injection molders` benchmark survey

Transcription

CanadianPlastics
www.canplastics.com
FEBRUARY 2014
INJECTION
MOLDERS’
BENCHMARK
SURVEY
What’s
On Their
Minds?
GET SHREDDED
WITH THE LATEST SIZE
REDUCTION EQUIPMENT
SECRETS TO A
BETTER INJECTION
MOLDING PURGE
WHY 3D PRINTING
MIGHT JUST CHANGE
EVERYTHING
CPLFeb2014 cover.indd 1
14-01-23 8:28 AM
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Fax: +1 (860) 667 6522
e-mail: [email protected]
CPLFeb2014 p02 Arburg AD.indd 2
www.arburg.us
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14-01-23 8:29 AM
contents
Canadian Plastics
FEBRUARY 2014
VOLUME 72 NUMBER 1
LOOKING BACK...
Number of the month:
$13.75*
* Average hourly operator wage in a
Canadian injection molding shop,
excluding benefits. (See pg. 14)
in every issue
4 Editor’s View:
The free trade winds are blowing
5 Ideas & Innovations:
Brace yourself for custom,
3D-printed casts
6News:
• Nova Chemicals details plans
for multiple projects in
Sarnia region
• Arburg building new U.S.
headquarters in Connecticut
• Ontario molder Quality Model
expanding operations in
South Carolina
• Supplier News & People
9 Executive’s Corner:
Get ready for CETA
30 Technology Showcase
5
©Karen Struthers/Getty Images/Thinkstock
It paid to be Canadian way back when.
Statistics provided by SPI Canada (the
predecessor to today's Canadian Plastics
Industry Association) showed that Canadians
were getting a veritable bargain from their
membership dues in the organization, the
November 1967 issue of Canadian Plastics
reported. According to SPI Canada head
Ron Evason, the average Canadian SPI
member-company's dues in 1967 were
$400 per year, which was one-half of the
$800 per year paid by U.S. companies for
membership in the SPI's American branch.
11
20
cover story
11 INJECTION MOLDERS’ BENCHMARK SURVEY: What’s on their minds?
Manufacturing is hot again after the freeze of the Great
Recession, and our latest injection molding survey is your
chance to measure your temperature against the competition.
Buying intentions, utilization rates, markets served, operator
wages — it's all inside.
features
16 SIZE REDUCTION EQUIPMENT: Get shredded!
If you can produce it, you'd better believe these units can reduce
it — and fast. Here's a look at what's new, now.
20 3D PRINTING: Growing layer by layer
We don't throw the word "revolutionary" around very often, but
when it comes to 3D printing — which offers molders the chance
to make quality parts without a mold — it might even be an
understatement. Here's a look at how it works, and what it can —
and for the moment, can't — do.
34 Plastics Data File
37 Advertising Index
37 Classified Ads
38 Technical Tips:
How to obtain even wall
thickness in extrusion blow
molding (it ain’t easy)
26 PURGING COMPOUNDS: Tips for injection molders
Yes, purging an injection molding press can be time-consuming;
and yes, that lost production time can cut into your profits.
But since the alternative is shipping off-spec parts to your
customers, you really don't have an alternative. So you might
as well do it right.
Visit us at www.canplastics.com
www.canplastics.com February 2014 Canadian Plastics CPLFeb2014 p03 TOC.indd 3
3
14-01-23 1:16 PM
editor’s view
Canadian Plastics magazine reports on and interprets develop
ments in plastics markets and technologies worldwide for plastics
processors, moldmakers and end-users based in Canada.
The free trade winds are blowing
I
t’s taken for granted in certain circles
that the loss of jobs, notably in manufacturing, is a direct result of free trade.
Most recently, for example,
NDP leader Thomas Mulcair
claimed Canada suffered from
so-called “Dutch Disease”
because of a focus on resource
exports, which pushed up the
value of the Canadian dollar
and undermined manufacturing by making exports more
expensive.
The decline in semi-skilled, high paying jobs in Canada has occurred for a
number of reasons, chief among them
high relative labor costs, lack of business
investment, and a mismatch of skills to
available jobs. And if it’s any consolation, it’s not just a problem in Canada:
Job losses in manufacturing are happening in virtually all advanced economies.
A better question is how are nations
reacting to this challenge?
In the U.S., despite the hammering
of the Great Recession, the manufacturing sector has actually been stable
for decades, accounting for 11.8 per cent
of jobs in 1987 and 12.4 per cent in 2012.
In Germany, manufacturing represents a quarter of the economy, and the
country has quietly become the world’s
second-largest exporter after China.
Germany’s exports have contributed
two-thirds of the country’s economic
growth over the past decade, and have
grown its GDP per capita at a faster
rate than that of any other major industrialized country.
Similar situations exist in other
European countries such as Switzerland and Denmark, and they attribute
their success in large part to free trade,
not in spite of it.
In Canada, meanwhile, the reality
is less rosy. Canadian firms have been
slower to penetrate global markets,
having for years relied on the U.S. as
the no-brainer destination for exports
and source of capital and investment. Another part of the problem,
as recently published papers by Statistics Canada make clear, is that small
4 companies account for a substantially
larger proportion of the economy in
Canada than they do in the U.S. It
sounds kinda quaint, but small firms
produce less than half from their labor
than what larger enterprises do, and —
unable to exploit the scale economies
associated with size — therefore possess a productivity disadvantage relative to their larger counterparts.
What’s a good solution? Free trade.
Properly implemented, free trade provides a vital framework for Canadian
firms to pursue opportunities abroad.
And unless you’ve been banged up in
solitary confinement for the past few
months, you know that a seismic quake
is about to shake up Canada’s trade
landscape, in the form of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between Canada and the
European Union. Suffice it to say that,
once ratified, it’ll be a significant step
forward for Canada’s international
trading relationships — probably the
biggest since NAFTA. But don’t take
my word for it; for more on the CETA
trade pact and its implications, consult an article by tax and fiscal policy
expert John Whitehead on pg. 9 of this
issue of Canadian Plastics.
Not to steal John’s thunder or anything, but an opportunity such as
CETA comes along once in a generation, so let’s make the most of it.
On a different note, it has been brought
to my attention that, in the raw materials handling equipment cover article
in our October 2013 issue, I misquoted
some information generously supplied by one of the contributors, who
was not given the chance to check the
material before the issue went to press.
I thank him for bringing it to my attention, and regret the errors. Canadian
Plastics strives to give the most accurate and comprehensive information
in every article we write. Thank you
to all who participate to make this a
stronger industry.
Mark Stephen, editor
www.canplastics.com
EDITOR
Mark Stephen
416-510-5110 Fax: 416-510-5134
E-mail: [email protected]
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Canadian Plastics February 2014 www.canplastics.com
CPLFeb2014 p04 Editorial.indd 4
14-01-23 8:46 AM
ideas & innovations
Photo Credit: Heal.X Innovation
Brace yourself for
custom, 3D-printed casts
I
f you’ve ever had a fractured limb,
you know how unpleasant a cast can
be. They’re bulky and uncomfortable
— not to mention a blank canvas for
embarrassing sketches by family and
friends. But a Toronto start-up is using
3D printing to revolutionize the way
fractured bones, as well as sprains and
other similar injuries, are healed.
Inspired by an accident in which
he broke his hand and had to wear a
bulky fibreglass cast that interfered with
his daily life, Mandad Tabrizi founded
Heal.X Innovation, a company that
designs customized, 3D-printed bonefracture braces that are less itchy, more
stylish, cheaper, and more conducive to
healing than traditional casts.
“The core idea behind the system
was to think about patients as people
with behavioral needs throughout the
course of their treatment,” Tabrizi said.
“Although some of the materials used in
casts have changed over time, the technology itself has remained the same for
300 years, along with such unfortunate
side effects as odor, muscular atrophy,
nerve damage, and a very intimidating
cast removal method.”
Until now. Based on a X-ray that
acquires a 3D model of the injured limb,
a Heal.X cast is created on a 3D printer,
at a hospital, using a medical grade resin
with antibacterial properties, and then
adhered to the body with a long-term
adhesive. Over time, as the swelling
reduces and certain areas require less
support and more mobility, the cast itself
can evolve through design variations. “A
patient will receive check-ups, and in that
check-up would be 3D-scanned and fitted for a new 3D-printed cast,” Tabrizi
said. “This also enhances the psychological sense of healing, as over time the cast
becomes smaller and smaller.”
The end result is a casting system
that allows its owner more freedom and
security as they travel down the road
to recovery. “The casts are designed to
allow the broken limb to swell naturally,
without compression, as part of the
healing process, a freedom traditional
casts don’t offer,” Tabrizi explained.
“It’s a particularly useful technology
for children, whose bones continue to
grow while fractured.”
Currently in the process of patent-
ing the Heal.X system and further testing materials, Tabrizi sees a variety of
markets for his custom designs. “Since
the hospitals take longer to adopt new
infrastructure for these types of treatments, currently we are commercializing our wrist bracing system through
two different paths,” he said. “First,
we’re marketing through sport clinics
to be used on professional athletes. Second, we’ll have a simpler version of our
first brace available for less complicated
injuries, such as sprains and carpal tunnel syndrome.”
Call it one of the better breaks a
patient will have had lately.
CPL
Heal.X Innovation (Toronto);
www.healxinnovation.com; 647-886-4460
www.canplastics.com February 2014 Canadian Plastics CPLFeb2014 p05 Ideas&Innov.indd 5
5
14-01-23 1:16 PM
news
NOVA CHEMICALS DETAILS
PLANS FOR MULTIPLE
PROJECTS IN SARNIA REGION
Pipeline progress
to supply ethane to
Nova’s cracker in
Corunna, Ont.
N
ova Chemicals Corporation has spelled out some of its
plans to move ahead with the second phase of its “Nova
2020” growth strategy in Ontario.
According to Calgary-based Nova, the next phase of the Nova
2020 strategy, anticipated to take place over the 2014 to 2018 time
frame, will concentrate on “several cost-effective expansions and
upgrades to our existing facilities in the Sarnia, Ont. region.”
These include expanding the Corunna, Ont. cracker ethylene
manufacturing capacity by approximately 20 per cent; pursuing
a debottleneck at the Moore, Ont. low-density PE line; and pursuing a retrofit of the Moore high-density PE line.
“These projects are intended to build on the impact of the
Corunna cracker conversion to utilize up to 100 per cent natural
gas liquids to enhance our capabilities to meet growing and more
sophisticated customer demands,” Nova said.
