won’t work as intended. To eliminate much of this risk, manufacturers rely on building prototype molds; any problems spotted during the prototype process can be corrected much more easily and inexpensively than when production has started.
To understand more about custom injection mold prototyping, it helps first to understand the plastic injection mold process. After a quick review, we’ll discuss what custom plastic injection mold prototyping is and take a high-level look at why it’s so valuable.
A Quick Overview of Plastic Injection Molding
During the plastic injection molding process, plastic is heated and then injected into a metal mold. While the process sounds relatively simple on its face, many variables can affect the quality of the finished part. The main factors are:
- The molding process used (e.g. 3D printing, cold runner molding, hot runner molding)
- The mold design.
- The mold material (e.g. steel, aluminum, etc.)
- The type of plastic used.
- How the plastic is heated and cooled.
Any of these factors can be the difference between a production model that works well and one that turns out substandard parts. And that’s why custom plastic mold prototyping is so important.
What Is Plastic Injection Mold Prototyping?
Plastic injection mold prototyping allows companies to quickly build and refine trial versions of molds that will be used in plastic injection manufacturing. The prototyping process lets companies create the most functional designs while still having a physical object to share with engineers, customers, and other interested parties.
Why Create an Injection Mold Prototype?
In plastic injection molding, tooling costs are relatively high. Manufacturers can’t afford to rebuild their molds to fix problems in production; nor can they afford the slowdowns associated with underperforming tools. Thus, tooling that makes high-quality parts reliably and quickly is critical, and prototyping is an essential step in creating such a mold.
Another time when custom plastic injection mold prototypes come in handy is when changes need to be made quickly. Using aluminum molds or even 3D printing, it’s possible to start prototyping in days rather than weeks or months.
In summary, custom plastic injection mold prototypes make it possible for businesses to quickly develop the tooling they need to manufacture a precise and suitable part. Mold prototypes are a cost-effective way to find and fix problems, and they can be developed and refined very rapidly.