Injection molding is a manufacturing process that produces small to large volume parts. It is commonly used in volume production process when the same parts is being built in thousands or even millions pieces.
The main advantage of Injection Molding Process is that when the tooling cost is paid, the price per unit in injection molded manufacturing is low. More parts are produced, the unit price is lower. Compared to traditional manufacturing process, for example, CNC machining. Injection molding produces lower material waste. During injection molding manufacturing process, the sprue, runner, gate locations and overflow material will produce waste plastic. Injection molding is repeatable. When manufacturer is going to produce the second part, this part is practically identical to the first one. This is very beneficial when manufacturer produces brand consistency and part reliability in volume production.
Injection molding manufacturing requests very high initial cost because of the design, testing and tooling requirements. Getting the design correct at the first time is very important when manufacturers produce parts in volumes, especially for the large volume. To get the design correct, the first thing is to design and prototype the parts. Manufacturers normally do the initial prototype by 3D printing, but material is different from the final part. And then design an injection mold tool for the initial production round. Manufacturers should refine all details in the injection mold tool before mass production.
The main negative aspect of injection molding is that injection molding process request tooling cost and lead time for Injection Molding Tools modifications. Injection molding necessitates uniform wall thickness. It is often that big parts and components produced by injection molding will be limited by injection molding machine and the mold tools. To avoid the large undercut, manufactures need more experience design to shoot down the potential molding issues before tooling.
Injection molding is a great technology in volume production. TEAM Rapid, as a professional Injection Molding Factory, we have more than 10 years experiences in prototyping making, mold manufacturing, product assembly, injection to shipping, we provide ALL IN ONE Service. Contact us at [email protected] to learn more about injection molding processes.