Work also continues to progress on other projects within
the first phase of the Nova 2020 portfolio, Nova said, including
revamping the Corunna cracker facility to utilize cost-competitive natural gas liquid feedstocks, with project completion tar-
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6 Photo Credit: Nova
Chemicals Corporation
geted for Q1 2014; the continued accumulation of ethane
from the Marcellus Shale Basin in local Sarnia storage for
introduction as a Corunna feedstock; and building a gasphase PE reactor at the company’s Joffre, Alta. facility, to
provide customers with a complete set of LLDPE offerings
by Q1 2016. According to Nova, consumption of the first
barrels of ethane sourced by the company from the Marcellus Shale Basin began in Demember 2013.
The cracker and PE projects could cost more than $300
million, Nova said.
Nova is also continuing to evaluate options for a second
facility for dual-reactor solution polyethylene technology,
also known as Advanced SCLAIRTECH Technology. The
facility “could be located in Ontario, the U.S. Gulf Coast,
or elsewhere in the world, and would be implemented in the
final phase of the Nova 2020 growth strategy,” Nova said.
“We are excited to move forward with the next phase
of growth for our Eastern Canada olefins and PE assets,
building on the imminent completion of our Corunna feedstock conversion project,” said Nova CEO Randy Woelfel.
“We believe phasing of implementation of the Nova 2020
projects is the optimal path forward to maintain Nova’s
financial strength and optionality while recognizing the
market challenges for project implementation.”
CPL
SUPPLIER NEWS
— Resin supplier Simcoe Plastics Ltd. is the new Canadian sales agent for Michigan, U.S.-based plastics
distributor Plastics Plus Inc. Plastics Plus offers the
following brands in its “Marquee Partner” program:
Asahi Kasei, Kolon, Mitsubishi, Lucent, Invista,
LG, SABIC (PP and TPO), DIC (PPS), Flint Hills
Resources, United Soft Plastics, and Vi-Chem (PVC,
TPE, TPV, TPO — for which Simcoe Plastics is
already an agent). Simcoe Plastics is headquartered
in Shanty Bay, Ont. The company currently serves
automotive, custom molding, construction, consumer product, and recreational product markets.
31st
Anniversary
......stay connected with
CPLFeb2014 p06-8 NewsPpl.indd 6
14-01-23 8:25 AM
news
ARBURG BUILDING
NEW U.S. HEADQUARTERS
IN CONNECTICUT
ONTARIO MOLDER QUALITY MODEL
EXPANDING OPERATIONS IN
SOUTH CAROLINA
O
Arburg executives (including Friedrich Kanz, second from right)
and architectural and construction managers dig in at the new
Rocky Hill site.
Photo Credit: Arburg Inc.
G
ermany-based injection molding machine maker Arburg
Inc. has broken ground on its new U.S. headquarter
offices in Rocky Hill, Conn.
The new location — which will have showroom, training,
and machine and spare parts warehouse capabilities — is
less than six miles from Arburg’s existing facility in Newington, Conn.
Arburg owns both locations and has had a U.S. presence
since 1991. Arburg expects to occupy the new single-story,
high-bay 26,545-square-foot building in about one year.
“The new building to house Arburg’s U.S. headquarters
represents a further important milestone for our activities
here in the U.S.,” Arburg president Friedrich Kanz said in
a statement. “There will be an extensive warehouse area for
Allrounders which will merely require customer-specific
adaptation prior to their rapid delivery. With a 38 tonne
gantry crane, the necessary logistics will be provided for
all machine sizes and large unit numbers. Moreover, there
will be a large centralised spare parts warehouse for all
Allrounders on the U.S. market in order to ensure even
faster deliveries.”
The showroom will have space for up to seven Allrounder
injection molding machines, the company added, which will
be available for customer mold testing, production-specific
cell development, and training purposes.
Arburg has existing U.S. technology centres in Elgin, Ill.,
and Irvine, Calif. Currently, 65 employees work at the company’s three locations.
CPL
ected with aCEtronic ......
31st
Anniversary
nt.-based custom molder Quality Model Ltd. has announced
a US$3 million expansion to its facility in Orangeburg, S.C.
The investment for the company’s subsidiary Quality
Model South Carolina will also create 26 new jobs, according
to a news release from the office of South Carolina Governor
Nikki Haley.
Quality Model is headquartered in Tecumseh, Ont.
Since the Orangeburg County facility opened in 2005, Quality Model has invested more than US$13 million and created 75
jobs in the community, the press release noted.
Quality Model specializes in serving the power sports, industrial, automotive and aftermarket, and lawn and garden industries, through injection molding, design, tool building, manufacturing, secondary assembly, and painting.
“Since our move into South Carolina, our Orangeburg facility has become a key business unit within the Quality Model
group,” said Bill Szekesy, president of Quality Model South
Carolina. “The expansion of the facility is needed to support
our Southeastern U.S. customer base.”
CPL
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www.canplastics.com February 2014 Canadian Plastics CPLFeb2014 p06-8 NewsPpl.indd 7
7
14-01-23 8:26 AM
news
PEOPLE
— Auxiliary equipment manufacturer
Advanced Blending Solutions LLC
(ABS) has named Paul Carter as sales
manager for Canada and the Northeastern U.S. Carter is based out of
Toronto. ABS has also appointed Jim
Livermore as chief operating officer.
Menominee, Mich.-based ABS is the
North American distributor for Italian
auxiliary equipment maker Moretto.
— Injection molding machine maker
Engel North America, headquartered in
York, Pa., has named Jeff Hershey to
the new position of marketing manager
of its North American medical business
unit; and Anthony Thompson as marketing manager of its North American
packaging business unit.
— Peabody, Mass.-based hot runner
Rotogran Jan 12-AB-CPL 2/15/12 11:52 AM Page
systems maker Synventive Molding
Solutions has named Steven Gayfer as
vice president and general manager for
North America.
Paul Carter
Jim Livermore
Jeff Hershey Anthony Thompson Steven Gayfer
— Material supplier Teknor Apex
Company, headquartered in Pawtucket, R.I., has named Christopher
Morehouse as a market manager for
thermoplastic elastomers in North
America; and Mike Patel as director
of marketing and business development for its vinyl division.
— Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio-based
custom color and additive supplier
Americhem Inc. has named John
Deignan as president.
— Madison Heights, Mich.-based
mold technology supplier DME
Company has named Dean Froney as
vice president and general manager
for the Americas.
Christopher
Morehouse
Mike Patel
John Deignan
Dean Froney
1
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executive’s corner
Get ready for CETA
By John Whitehead, Earnscliffe Strategy Group
WHAT’S GOING TO CHANGE?
Over 99 per cent of tariffs on industrial
goods will drop on the day that CETA
comes into force. Autos, ships, and certain other goods tariffs will be subject
to a phase-in, but for almost everybody
else tariffs will be gone immediately.
Just as important for many businesses, the agreement reduces a number
of non-tariff barriers to trade. The deal
also includes the first regulatory cooperation chapter in any Canadian free trade
agreement. For businesses that need to
send specialists to support sales of products or equipment, or senior staff to
support business operations on a temporary basis, both the EU and Canada
will make “temporary entry” of intracorporate transferees easier.
In addition, CETA establishes a process for mutual recognition of qualifications (for example, engineers, archi-
tects, and the medical professions) and
establishes procedures through which
Canada and the EU can request that
each other’s technical regulations be
considered as equivalent. These are progressive developments that should provide Canadian exporters with considerably easier access to the EU market. Of
course, the reverse will also be true.
WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY
While CETA isn’t yet final, the agreement in principle addresses the more
contentious aspects of the deal. Canada’s Trade Minister Ed Fast said last fall
that he expects the deal to be completed
and ratified within 18-24 months, suggesting that in the first half of 2015 we
should be ready for it to come into force.
At the same time, the EU and U.S.
are negotiating their own free trade
agreement. Talks began in earnest this
past summer and, if successful, could
constitute the single largest trade agreement ever achieved. For the moment,
Canadian businesses retain a first mover
advantage with the EU — although for
how long is anything but certain. While
it took Canadian and EU negotiators
four years to reach an agreement in
principle, U.S. discussions could be far
more complex and time-consuming —
or could defy expectations and be concluded relatively quickly. But however
the timing of the U.S./EU discussions
works out, Canadian business leaders
need to start now to take advantage of
the window of opportunity, for however
long it remains open.
In short, Canada’s trade relationships are evolving quickly and significantly. As a small but advanced economy, it’s vital that Canada is a part of
these new arrangements. Opportunities
such as these tend to come along only
once in a generation.
The Government of Canada believes
that 80,000 net new jobs will be associated with the new opportunities arising from the CETA deal, and there will
almost certainly be winners and losers as
a result. For those in Canada’s plastics
industry, it will be important to monitor
the finalization and launch of CETA, as
well as to understand the opportunities
— and risks — that the deal creates. CPL
As Assistant Deputy Minister responsible
for policy and strategy with the Ministry
of Economic Development and Trade, John
Whitehead was the province of Ontario’s
lead negotiator in the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)
between Canada and the European Union.
He joined Toronto-based Earnscliffe Strategy Group as a senior consultant in 2013. He
can be reached at 416-214-6425, Ext. 229;
or [email protected]. Visit www.
earnscliffe.ca for more.
CLICK ON...
PLASTICS
TV
CAN
T
he Comprehensive Economic and
Trade Agreement (CETA) between
Canada and the European Union
(EU) is a significant step forward for
Canada’s international trading relationships. An agreement in principle
was announced in October 2013, putting Canada well on its way to completing its biggest trade agreement since
the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1994.
The EU generates almost a quarter
of global GDP, and remains the planet’s
single largest marketplace. EU member
countries generate almost US$17 trillion
of GDP, and the region is home to some
500 million consumers and some of the
most advanced and successful companies on the planet. For the EU, trade in
goods exceeds trade in services by about
three times. The dominance of the goods
trade should be of particular interest to
the Canadian plastics sector; the sheer
size and importance of the EU’s market
create significant new opportunities for
businesses to further expand and diversify their export markets.
for interviews with industry
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14-01-23 1:18 PM
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14-01-23 8:57 AM
injection molders’ benchmark survey
©Karen Struthers/Getty Images/Thinkstock
What’s
on their
minds?
Manufacturing is heating up again after the freeze
of the Great Recession, and our latest injection
molding survey is your chance to measure your
temperature against the competition. Buying
intentions, utilization rates, markets served,
operator wages — here’s what the
respondents are thinking.
