mold making, injection molding, mold design, low-cost mold making, mold engineering china, mould design, mold tooling

Materials List
Glossary of Terms

Abbreviations for Common Polymers Polymers are commonly referred to by both their names and abbreviations. Commercial polymers are also frequently referred to by the trade names of their manufacturer.

ABS - acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene terpolymer

BMC - thermoset polyester bulk Molding compound

EVA - ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer

LCP - liquid crystal polymer

PA - polyamide, commonly called nylon

PAN - polyacrylonitrile

PAS - polyarylsulfone

PBD - polybutadine

PBT - polybuylene terephthalate

PC - polycarbonate

PE - polyethylene see also

HDPE - high density PE

LDPE - low density PE

LLDPE - linear low density PE

VLDPE - very low density PE

HMW-HDPE - high molecular weight HDPE

UHMWPE – ultra high-molecular-weight polyethylene

PEEK - polyetheretherketone

PEK - polyetherketone

PEI - polyetherimide

PES - polyethersulfone

PET - polyethylene terephthalate

PET-G - glycol modified PET

PI - polyisoprene

PS-b-PI - polystyrene/polyisoprene block copolymer

PI - polyimide

PK - polyketone

PMMA - polymethyl methacrylate, commonly called acrylic

PMP - polymethylpentene

POM - polyoxymethylene, commonly called acetal

PP - polypropylene

PPA - polyphthalamide

PPO/PPE - polyphenylene oxide, polyphenylene ether

PPS - polyphenylene sulfide

PS - polystyrene

EPS - expanded polystyrene

HIPS - high impact polystyrene

PSO,PSU - polysulfone

PTFE - polytetrefluoroethylene

PU,PUR - polyurethane

PVA - polyvinyl alcohol (sometimes used for polyvinyl acetate)

PVAC - polyvinyl acetate

PVC - polyvinylchloride, commonly refered to as vinyl

PVOH - alternate abbreviation for polyvinyl alcohol

RUBBER

EPR - ethylene propylene rubber

SBR - styrene butadiene rubber

EPDM - ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber

SAN - styrene acrylonitrile copolymer

SI - silicone

SMC - thermoset polyester sheet Molding compound

TPE - thermoplastic elastomer

TPO - thermoplastic olefin

TPU - thermoplastic urethane

UF - urea formaldehyde

•Blow molding

This method is typically used to create hollow parts; jars, bottles, containers, etc Part prices for this style of plastic and rubber services are generally higher than injection molded parts, but lower than rotationally molded parts. Tooling costs are moderate.

•Blow molding

SBR - styrene butadiene rubber

•Co-Injection Molding – 2 components molding – multi components molding

Similar to injection molding but with multiple extruders, these are to produce a single component from two 2 or more different parent materials or colors. Typical applications are soft overmolding to produce seals or ergonomic soft-touch handles. Examples are – screwdrivers, soft-grip handles, cup-holders, toothbrushes.

•Gas assist injection molding GAIM(Gas assisted injection molding or gas injection molding)

This process utilizes high pressure nitrogen gas to produce hollow injection molded components resulting in lower weight, shorter cycles, and reduced visual sinking. Variants of this process include 'external gas molding' and 'internal gas molding' Advantages and Applications This process allows more design freedom. It allows discreet coring out of a thick product and thicker ribbing and can also eliminate sink marks.

•Induction Heated Molds

A six-year-old technology-development company in Le Bourget-du-Lac, France, with a U.S. office in Atlanta, RocTool's patented approach heats and cools only the mold surface for much faster cycles than are possible with conventionally heated molds. Turning on electric power to the inductors for only a few minutes heats just a 0.2-mm-deep section of the tool surface while 99.9% of the mold stays cold. It is using induction to heat molds for long-glass thermoplastic composites to produce large parts with automotive Class A surfaces.

•In-mold labeling/ IMD

(Also referred to as In-mold decorating) Mainly used in injection molding. Robotically placed individual pre-printed decorative labels are loaded during each machine cycle into the mold tool. To assist adhesion during the closing and material flow stages, the label and tool is electrostatic charged.

•Metal injection molding MIM

MIM is an advanced manufacturing process for forming small, complex, high-precision and high performance metal parts. It is a development of the traditional powder metallurgy (PM) process and has several key advantages. Advantages and Applications Advantages of Metal Injection Molding Over Traditional Powder Metallurgy are: In the PM process, parts with undercuts or projections at right angles to the pressing direction cannot normally be directly made. The MIM process substantially removes this limitation.

•Micro molding

Recent advances in miniature molding technology have seen major growth in the area of micro molding for electronics and medical applications.

•Moisture conditioning

Some plastics, including nylons will absorb moisture from the atmosphere, which alters their physical properties. Properties affected include brittleness and dimensional stability. Moisture absorption can be as high as 2% of a products weight. A pigment is often applied during the moisture conditioning process to identify treated parts.

•Plastic welding

Plastic welding – various plastic welding processes are employed dependant upon part geometry, size and polymer used. Ultrasonic welding, hot-plate welding, vibration welding, laser welding and spin welding can all be used.

•Rotational molding

Rotational molding uses hollow molds filled with powdered resin, Low tooling costs and high piece prices are typical of this process.

•Structural foam molding

Structural foam molding is a term commonly used to describe components made by the injection molding process which have a cellular core in which the outer surface is denser than the inner layers. The core of the molding is of a honeycomb nature and less dense than the outer surface. Advantages and applications include - Wine corks, Energy absorbing foam, low weight products, impact absorbing pads.

•Thermoforming plastic molding

Thermoforming plastic molding uses sheets of pre-extruded rigid plastic as the feed material. These are heated horizontally and sucked down into hollow one-piece tools.

•Thermoplastic Injection molding

Thermoplastic Injection molding is the most widely used of all plastic processing methods. Injection molding offers the lowest piece prices available, but tooling prices are generally the highest. The injection molding machine reduces pelletized raw material into a hot liquid. This "melt" is forced into a cooled mold under tremendous pressure. After the material solidifies, the mold is opened and a finished part is ejected.

•Thermoset Injection molding

Thermoset injection molding is similar to thermo-plastic injection molding except that uncured thermoset resins are mixed, injected, and held in a heated mold until cured. As with thermoplastic molding, the price per piece can be low, but the tooling prices are generally very high.

•Thin wall injection molding /TWIM

Thin wall molding is defined as a wall thickness of less than 0.025 in (0.62 mm) or a flow length to wall thickness ratio of greater than 200. When compared to standard injection molding, high melt flow materials are used (30-60 MFI), along with accumulator assist injection and higher injection speeds and pressures. Stack molds are common.