As we near the end of our product spectrum we move away from prototyping to full-service tooling and production parts. Hard tooling, a mold constructed from Aluminum or Steel, is used alongside the Injection Molding process to create large quantities of parts. Molding is the process used to fill the hard tool with a specified material in order to produce physical parts. The tooling and molding processes are intended for both low and high-volume production parts. These parts can range from simple to complicated and can be made from virtually any manufactured Thermo Plastic material. Nearly every industry utilizes tooling and molding including aerospace, medical devices, appliances, automotive, business products, industrial equipment, industrial design, consumer products, toys, and sporting equipment.
At Solid Concepts, the tooling and injection molding process starts with CAD files that have been reviewed by U.S. based Project Engineers. One of the benefits of working with Solid Concepts is that you can review your parts for manufacturability before you produce your first prototype, preventing design revisions once you reach the manufacturing stage.
Once the geometry is proven for manufacturability and appropriate tooling and/or molding processes have been selected, hard metal tools (molds) are created from the desired geometry. Depending on the part's complexity, the tool may be composed of two or more sections that fit together to create a perfect seal. The tool is put on a press which brings the two halves of the tool together and apart. The molding process is used to fill the tool with material and ultimately produce parts. When the press brings the two (or more) halves of the tool together, it is injected with material. After the material has set, the halves of the mold are separated revealing a complete part. The molding process is repeated until the desired number of parts are created. If applicable, Solid Concepts can also provide post molding services, such as pad printing, silk screening, painting, EMI shielding and plating.
Our Tooling & Injection Molding team is based out of Tempe, AZ and has 100+ years combined experience in all phases of tooling and molding. Working with our partner in Shenzhen, China, Solid Concepts brings you the best of both worlds – overseas pricing & lead times with Solid Concepts' quality & U.S. project management.
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