BY THE NUMBERS
By Mark Stephen, editor
Average number
of employees per shop
63
Average amount of resin
consumed at plant (lbs)
748,280
Average hourly rate paid
to machine operator,
excluding benefits
$13.75
Average total revenue
in 2013
$3,667,300
F
or the past few years, the Canadian
Plastics injection molders’ surveys have
been at least semi-unpleasant reading
experiences. Charting an industry in free
fall, they reflected everything from declining utilization rates to freezes on equipment purchases. Now, as Canada comes
out of the worst economic downturn since
the Depression, it’s the manufacturing sector that leads the way. Are injection molders sharing in the recovery? Let’s try to get
into our respondents’ heads.
SETTING THE STAGE
Right off the bat, there’s some good news:
Almost 60% of respondents this year said
they worked in an I/M shop with 50 or
more employees, with 17% working at
facilities with 250 or more workers. This
holds steady compared to last year’s survey results, and seems to show a sustained recovery from the employee downsizing that many companies underwent
during the dark days of recession.
Seventy-eight per cent of respondents
to this year’s survey worked in shops that
had either an ISO or QS9000 standard, a
bump from the 60% reporting the same
last year; and with another 10% of respondents saying their shops are in the process
of becoming certified, this shows an
improvement well beyond the 51% that had
The Injection Molders’ Benchmark Survey was sent to 650 people at injection molding
shops throughout Canada during December 2013 and January 2014, with one survey
going to one respondent per facility. We received 28 completed surveys. Because not
everyone answered each question, the percentage values in the charts and tables might
be given as a percentage of the respondents to that question, with the number of
respondents given in parenthesis, for example (n=26). We thank the participants.
www.canplastics.com February 2014 Canadian Plastics CPLFeb2014 p11-14 InjMoldSurv.indd 11
11
14-01-23 9:06 AM
(n=28)
PURCHASING PLANS
FOR 2014 (%)
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
MARKETS SERVED
BY YOUR PLANT
60
Yes
Yes
Automotive 60%
No
No
50
Don'tknow
know
Don’t
Consumer goods 43%
40
CanadianPackaging
Plastics26.1%
1/2 pg 4c horizontal
30
Electronic 26.1%
20
Medical 21.7%
10
Construction
17.4%
41.2 17.6 41.2
0
Other 17.4%
Injection Molding
Machines
(n=24)
58.8
5.9
35.3
Auxiliary
Equipment
(n=24)
29.4 35.3 35.3
Linear
Robots
(n=24)
5.9
52.9 41.2
Articulated
Robots
(n=24)
THE CURE FOR BUYER’S REMORSE
Vecoplan Plastics Shredders
If you’ve made a bad decision buying your last plastic shredder, Vecoplan has the cure!
With Vecoplan, you’ll never experience that uneasy feeling, and you certainly won’t have any regrets.
That’s because Vecoplan is the leading manufacturer of plastics shredders with over 40 years experience.
Vecoplan’s line of shredders and complete material handling systems is favored by more businesses than
any other manufacturer, and our commitment to service is second to none.
• More resources to support you!
• Most experienced sales staff.
• Unmatched phone and field service support.
• Extensive parts inventory.
• Unrivaled engineering in two departments.
• Design and project management capabilities.
• Test lab services.
• Over 60 shredders in stock.
• Over 75 dedicated employees with only one goal in mind: making you happy!
(336) 447-3573
vecoplanllc.com
12 Canadian Plastics February 2014 www.canplastics.com
CPLFeb2014 p11-14 InjMoldSurv.indd 12
14-01-23 9:06 AM
E
rs
re!
ets.
ce.
han
ne.
nts.
ilities.
73
m
one or the other standard two years ago.
As always, the majority of respondents
this year — 82.4% — work in Ontario, but
we also heard from Quebec (11.8%) and
Saskatchewan (5.9%).
AT YOUR SERVICE
Probably to the surprise of no one, our surveys over the past few years have recorded
a steady decline in the number of shops
molding automotive parts. In 2009, the
majority of our respondents, for the first
time, reported consumer goods as their
main market served; two years later, that
number had grown to over 65% of respondents. Whether it signals the full-bore
return of the auto industry or not, auto parts
molding has come out on top among
respondents last year and this year. Sixtyone per cent of respondents serve the auto
market this year, with 43.5% doing consumer goods molding. Additionally, 26.1%
of respondents this year make parts for the
electronic industry, 26.1% make parts for
packaging applications, 21.7% make parts
for medical or health care applications, and
17.4% mold parts for construction. You’ve
probably heard the hype that surrounds
medical parts molding — and we all know
molders who describe themselves as interested in getting involved — but the percentage of respondents that actually manufacture medical parts has remained virtually
unchanged over the past three surveys. If
this means anything, it shows that it is,
indeed, one tough market to break into.
The number of exclusive captive molders, meanwhile, is also holding steady:
Almost 9% of respondents this year said
their shops were exclusive captive molders,
on par with the 10% of respondents saying
the same last year, but down from 15% in
2011. The largest numbers this year identified themselves as custom molders doing
some proprietary work on the side (34.8%)
and exclusive custom molders (34.8%).
Captive molders doing some custom work
(13%) and exclusively proprietary molders
(8.7%) make up the rest.
compared to 2012, 23.5% described it as
the same as last year, 17.6% said it was up
by between 1% and 5%, and 17.6%
reported a bump of between 6% to 10%.
Even with nearly one-quarter of the shops
holding steady, it’s still good news, as it
reinforces similar improvements reported
by our respondents last year, after a whopping 77% of respondents reported a sig-
nificant business downturn in the dark
days of 2010. Furthermore, 22.2% of
respondents this year anticipate a business
volume increase of more than 10% during
2014, and 61.1% expect business to either
remain the same or improve by up to 10%.
Doing the math thusly, we see that 16.7%
expect their business to decline in the next
12 months, which is more than the zero
TO BUY OR NOT TO BUY
Whatever they’re making, business for
most our respondents is picking up.
Twenty-nine per cent said business volume improved in 2013 by more than 10%
www.canplastics.com February 2014 Canadian Plastics CPLFeb2014 p11-14 InjMoldSurv.indd 13
13
14-01-23 1:24 PM
AVERAGE MACHINE
UTILIZATION RATE (%)
30
WHAT THEY’RE
DOING IT WITH
(n=24)
25
20
15
10
5
0
16.7
22.2
27.8
11.1
11.1
11.1
0
90-100%
80-89%
70-79%
60-69%
50-59%
40-49%
< 39%
nitely on the hunt for new linear robots, but only 5.9% are looking for six-axis robots.
POWER TO THE PEOPLE?
who expected a drop in the 12 months to come last year.
Utilization rates are really spiking upwards. Way back in
2009, an anemic 4% of respondents reported utilizing more
than 80% of their machines; last year, a relatively healthy
14.7% hit the same mark; and this year it reaches near-Olympic athlete healthiness, with 38.9% utilizing more than 80% of
their machines. Another 38.9% from this year’s group had a
utilization rate of between 60% and 79%, which is also better
than the 20% hitting this same rate 12 months ago.
“
Almost 60% of respondents
this year said they worked in an
I/M shop with 50 or more employees,
which holds steady with last year’s figure.
Maybe a sustained recovery
is really happening.
“
So far, so good, but here’s the (maybe literal) million-dollar
question for the machinery suppliers: Will this improvement
whet the processors’ appetites for new equipment? The signs
seem favorable. Almost 42% told us their shops planned to buy
injection molding machines in 2014, and 53.8% of these said
they’d be on the lookout for new units versus 38.5% willing to
consider either new or pre-owned machines. Last year, only
29.2% of respondents said they were planning on buying new
I/M machines. Additionally, 41.2% of this year’s respondents
said they were unsure about adding any kind of molding
machines during the next 12 months, but didn’t rule it out.
On the auxiliary equipment front, it gets better still.
Approximately 60% of respondents this year plan on buying
auxiliary equipment during 2014; of these, 29.4% are defi-
As interesting as they are, purchasing plans and stats about
machine utilization only tell part of the injection molding
industry story. Take wages, for instance. According to last
year’s survey results, the average hourly wage paid to a
machine operator was $15.06, excluding benefits — a big dip
from previous years that almost certainly reflected the impact
of the Great Recession. So how did wages in 2013 compare?
Not great, at least from the workers’ perspectives. Averaged
out, the decline continues, with the hourly machine operator
wage registering at — ouch! — $13.75. In some ways, then, it
seems the cut backs keep cutting back.
CPL
WHAT CATEGORY BEST DESCRIBES
YOUR PLANT?
(n=26)
Custom molding
with some proprietary
34.8%
Exclusively
custom molding
34.8%

14 ©Aurelio Scetta/Getty Images/Thinkstock
According to our survey, commodity and
engineering resins still make up the vast bulk of
what’s being processed at Canadian plants,
with 78.3% of respondents using commodity
and 69.6% using engineering resins. But specialty
materials and biopolymers have their customers, too:
30.4% of respondents mold at least some parts
with the former, and 13% report using the latter.
Exclusively
proprietary
8.7%
Captive
molding
with some
custom 13%
Exclusively
captive molding
8.7%
VIEW SURVEY RESULTS ONLINE
If you’re curious, the complete 2013 Injection
Molders’ Benchmark Survey results are available
at: www.canplastics.com/survey/archives/
IMSurvey2013.pdf
CPLFeb2014 p11-14 InjMoldSurv.indd 14
14-01-23 9:07 AM
CPLFeb2014 p15 Wittmann AD.indd 15
14-01-23 9:08 AM
The latest size reduction equipment
©Aurelio Scetta/Getty Images/Thinkstock
size reduction equipment
If you can produce it, you can bet they’ll reduce it.
VERSATILE GRANULATORS
WITH SMALL FOOTPRINTS
BESIDE-THE-PRESS
OR CENTRAL GRANULATOR
New NCF series super-tangential granulators from
Conair have footprint dimensions at least 30 per cent
smaller than many other granulators with
similar capabilities.
Four different models feature eight
inch (203 mm) diameter rotors, in
widths of 10, 14, 19 and 24 inches
(240, 360, 480 and 600 mm), and
deliver standard maximum throughputs
ranging from 150 to 450 lbs (68 to 205 kg). The smallest unit is powered
by a five hp motor, and the three larger sizes have 7.5 hp motors with
options to 15 hp. Standard rotor speed for the NCF 810 is 260 rpm and
standard speed on the larger models is 400 rpm, although 260-, 400- or
840-rpm can be specified on any of the granulators to increase capacity,
improve regrind quality, and/or minimize energy consumption.
The super-tangential chamber design ensures that the rotor grips
bulky scrap on the downward stroke, drawing it into the knives and
preventing it from bouncing on the rotor.
Standard tangential and straight-drop infeed configurations are also
available.
The Conair Group (Cranberry Township, Pa.);
www.conairgroup.com; 800-654-6661
D
ier International Plastics Inc.; (Unionville, Ont.);
www.dierinternational.com; 416-219-0509
Industries Laferrière (Mascouche, Que.);
www.industrieslaferriere.ca; 450-477-8880
Wittmann’s flexible new MC 33 granulator is designed
to function equally well beside-the-press or in a central
role, and can handle demanding work in the complete
areas of injection molding and blow molding.
The tough steel construction makes the MC 33 ideal
for all in-line recycling of sprues/runners, PET preforms
during mold start-up, and many other high-powered
applications. The granulator comes with a compact footprint, 7.5 kW power, and high throughput capacities of
100 kg to 150 kg per hour. The machine is easy to operate, and the functional design
allows for a quick and smooth
cleaning procedure. The
infeed hopper is a doublewalled steel construction, thereby
significantly reducing noise levels. For
cutting, Wittmann has chosen hardened cutting tools made from quality steel alloys to guarantee a long
service life. The MC 33 collection
bin has been designed with a 360°
swivelling outlet, and allows for
vacuum connection from any direction for more efficient vacuum unloading.
Wittmann Canada (Richmond Hill, Ont.);
www.wittmann-canada.com; 888-466-8266
REDESIGNED PURGING RECOVERY SYSTEM
Maguire Products Inc. has revamped its Purging Recovery System to make it possible to increase throughput by
up to 20 per cent while also producing finer and more
uniform granulate with less dusting.
The knives in the rotor planer are now 40 per cent
smaller, while their number has increased from eight to
twelve. As a result, the planer produces smaller chips
that are more easily and uniformly size-reduced by the secondstage granulator. The more efficient cutting also yields less dust.
Additionally, the cutting chamber of the second-stage granulator
has been redesigned to increase the flow of air generated by a blower.
The material in the granulator is therefore cooled more effectively,
16 preventing melting, and is also evacuated from
the cutting chamber more rapidly.
These enhancements make possible finer
granulate, with minimum hole sizes in the
screen of the second-stage granulator reduced
from 0.375 inches (9.52 mm) to 0.250 inches
(6.35 mm). The company has also replaced the
previous one-piece screen with a three-piece
screen, making it easier and less expensive to replace.
Maguire Canada/Novatec Inc. (Vaughan, Ont.);
www.maguirecanada.com; 866-441-8409
Barway Plastic Equipment Inc. (Vaudreuil-Dorian, Que.);
www.barway.ca; 450-455-1396
CPLFeb2014 p16-19 SizeRed.indd 16
14-01-23 9:17 AM
CP Contact IMS Full Page:Layout 1
1/15/2014
4:09 PM
Page 1
IMS... solutions and stock a call away.
In your time of need, IMS delivers quality products with expert technicians available to help minimize your downtime.
With most items in stock for same day shipping, IMS understands your business and is dependable to keep your system running.
Avoid Downtime! Call IMS: 800.537.5375
— Everything you need for the Plastics Processing Industry —
www.imscompany.com/C1
Industrial Molding & Extrusion Supplies and Equipment
Custom Engineered Components & Supplies
Unmatched Engineering & Machining Services
A complete line of Industrial MROP & Safety Supplies
CPLFeb2014 p17 IMS AD.indd 17
14-01-23 9:19 AM
EFFICIENT SHREDDING
OF WIDE RANGE OF PLASTICS
INTEGRATED METAL DETECTION
BOOSTS GRANULATOR PRODUCTIVITY
New from Vecoplan LLC, the V-ECO
1700 shredder is designed for companies that want to reuse their material
coming out of production, as well as
plastic recyclers that are focused on
efficient shredding in the most economical way.
The machine optimizes the cutters and the counter knives to deliver a homogenous particle structure combined with high throughput and less
wear. The cutters are usable four times, and are easy to change.
The frequency-controlled motor transfers the entire torque
from the motor over a belt to the rotor. The energy-saving drive
concept is flexible on speed, and is well protected against tramp
metal. The new rotor design, in a W-shape, is well-suited for
shredding various kinds of plastic materials, such as film, mixed
plastics, containers, textiles, and much more.
The machine floor is designed to lift up and the screen basket
to swing down for good accessibility. Tramp materials are easy to
remove, counter knives and cutters are easy to change, and the
screen size is changeable within minutes.
Vecoplan LLC (Archdale, N.C.); www.vecoplanllc.com; 336-861-6070
Greg Parent; 416-678-0154
The patent pending Integrated
Metal Detection (IMD) system from
low-speed granulator specialist Mo.
Di.Tec offers the ultimate in cutting
chamber protection.
As soon as a metal part is detected
(by contact between two areas of
the cutting chamber), the granulator rotor stops within 40 milliseconds. The operator will read at the
same time, on the LCD screen of the electrical cabinet, the corresponding malfunctioning message — a feature that offers significant savings in the repair cost of the cutting chamber, press screw,
and mold; and also maintains productivity, since production
has to be stopped only during cutting chamber cleaning.
IMD is available as an option on Mo.Di.Tec’s Goliath
Plus (pictured) and Titan Plus granulators. It’s available in
two versions: with an electrical cabinet run by an automatic
cycling (including ABS system), or by an electronic card.
Mo.Di.Tec (Vienne, France); www.mo-di-tec.fr
Auxiplast
Inc. (Ste-Julie, Que.);
www.auxiplast.com; 450-922-0282
“OPEN HEARTED” SHREDDER
OFFERS EASY ACCESS
HEAVY-DUTY PIPE SHREDDERS
ARE QUIET, EFFICIENT
Rapid Granulator is currently expanding
its shredder platform, to reach more applications and customer segments. The new
Raptor Series is offered as a
complementary range to the
existing GranuMATIC series,
and will fill a number of current
application gaps and add innovative
features to the shredder range.
“One of the biggest developments for us is the ‘open hearted’
design,” said Bengt Rimark, Rapid’s global sales and marketing
director. “In less than 70 seconds, the operator can open up the
whole shredder with the integrated hydraulic system and get
direct access to all core components in the machine, which drastically simplifies cleaning, service, and maintenance.”
The new Raptor series will initially be based on five models,
all of which are modular-based and can therefore be tailored for
specific applications — for example, the rotor can be equipped
with different cutting technologies, depending on the application, including the “PowerWedge” rotor designed specifically
for film or monofilament applications.
Rapid Granulator Inc. (Cranberry Township, Pa.);
www.rapidgranulator.com; 724-584-5220
Dier International Plastics Inc. (Unionville, Ont.);
DCube (Montreal); www.dcube.ca; 514-272-0500
HOS heavy-duty pipe
shredders from Herbold
Meckesheim USA are
designed to smoothly and
efficiently reduce large,
thick-wall plastic pipes to
chips approximately 2.4
to 3.9 inches square.
Available in five sizes,
the shredders can process up to about 3,400 lbs per hour, and
can handle pipes as large as 9.8 feet in diameter.
A high-torque hydraulic ram holds a horizontally oriented pipe against a moving cutting plate studded with
blades. As the vertical cutting plate travels back and forth
across the end of the pipe, it slices off chips. The chips then
fall onto a conveyor belt, which can transport them to a cutting mill for further size reduction.
The grater-like design means the blades of an HOS
shredder wear much more slowly than those of a typical
heavy-duty pipe granulator, and the unit uses less energy
and requires less maintenance. HOS shredders are even
suitable for such abrasive materials as fibreglass-reinforced
piping. The units produce little noise, and each model is
equipped with a covered feed trough.
Herbold Meckesheim USA (Slatersville, R.I.);
www.herboldusa.com; 401-597-5500
CPLFeb2014 p16-19 SizeRed.indd 18
14-01-23 1:26 PM
INNOVATION AND CUSTOMIZATION
IN DUST SEPARATION
Designed to provide constant and
quality regrind, Piovan’s SP
2500 machine is a proven solution for effective dust separation,
initially developed for one specific recycling application and
eventually utilized widely, even
for de-dusting raw materials.
“The SP2500 is fed by means of a screw conveyor unit that
isolates the process of grinding from that of de-dusting,” said
Fabio Bello, head of Piovan’s granulation business. Equipped
with two filter stations — F1 and F2 — to guarantee complete
powder collection, a dust-free environment, and a high level of
cleanliness of the outlet air, the system is also equipped with
integrated PLC control and field sensors to provide user-friendly
operation along with safety and efficiency.
“Material passes through a metal detector and feeds into the
Piovan RS series granulator,” Bello said. “The regrind is collected in a flow bin with maximum and minimum level control;
the screw conveyor transfers the regrind to the SP2500, which
removes dust from the regrind; air and dust are blown into a
cyclone separator unit; and the air is then filtered at the dual stage
station before outgoing.”
Piovan Canada (Mississauga, Ont.);
www.piovan.com; 905-629-8822
REDESIGNED RECYCLING MACHINE SERIES
Next Generation Recyclingmaschinen GmbH has re-engineered its
S:GRAN series recycling line to be even more energy-efficient and
user-friendly.
Along with an improved, modernized look, the redesign was
intended to enhance process stability and increase performance.
The efficiency of the drive train has been increased by the utilization of frequency inverters as a standard feature, the electrical
switching cubicle has been fitted with air conditioning, and the
shredder knife redesigned in order to allow for multiple usage.
Additionally, reduced standstills, and thus increased machine
availability, have been achieved through the systematic use of
greater machine component accessibility, which facilitates servicing and cleaning.
NGR Next Generation Recycling Machines Inc. (Norcross, Ga.);
www.ngr.at; 678-720-9861
A
uxiplast Inc. (Ste-Julie, Que.); www.auxiplast.com; 450-922-0282
SHREDDER HANDLES ALL PLASTICS
The new WLK series shredder from Weima
can shred all kinds of plastic, especially hard
and resistant materials such as lumps,
pipes, or automotive parts; and also
blow molded materials like PET bottles, PE/PP bottles, buckets, and cans.
Material is fed into the newlydesigned “pipe spacer” hopper, which
makes it possible to shred large parts
without bridging. The ram that pushes the material against the
rotor is guided by a segmented floor. The feed motion is loaddependent to prevent an overload of the shredder.
The basic models of the WLK series (WLK 800, 1000, 1500
and 2000) are equipped with energy-efficient electronic drives.
Also, a gearbox suspension developed in-house leads to
smoother shock absorption, thereby reducing maintenance costs.
As a result of a swiveling screen basket, it’s also easier to
get access to the rotor, making preventative maintenance simpler and more cost-effective.
Another improvement is the revised counter knife system:
The counter knives can now be rotated to extend their life
cycle. In addition, the enhanced cutting geometry leads to
energy-efficient shredding and minimum wear costs.
Weima America Inc. (Fort Mill, S.C.);
www.weimaamerica.com; 888-440-7170
HEAVY-DUTY GRANULATOR
Available in 30hp and 40hp, the
WO-1430 HD granulator from
Rotogran Inc. is designed for
hard work: With a 14 inch by 30
inch throat opening and nine
rotor knives, the unit is capable
of a throughput of between 800
to 1,200 lbs per hour.
“The unit has a heavy-duty
tangential back plate — thicker
than normal — with a reinforced
cutting chamber,” said Mike Cyr,
Rotogran president. “It has a soundproof hopper, soundproof
solidly welded frame, and solid knife seats — the place holders for the knives on the rotor are one solid bar going right
across, to provide more inertia to the rotor. The micro adjustable bedknives are totally hardened and precision ground D2
tool steel.”
The WO-1430 HD comes standard with twin custom solid
steel flywheel, an oversized rotor shaft, oversized piloted
flanged bearings, and easy access to the chamber and screen.
Options include extra sound insulation, profile or pipe feed
entry, adjustable current sensitive relay, a spare screen, and
spare bed and rotor knives.
Rotogran International Inc. (Toronto);
www.rotogran.com; 905-738-0101
CPL
www.canplastics.com February 2014 Canadian Plastics CPLFeb2014 p16-19 SizeRed.indd 19
19
14-01-24 1:42 PM
3D printing
LAYER BY LAYER:
RISE
3D PRINTING
THE
OF
S
ometimes layering can take a long time — as in millions of years. Take rocks. They’re stacked in layers
containing fossils, with the oldest fossils at the
deepest layers and the most recent near the top. For
scientists and archeologists, it can yield a great snapshot of the Earth’s timeline, but don’t hold your breath
waiting for that layering to occur.
Here’s a better way of layering, at least for the
manufacturing world: 3D printing (also called additive
manufacturing), a process that builds layers to create a
three-dimensional solid object from a digital model. To
print a 3D object, virtual models from CAD or animation modeling software are taken and “sliced” into digital cross-sections for the 3D machine to successively
use as a guideline for printing. During the print process,
the 3D printer starts at the bottom of the design and
builds up successive layers of material until the object is
finished. One big advantage of this technique is its ability to create almost any shape or geometric feature.
It’s not exactly a new technology — the first 3D
printer dates back to the mid-1980s — but the cost of 3D
printing in the past was expensive and the process
tended to be only used by large corporations. The recent
development of smaller printers (desktops, even) has
made the technology more affordable and accessible to
small and mid-sized businesses, however. The result has
been as revolutionary for parts makers as the discovery
of the first dinosaur fossil was for archeologists way
back when. Today, 3D printers are used to create anything from a new toy or motorcycle part to manufacturing prototypes for testing purposes and small-scale commercial production runs. “Before 3D printers existed,
creating a prototype was time-consuming, expensive,
and required skilled workers and specific machinery,”
said James Janeteas, president of additive manufacturer
Cimetrix Solutions Inc. “Instead of sending modeling
instructions to a production company, advances in 3D
printing are allowing businesses to in-source prototype
production on a regular basis.”
20 Plastic parts made without a mold?
You’d better believe 3D printing will
revolutionize the industry. Meantime,
here’s what it can do for you right now.
The Arburg Freeformer
component carrier
in action.
Photo Credit:
Arburg Inc.
CPLFeb2014 p20-23 Additives.indd 20
14-01-23 1:28 PM
THE BASICS OF ExTruSIOn
Learn the ABCs of...
successful extrusion at this full-day workshop
Applicable to all extrusion processes
(including pipe, profile, film, sheet, compounding, extrusion blow molding)
Instructor Allan Griff literally “wrote the book” on extrusion and is the author of
“Plastics Extrusion Technology” and “The Plastics Extrusion Operating Manual”. He
has extensive experience in extrusion education and has given over 400 public and inhouse seminars since 1979.
Workshop topics include:
Extrusion expert Allan Griff,
has over 50 years experience
• the ten key principles of extrusion • Basic plastics chemistry
• extrusion hardware – the parts of the machine and their function
• Factors affecting output rate • operation and troubleshooting
• common problems in extrusion and how to avoid them
thursday, April 10, 2014
8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
humber institute of technology & Advanced learning
203 humber college Blvd. (hwy. 27 & Finch. Ave.)
toronto, on M9W 5l7
Cost: $199, including lunch and a course manual
Organized by:
Canadian Plastics
For detailed information and registration, check
www.canplastics.com/thebasicsofextrusion/ or call 416-510-6867
Sponsored by:
Basics of Extrusion Fp Ad.indd 1
CPLFeb2014 p21 BasicsExtrus AD.indd 21
14-01-15 11:00 AM
14-01-23 9:39 AM
3D printing
While 3D printing technology is used for both prototyping and
distributed manufacturing for a wide range of applications —
architecture, construction, engineering, fashion, footwear, and
jewelry industries, to name a few — it’s particularly well-suited
for plastics processing, and seems poised to catch on like wildfire.
A January 2014 study by market research firm The Freedonia
Group projects that world demand for 3D printing will rise by
more than 20 per cent per year between now and 2017, with plastics — in particular ABS, PLA, and nylon — accounting for the
majority of materials demand (See sidebar below).
Small wonder, then, that machinery makers are already on
board. Arburg Inc. threw its hat into the ring in late 2013, for
example, with its new Freeformer additive manufacturing system
that produces parts using liquid droplets from standard resins,
including engineering resins. “Arburg recognized the potential
offered by 3D printing many years ago, and it’s not an exaggeration to say that the market is now demanding it,” said Dr. Oliver
Kessling, Arburg’s department manager, plastic freeforming.
“The Freeformer processes standard — and therefore low-price
— plastic granulates such as ABS, PC, PA or TPE. Further materials are possible, depending on the process parameters, and will
be specified together with the customers.”
So why, exactly, is the market demanding it? For one thing, 3D
printing is a mold-free manufacturing process, thereby doing
away with the time, expense, and potential hassles involved in
developing mold tooling. Enough said.
Second, the technology can be used by any halfway modern
plastics processor. “Any molder making plastic parts with 3D
CAD software — of any make, from any vendor — as their
source is a good potential user of additive manufacturing,” said
Doug Angus-Lee, rapid prototype account manager for 3D printing with Javelin Technologies. “Construction of a model with
contemporary methods can take anywhere from several hours to
several days, depending on the method used and the size and
complexity of the model. Additive systems can typically reduce
this time to a few hours. And while traditional techniques like
$5 BILLION DEMAND FOR 3D
World demand for 3D printing is projected to rise more than
20 per cent per year to US$5 billion in 2017, according to a
new study from The Freedonia Group, a Cleveland-based
industry research firm.
Plastics will continue to account for the majority of
materials demand, but faster growth is projected for
metals, based on their greater strength and resistance,
as well as rapid gains in markets such as aerospace. Global
demand for software and other 3D printing products, such
as 3D scanners, will grow in line with the
overall average, supported by ongoing needs
for technological updates and upgrades, the
study said.
Some of the fastest growth will be seen in the medical
and dental market, with especially good opportunities expected in dental applications such as
braces, prostheses, crowns,
22 injection molding can be less expensive for manufacturing polymer products in high quantities, additive manufacturing can be
faster, more flexible, and less expensive when producing parts on
an individual basis or in a small series, whether for short runs, to
prove out a part, to get customer approval on a part prototype, or
to produce a part to help support tool design.”
Moldmaker Compact Mould Ltd. currently uses two 3D
printers to satisfy these last two demands. “We use additive
manufacturing to help our clients develop their products,” said
executive vice president Gaston Petrucci. “Some products can be
proved from a drawing or from an image that can be rotated on a
computer screen, but more and more customers want a prototype
they can hold in their hands without having to invest in the tooling to create it. We manufacture bottle prototypes that our customers can use to get approval from their own customers for
large-scale production with a full production mold. It’s a complement to our main business at present, but one that’s becoming
increasingly popular.”
On a related note, it’s a little known fact that the molds themselves can be created with 3D printing — although these should
be used sparingly. “Molds formed by additive manufacturing
aren’t going to replace steel or aluminum molds, because you’re
not going to get 10,000 parts from them, but they’re useful for
making 20 or 50 good parts for prototyping, in that the mold cost
is much less than cutting it from steel and the turnaround time is
much faster,” said Doug Angus-Lee. “Because of the heat and
pressure that the mold has to tolerate, we use a non-porous, digital
ABS-like material that has good heat and pressure properties for
3D-printed molds. A sturdier alternative is combining a steel or an
aluminum mold base with 3D-printed mold inserts.”
WHIPPING WARPING
Getting back to the production of plastic parts, another advantage
of 3D printing is that, in addition to eliminating the mold, it
removes a problem that has bedeviled traditional plastics processing since forever: post-mold warping and/or shrinkage. “Because
the plastics material is applied in controlled layers rather than
PRINTING BY 2017
bridges, dental aligners, and models for dental restoration
procedures. Other leading markets for 3D printing products
include consumer products, automotive, and aerospace, with the
latter expected to see above-average growth. For instance, in
2013 General Electric announced plans to use 3D printers to
produce fuel nozzles for its next-generation jet engine.
The U.S. will remain by far the largest national 3D printing
market in the world, the study continued, accounting for 42 per
cent of global sales in 2017. In developed areas such as the
U.S. and Western Europe, 3D printing market value
will be supported by the growing presence of
metal-based 3D printers for the production of
finished parts, as such systems are significantly
more expensive than plastics-based 3D printing
systems. Rapid gains are also expected in China,
where most applications centre on design,
sample testing, or prototyping.
©Getty Images/Thinkstock
PERFORMING WITH PLASTICS
14-01-23 9:36 AM
chillersinc_Innovation_Sentra_08052013:Lay
chillersinc_Innovation_Sentra_08052013:La
3D printing
ON A WING
(no prayer required)
UK fighter jets have flown for the first time with
parts made using 3D printing technology. Aerospace
parts maker BAE Systems said the components —
metal rather than plastic, alas — were successfully
used on board Tornado aircraft which flew
from the firm’s airfield at Warton, Lancashire, in
December 2013. The company said its engineers
are using 3D technology to design and produce
parts which could cut the Royal Air Force’s
maintenance and service bill by over £1.2 million
over the next four years.
injected all at once, additive manufacturing
doesn’t encounter issues relating to warping
and shrinkage,” said James Janeteas. “The
build envelope in a 3D printer is a precisely
controlled temperature environment that creates a very stable part. Accuracy is to within
one thousandth of an inch, and the finished
part stays that way.”
Additionally, some additive manufacturing
techniques are capable of using multiple materials in the course of constructing parts; some
are able to print in multiple colors and color
combinations simultaneously; and some also
utilize supports when building. “Supports are
removable or dissolvable upon completion of
the print, and are used to support overhanging
features during construction,” Janeteas said.
Nor is part size an insurmountable hurdle.
“There isn’t always one additive manufacturing machine that’s large enough to produce a
single, solid part, but it’s customary in our
industry to break down the large assembly,”
Janeteas said. “To produce an automotive fascia, for example, the molder breaks the CAD
file into segments, 3D prints those segments,
and then bonds them together with adhesives
and/or mechanical fasteners.”
Finally, don’t be surprised if your design
team develops a serious crush. “3D printers
make the jobs of designers and part concept
teams much easier by allowing them to validate, support, and prove out concepts very
early on, using a desktop printer,” said Doug
Angus-Lee. “It allows them to design better
products, period.”
some of these same part designers. “Additive
manufacturing removes all of the restrictions
and limitations that designers have lived with
for decades — they can now do anything they
want, but some have a hard time accepting
that,” said James Janeteas. “Frankly, some
designers don’t know how to design for additive manufacturing, and this remains one of the
industry’s challenges. Hopefully, as future generations of designers graduate and enter the
workforce, they’ll be better prepared to understand and use the technology.”
And as you’ve probably guessed by now,
both fast and large-scale part making are nonstarters. “3D printing is not efficient for making large quantities of parts, or for rapid part
production,” said Doug Angus-Lee. “The
cycle times are obviously much longer than
with injection molding — up to 12 hours for a
single part, running overnight.”
Materials remain problematic, as well. “The
industry is limited to a certain palette of materials that we can print in, so we can’t do everything that every customer wants — we can’t
print in Delrin, for example,” Angus-Lee continued. “For simple part prototyping, however, we
can usually create a material that will satisfactorily mimic an end-use material, and the palette
range is always expanding.”
In the end, you can bet a 3D-printed house
on one thing: We’ve barely scratched the technology’s surface. “The bulk of what has been
done with 3D printing to date has been in finding ways of replicating traditional ways of
manufacturing traditional products in a more
efficient fashion,” Angus-Lee said. “Its real
potential lies in doing things that can’t be done
through traditional means.”
And we won’t have to wait millions of
years to find out what they are.
CPL
RESOURCE LIST
Arburg Inc. (Newington, Conn.);
www.arburg.com; 860-667-6500
Dier International Inc. (Unionville, Ont.);
DCube (Montreal); www.dcube.ca; 514-272-0500
Cimetrix Solutions Inc. (Oshawa, Ont.);
www.cimetrixsolutions.com; 800-298-6437
Compact Mould Ltd. (Woodbridge, Ont.);
www.compactmould.com; 905-851-7724
Javelin Technologies (Oakville, Ont.);
www.javelin-tech.com; 877-219-6757
THE HURDLES
All of which isn’t to say the technology is perfect, or perfect for every manufacturing scenario. One current handicap involves at least
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www.canplastics.com February 2014 Canadian Plastics Fast
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14-01-23 1:29 PM
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CPLFeb2014 p24-25 Mo.di.tec AD.indd 24
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CPLFeb2014 p24-25 Mo.di.tec AD.indd 25
14-01-23 9:40 AM
purging compounds
CLEAN UP
Purging tips
for injection YOUR ACT
molders
W
hat with the expense of lost production time and scrap
resin, purging an injection molding press is about as
pleasant as brushing and flossing. But just as necessary.
You don’t wanna flash a stump-toothed grin at friends and family, and you don’t wanna ship streaked or specked parts to your
customers. So despite the hassles, purging is vital to running a
smooth operation.
But commercial purging compounds are a little trickier to
apply than toothpaste. For one thing, there are mechanical-type
purging compounds and chemical-type purging compounds, to
name the two most common. With both, though, it’s all about
maximizing the compound’s scrubbing/cleaning capabilities. So
whether you’re new to the purging world or merely in need of a
refresher, here are some tips for getting clean that can be used
universally across purging compound categories.
1
STANDARDIZE YOUR PROCESS
Good injection molders — even mediocre ones, for that matter — know their cycle times to a fraction of a second, know
their melt flow rates backwards and forwards, et cetera. But are
they as knowledgeable about their purging? Don’t bet heavy.
“Even very good molders don’t always standardize their purging
processes, meaning the amount of material used can vary by
machine, by shift, and by the person performing the purge, usually because it isn’t treated as a priority,” said Joseph Serell, vice
president with Sun Plastech Inc., a manufacturer of Asaclean
purging compound. The end results are wasted material and inef26 fective purges. “A molder should measure every aspect of the
purge, and then — following the instructions of the purging
manufacturers — develop procedures and stick to them, tweaking
them slightly for specific processes,” Serell continued. “Use a
little less compound to determine if it still brings an effective
result; if so, that’s your new amount. The goal is to use as little
material as possible to achieve the desired result.”
And that established protocol applies for maintenance, too.
“The easiest and most basic way to reduce scrap and downtime is
to have a protocol established to clean the hopper and conveying
system of the previous production color,” said Jeff Lewis, sales
manager for Slide Products Inc. “Often, a previous color will
hang up in the hopper or conveying system and be slowly released
into the press, resulting in contaminated parts. In years past,
molders could dedicate machines to non-cosmetic black parts,
and if they had black specks, nobody cared; today, they have to
change out that machine from color to color, running clear and
white parts, which are very unforgiving. There has to be a cleaning protocol, and everyone on the shop floor has to follow it.”
2
Photo Credit: Arburg Inc.
Yes, purging an injection molding
press, whether for color changes
or removal of carbon, can be timeconsuming. And yes, it can cut into
your profits. But since the alternative
is shipping off-spec parts to your
customers, it’s not a step you
can afford to skip. So you
might as well do it right.
CHOOSE THE RIGHT PROCEDURE
We don’t have to tell you that this is related to the first point
— you don’t want to standardize the wrong process, do
you? “Selecting the right procedure is as important as selecting
the right purge product,” said Nancy Mitchell, technical product
manager for Shuman Dyna-Purge. “A case in point is the DynaPurge ‘Quick Color Change Procedure’ for transitions from a
CPLFeb2014 p26,28 Purging.indd 26
14-01-23 9:51 AM
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Matsui Charges an Extra $900!
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Minimizes Energy Consumption
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2. Setup Conveying
Automatically Tells You
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CPLFeb2014 p27 Novatec AD.indd 27
14-01-23 9:52 AM
purging compounds
dark to a light color. This procedure is a continuous process and
utilizes a pre-determined amount of purge. The purge is introduced when the resident resin is in the feed throat; the operator
continues to make parts until the purge becomes apparent and,
therefore, no longer starves the screw of the resident resin; the
next color resin is introduced when the purge is in the feed throat,
and the process continues until the resin is free of purge.”
In one instance, Mitchell continued, a Tier 1 automotive
molder reduced the amount of purging material by 50 per cent,
saved over 30 lbs of production resin, and improved their changeover time to 23 minutes by changing their procedure.
Also, there are some best practices and troubleshooting tips to
keep in mind beyond the set of basic purging procedures. “First,
when performing a mechanical purge, use maximum safe screw
speed while purging and while displacing the purging compound,”
said Joe Serell. “Second, use maximum safe back pressure while
purging and while displacing the purging compound. And third,
keep the screw completely forward while purging; this ensures that
the front end of the barrel, where color and carbon deposits tend to
be a problem, receives maximum agitation.”
3
CHOOSE THE RIGHT TEMPERATURE
All purging compounds have temperature limits and temperature recommendations, and molders should be fully
aware of these.
Temperature ranges vary from compound to compound, but
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here’s a good general purging rule: “When performing a dark to
light color change, increase the temperature of the nozzle and hot
runners in all zones,” said Christie Giles, CEO of World Class
Technologies LLC, which represents the Magna Purge product
line. “The amount by which to increase the temperature depends
on the application, which should be discussed with the purging
compound representative. The reason for increasing the temperature is to more thoroughly melt the dark color, reducing its viscosity and making it easier to remove from the press.”
4
KNOW YOUR RESINS
Sure, life would be a lot simpler if all resins were equally
easy to purge. Too bad it doesn’t work that way. Some
materials, of course, are indeed relatively simple to remove.
“Basic polypropylenes and HDPEs are materials that have a good
melt flow, don’t thicken during processing, and are therefore relatively simple to purge from the machine,” said Christie Giles.
It gets tougher from there. “High-temperature resins like PEEK,
Ultem, and liquid crystal polymers are often processed in the 700°F
range — or low 400°C — and some purging compounds cannot
handle those temperatures,” said Joe Serell. “PVC is also a difficult
resin to purge, as it carbonizes easily and tends to get sticky.” Irritatingly, this stickiness can cause a second problem. “After a molder
purges PVC, the material itself sometimes has trouble removing the
purging compound because it’s so soft,” Serell said. In this sense,
PVC reveals the other half of the purging equation — the half that
tends to get overlooked. “It’s not too difficult to remove most resins, but the question then becomes can you then remove the purging
compound with the next processing resin?” Serell said.
Other resins, while not difficult to purge in and of themselves,
can be problematic for other reasons. “Polycarbonate degrades
fairly easily, which means that it tends to develop black specks,”
Serell continued. “And since polycarbonate parts are often optical
or transparent, black specks of any kind are an automatic reject
even if they’re not on the surface. It’s a material that, quite particularly, has to be properly purged.”
Finally, there’s an unexpected silver lining in the increasingly
popular lines of glass-filled resins. “Many molders assume that
glass-filled materials are difficult to purge, but they’re actually
self-cleaning to an extent, in that the glass can act as its own
scouring agent on the screw,” Serell said.
In the end, purging compound suppliers are in business to
make money, but most — and certainly the good ones — don’t
want to sell more product because of poor practices among the
molders. “We want to sell the amount that’s required, to repeat
customers,” said Jeff Lewis. So if you’re really interested in
cleaning up your act without cleaning out your bank account —
and taking the best care you can of your equipment in the process
— check with the supplier to make sure you’re getting the most
for your hard-earned bucks.
CPL
RESOURCE LIST
Shuman Dyna-Purge (Buffalo, N.Y.); www.dynapurge.com; 866-607-8743
Slide Products Inc. (Wheeling, Ill.); www.slideproducts.com; 800-323-6433
Sun Plastech Inc. (Parsippany, N.J.); www.asaclean.com; 800-787-4348
World Class Technologies LLC (Midway, Ky.); www.magnapurge.com;
859-226-0036
CPLFeb2014 p26,28 Purging.indd 28
14-01-23 9:51 AM
Turn your Purgings into Profits.
(Savings)
(Purgings)
Stop throwing away money. Reclaim
your purgings with Maguire’s unique
PURGING RECOVERY SYSTEM™.
Get payback right away.
Imagine what you could save in recovered purgings across
your entire operation. You could easily pay for this unit
itself within the first year. The
Maguire Purging Recovery System
runs about $31,500. Prior to this,
size reducers would commonly cost
about $150,000 per unit. So don’t
throw away those purgings in some
landfill, regrind them, recover
those resin costs. It’s a new way to
find money (savings) within your
current system. A small outlay with
a quick payback. And it’s the right
thing for the environment.
The Purging Recovery System
(PRS-20) is a unique, yet simple two-
stage process. The first stage takes awkward, large size purgings and planes them into small pieces, somewhat like a
carpenter’s plane. Then stage two
granulates them into highly uniform regrind ready for processing.
With nearly 150 patents in the
U.S. and internationally, Maguire
is committed to developing unique
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processing. It’s backed by a five-year
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Check out our video on the web.
Contact Maguire today.
Purging Recovery System
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299 Basaltic Road, Unit 1
Vaughan, Ontario L4K 4W8
Toll Free: 866-441-8409
Tel: 905-879-1100
Fax: 905-879-1101
Email: [email protected]
The perfect blend of simplicity and control.
www.MaguireCanada.com
Maguire Products Canada, Inc ®
CPLFeb2014 p29 Maguire AD.indd 29
14-01-23 9:38 AM
technology showcase
AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT
Upgrades software and
new material dispense
options for blender
Maguire has unveiled a series of improvements
to its Weigh Scale Blender (WSB).
An upgraded gravimetric gateway networking software,
the new G2 Version 5, increases the capability of manufacturers to monitor plant-wide or even multi-plant operations by
accessing the blender network via a PC server. The software
enhancement addresses the need for more data to facilitate
cost savings through increased control, and for greater documentation of process conditions. G2 software provides thorough material-usage reports; displays alarms from anywhere
in the network; downloads and updates recipes in specific
machines from remote locations; and monitors inventory levels, providing alerts to reorder raw materials. The Version 5
increases the capability for live monitoring of material consumption by authorized parties, and includes such standard
updates as compatibility with Windows 8.
Also, a new dispense device has been added for dispensing ingredients from the hopper bins of the WSB to the
weigh chamber: the carousel valve, which mimics the action
of a vibratory feeder to make possible accurate
dosing of difficult ingredients at very low rates. The
new device can dispense masterbatches and additives at
rates less than one gram per second. And like the other
dispense devices available for the Maguire WSB, the
new valve has a modular interface that enables it to be
exchanged with another device.
Maguire Canada/Novatec Inc. (Vaughan, Ont.);
www.maguirecanada.com; 866-441-8409
Barway
Plastic Equipment Inc. (Vaudreuil-Dorian, Que.);
www.barway.ca; 450-455-1396
Bendable probe sees all
BinMaster Level Controls has developed a bendable capacitance probe designed to fit in tight
spaces or in vessels where obstructions prevent
the installation of a straight probe.
This probe can be bent to avoid obstructions in a vessel while still allowing adequate probe
surface area to confirm the presence or absence of
material. Mounted on the side of the bin, the bendable probe can be used in a wide range of solid
materials or slurries. One common
application for the bendable probe is
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Inserat_CanadianPlastics_01_2014_178x124_3mm.indd 1
CPLFeb2014 p31-37 TechShow.indd 30
13.01.2014 13:35:20
14-01-23 9:57 AM
technology showcase
for high and low level detection in smaller mixers or containers used in food processing plants.
The bendable probe offers interference-free, fail-safe
operation and “Quick-Set” calibration. BinMaster capacitance probes provide interference-free operation — working
far below the RF level of 9 KHz at just 6 KHz — and will not
interfere with two-way radios or other equipment operating
in the radio spectrum.
Standard capacitance probe features include a triplethread, screw-off cover that allows easy access to internal
components; and an FDA-recognized powder coat finish.
This housing also has dual conduit entries to simplify wiring
and installation. The dual time delay feature allows the user
to set flexible time delays up to 30 seconds for covered and
uncovered conditions.
Binmaster (Lincoln, Neb.); www.binmaster.com; 402-434-9102
C ancoppas Limited (Mississauga, Ont.);
www.cancoppas.com; 905-569-6246
A simpler vacuum
conveying system
Combined Schenck Process Group members Schenck AccuRate and Mac Process have released the new MoveMaster Vac
vacuum conveying system, designed to offer a cleaner oper-
ating environment for handling
both raw materials and finished
products.
Made for batch dilute phase
conveying, direct loss-in-weight
feeder refill, and integrated
volumetric feeding and conveying, key components of the
MoveMaster Vac system include
pick-up and reception points
which are modularly designed
with dust-proof seals and quick
release clamps to simplify
cleaning. Complete units can be disassembled in minutes.
Modular construction also means changing process needs
can be easily accommodated by simply replacing the relevant
standard components from a wide range available.
The MoveMaster Vac is intended for sanitary applications
with easy-to-clean surfaces and contamination-free transfer
of materials, but is robust and durable enough to withstand
the rigors of conveying materials that are corrosive and hazardous found in many industrial processes. A wide range of
powders, pellets, and additives can be accommodated at rates
up to 4,400 lbs per hour and temperatures to 110°F.
A selection of three unit sizes are available with the new
MoveMaster Vac system that include 10, 35, and 80 litre
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www.canplastics.com February 2014 Canadian Plastics CPLFeb2014 p31-37 TechShow.indd 31
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technology showcase
Precept International Inc.
capacities, as well as bag or cartridge filter media and feed
bin pick-up options to meet most application needs.
Schenck AccuRate (Whitewater, Wis.);
www.accuratefeeders.com; 800-558-0184
F iring Industries Ltd. (Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont.);
www.firing.com; 905-688-0962
W
estern Process Equipment (Calgary, Alta);
www.westernprocessequipment.com; 403-216-3835
250 Trowers Road, Unit 12
Woodbridge, Ontario
L4L 5Z7, Canada
Phone 905-856-6010
Email [email protected]
VYNAMON ®
VANADUR ®
HEUCODUR ®
HEUCO ®FIT
HEUCOBATCH
HEUCOPLAST
INJECTION MOLDING
PET preform machine
allows quick mold changes
Worldwide sales and technical support
facilities as well as production and
R&D units in Europe, Asia and America
combine a 200 years history of expertise
in pigment production together with
ongoing expansions and innovations.
Our extensive product portfolio offers ideal
solutions for the plastic market, such as:
> VYNAMON®
Organic high performance pigments
> VANADUR®
Brilliant bismuth vanadate pigments
> HEUCODUR®
Highly opaque and durable complex
inorganic colored pigments
> HEUCO®FIT
Cost effective customized and ready to
use pigment preparations
> HEUCOBATCH
Micro granules which contain optimally
dispersed pigments and guarantee
maximum color strength and dust-free
coloration
> HEUCOPLAST
Ready to use pigment preparation
consisting of organic/inorganic
pigments and PVC-powder
Competence in Color
The path to solutions
EXTRUSION
New biaxially-oriented
sausage casing line
Macro Engineering & Technology Inc. has developed a new
high speed co-extrusion line for producing biaxially-oriented (biax) sausage casings.
The line can be configured to produce co-extrusion casing structures up to 11 layers using nylon, PE and EVOH.
www.heubachcolor.de
32 At the end of 2012, Athena Automation Ltd. announced
a partnership with Italian packaging solutions specialist SIPA SpA to build a line of automated PET preform
injection equipment. New from Athena Automation — for
SIPA — the XForm 150 tonne PET preform injection molding machine is designed for molders who need to make a
variety of preform types, and is well-suited to the production of wide-mouth jars.
The 150-tonne clamp accepts molds up to 48 cavities,
including legacy molds, and an innovative post-mold cooling system improves cycle time. Changing the tooling for
the robot and cooling station takes only about 15 minutes,
and a complete mold and tooling change can be performed
in approximately one hour.
The XForm 150 is a two-platen machine that uses 30 per
cent less floor space than other systems in the market. With
an electric and servo-hydraulic axis combination, the show
system achieved energy consumption of under 0.2 kWh
per kg. Athena’s hybrid platform is also targeted at other
markets beyond PET, such as closures, medical, and other
packaging applications.
Athena Automation Ltd. (Vaughan, Ont.);
www.athenaautomation.com; 905-265-0277
01_14 CP.indd 1
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14-01-23 1:32 PM
technology showcase
It can also be extended
to allow processing of
structures with PVdC.
It produces casings with
width calibers of 80 to
120 mm, and thickness
ranging from 40-50
microns. The line operates at speeds up to 170
meters per minute.
The line can be readily converted to produce films for
barrier shrink bag production, and includes a primary bubble-forming section with a vacuum calibrator, orientation
section with infrared (IR) sectional heaters, and an IR
annealing oven. The bubble diameters in each section are
precisely measured and controlled to ensure consistent production quality.
Since operation of the line is complex, Macro has incorporated an advanced control system to assist operators. The
control system contains recipes for automatic ramping up
(and down) of the line speed with simultaneous adjustment
up to 30 process parameters.
Macro plans to add automatic gauge control to the system
by 2015.
Macro Engineering & Technology Inc. (Mississauga, Ont.);
www.macroeng.com; 905-507-9000
High output with
low energy consumption
The new conEX series of conical twin-screw extruders from
battenfeld-cincinnati is designed to offer high output with
optimal energy performance.
The conEX extruder series
comprises four models with screw
diameters ranging from 38 to 72
mm. The screw geometry has
been optimized so that
increases in output of
up to 10 per cent have
now become possible in
both pipe and profile extrusion (for pipes up to 550 kg
per hour, for profiles up to
280 kg per hour).
The conEX models reach a high level of energy efficiency through a complete barrel insulation system. It
includes the proven barrel insulation in the feed and degassing zones, and thermal separation between the metering
unit and the barrel feed opening by means of an insulating plate. An improved vacuum aggregate, pumps with
reduced water volumes, and a new vacuum filter complete
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NOVA
www.canplastics.com February 2014 Canadian Plastics 33
14-01-23 10:10 AM
technology showcase
with filter sump also contribute to saving energy. Maintenance-free, energy-efficient AC drives for all extruders,
Intracool screw tempering, and the air-power cooling system of the barrel are included as standard.
Due to their minimal footprint, conEX extruders are also
well-suited for use as co-extruders. Piggyback configura-
tions and space-saving lateral configurations are easy to
implement thanks to a flexible machine frame design.
battenfeld-cincinnati (McPherson, Kan.);
www.battenfeld-cincinnati.com; 620-241-6843
ROBOTS & AUTOMATION
Energy-efficient robot,
plus new control system
plastics data file
Wittmann Innovations
Innovations — Wittmann’s quarterly
newsletter — offers plastics processors detailed insight into ways to
improve their businesses with news
and application stories covering Robots and Automation, IML, Injection
Molding Machinery, Material Conveying, Drying and Blending, Granulation and Temperature Control. It
is available in print and on-line.
Wittmann Canada Inc.,
35 Leek Crescent
Richmond Hill, ON L4B 4C2
Tel: 1-888-466-8266
www.wittmann-canada.com
Get free information from the companies that interest you most.
Contact the company directly using the telephone number,
e-mail address or web site listed above.
The new W833 pro robot from Wittmann is designed for injection molding machines with medium clamping
force, up to 650 tonnes.
Consistent application of lightweight construction technology for the axes,
combined with the drive concept
Wittmann developed especially for linear robots, makes
the W833 dynamic, while
maintaining low energy consumption at the same time. The resulting minimal use of
moving lines for energy transmission and interconnection
further extends the service life of the equipment.
Also, holding brakes with an automatic test function
are built into all of the main axes as standard equip-
annoUncing
Windsor
Mold
Expo
October 23, 2014
Ciociaro Club,
Oldcastle, ON.
A tabletop show
and dinner.
Show hours: 2-7 pm
Dinner: 7-9 pm
www.windsorMoldexpo.coM
Keynote dinner speaker: automotive market expert, Laurie Harbour, Harbour Results Inc.
Windsor Mold Expo will attract regional buying
influences from Southwestern Ontario and Michigan –
moldmakers, molders and OEMs.
The co-located show Metalworking Manufacturing &
Production Expo will attract manufacturers, job shops,
maintenance, tool rooms, automotive, transportation and
tool & die making professionals.
Why YoU should exhibit
• Meetface-to-facewithYOURcustomers,atatime
when the moldmaking market is on the upswing.
• Promoteyourproductstoanengagedaudience.
• FREEadmissioninvitationstoover20,000professionals, through the mailing lists of Canadian Plastics
magazine, Canadian Metalworking magazine, and
Canadian Association of Moldmakers.
• FREEPARKINGandconvenientlocationneara
concentration of mold shops encourages attendance.
Organized by Canadian Plastics
Endorsed By:
Sponsored By:
For details on exhibiting,
please contact:
Judith nancekivell,
senior publisher
Tel: 416-510-5116
greg paliouras,
associate publisher
Tel: 416-510-5124
CanadianPlastics
14-01-23 10:10 AM
technology showcase
ment, thereby allowing electrical power consumption to
drop almost to zero, and further increasing safety while the
robot is at rest.
In addition, a new robot control system, the R8.3, makes
it easy to set up a robot without the need for formal programming. The current evolution of the R8.3 places particular emphasis on user-friendly operation along with easy
communication and interaction with the injection molding
unit. It was also designed to be as straightforward as possible for new users to learn to operate. For that reason, the
text editor — proven effective for many years — has been
retained, but is now assisted by a powerful, graphics-based
programming aid: the new QuickNew assistant, which
makes it possible to generate a complete programming
sequence in just seven steps.
Wittmann Canada (Richmond Hill, Ont.);
www.wittmann-canada.com; 866-466-8266
MOLD TECHNOLOGY
Cooling channel technology
can save time, money
guidance, and attachment elements.
Using the Z99 permits a reduction in the number of cooling channels, since it’s no longer necessary to have a cooling
channel in an additional plane. If the CoolCross is used in
thicker plates, the installation depth can be selected on a
variable basis.
Hasco Canada Inc. (Toronto);
www.hasco.com; 888-244-5110
Quick-change system
cuts tooling costs
Speed is essential in today’s
competitive
global
economy, and the MUD
quick-change molding
system from DME Company is designed to be
save valuable time.
Featuring companion insert molds
that can be switched easily in less than
five minutes by one person, MUD helps plastics manufacturers dramatically reduce the time and cost — by up to 66
per cent — associated with tooling downtime.
This fast and easy system for mold set-ups and changeovers works in just a few quick steps: loosen four clamps,
disconnect heating or cooling lines, and slide the insert mold
from the quick-change frame.
MUD also allows unlimited design latitude. Insert molds
can be engineered for parts that require stripper plates,
sleeve ejection, single or double cam action, hydraulic,
mechanical or pneumatic cylinders — virtually any feature
desired, including three- and four-plate designs.
DME of Canada Ltd. (Mississauga, Ont.);
www.dme.net; 800-387-6600
The new CoolCross Z99 from
Hasco is designed to open up
a range of new possibilities for
the user, including time and
cost savings, when it comes to
designing cooling systems for
injection molds.
The CoolCross allows for
cooling channels crossing each other on the same plane
in a flexible and inexpensive manner without any major
outlay on production. CoolCross permits a homogeneous
temperature distribution at the core or insert, as well
as constant cavity cooling on all four sides for the full
duration of the injection molding cycle. It
also prevents hot spots.
In addition, 100 per cent
protection against rotation (achieved through
a locking mechanism)
trad
compe up cred
prevents the unintended
etito it on
rs’ un
its
closure of the cooling
channels.
Different independent
cooling circuits cross
each other on the same
plane, making it possible
While others are just discovering brushless motors, we’ve been perfecting them
to incorporate small plate
thicknesses and inexpensive accessory compoHamilton Plastic Systems Ltd.
nents in the mold design.
Mississauga, Ontario
1-800-590-5546
By reducing the plate
www.hamiltonplasticsystems.com
thickness, use can be
made of shorter nozzles,
$250
HAMILTON
BRUSHLESS LOADER
TECHNOLOGY
35
14-01-23 10:11 AM
technology showcase
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SOFTWARE
Instant inspection
status updates speed
re-mastering process
Renishaw’s Equator comparative gauging system now
includes new process monitoring software that displays measurement results
of inspected features — as well as the
measurement history of each feature —
instantly via a monitoring window added
to the shop floor user interface.
The intuitive Organizer front-end
software works with Renishaw’s comprehensive MODUS program to allow operators to manage the re-mastering process
based on temperature limits, number of
parts, or time since the last master.
A status bar graph shows inspection
results for the last part measured as a
proportion of tolerance either side of
nominal. Operators can configure the
system to set extra warning limits on
part features, beyond the pass/fail tolerance limits already set by the inspection
program, allowing them to take action
before a process reaches 100 per cent of
tolerance. The bar graph turns orange
at the warning limit; and if the pass/fail
tolerance is exceeded, the bar turns red
and re-mastering is enforced with an onscreen message to the operator.
One of Equator’s key strengths is that
it can operate in factories with wide temperature variation, due to its ability to
cope with changes in shop floor temperature by employing the traditional
method of comparing production parts
to a reference master part and re-zeroing
the system with an inspection routine on
the master part. This re-mastering is as
swift as measuring a production part,
and immediately compensates for any
change in the thermal conditions of the
shop floor environment.
Renishaw (Canada) Ltd. (Mississauga, Ont.);
www.renishaw.com; 905-828-0104
14-01-23 10:11 AM
technology showcase
SHOP FLOOR
New digimatic calipers
set new standard
A new series of cost-effective standard digimatic callipers from Mitutoyo are equipped with the same AOS
(Advanced Onsite Encoder) induction
type encoder used in top-of-the-line
ABS Coolant Proof Calipers.
Thanks to the adoption of the
electromagnetic induction type ABS
encoder, these calipers can be used without concern for contamination on the scale face during measurement. The ABS
(Absolute) scale requires no origin-setting after
power-on, and also has no limit to response speed.
The latest machining technology ensures that
the slider provides smooth, stable, and comfortable operation, and the high-contrast LCD display
with font height of 9 mm makes for easy viewing of
measurement results, while delivering a battery life
of approximately 3.5 years.
These newest calipers are available up to an
eight inch/200 mm range, with or without SPC data
output.
Carbide-tipped jaw models that are well-suited
to the measurement of rough-machined work
pieces, casting, and grindstones are also available.
Mitutoyo Canada Inc. (Mississauga, Ont.);
www.mititoyo.ca; 905-821-1261
To place your classified ad here, contact:
Greg Paliouras, Associate Publisher at 416-510-5124 or [email protected]
MATERIALS
classified ads
BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES
A CANADIAN COMPANY IS SEEKING A PARTNER
to invest, to manufacture and to market systems of prefabricated
construction for buildings and tanks using thermoformed plastic
(PVC extrusion and injected polypropylene). These systems are
currently being manufactured and sold in developing countries.
Please take a look on our website:
www.dc-inter.com
Or communicate with:
[email protected]
MACHINERY & EQUIPMENT
advertising index
Advertiser
AceTRONIC
Arburg
Athena Automation Ltd.
Auxiplast Inc.
Basics of Extrusion seminar
Canadian Plastics
CanPlastics TV videos
Chillers Inc.
Conair
CPA Canada
DynaPurge
Page
6-7
2
13
24-25, 30
21
Website
Advertiser
Page
Website
www.acetronic.com
www.arburg.us
www.athenaautomation.com
www.auxiplast.com
www.canplastics.com/thebasics
ofextrusion
IMS
Ingenia Polymers Corp.
Maguire Products Canada
Mo.di.tec
NGR – Next Generation
Recycling Machines Inc.
Novatec
Plastic Process Equipment, Inc.
Rocklin Manufacturing Co.
Rotogran International
Scott’s Directories
Vecoplan, LLC
WEIMA America Inc.
Windsor Mold Expo
Wittmann Battenfeld
17
5
29
24-25
www.imscompany.com
www.ingeniapolymers.com
www.maguirecanada.com
www.mo-di-tec.fr
www.ngr.at
9
www.canplastics.com
23
back cover
33
31
www.chillersinc.com
www.conairgroup.com
www.channelpa.com
www.dynapurge.com
Engel Canada Inc.
Hamilton Plastic Systems
10
35
www.engelglobal.com/na
www.hamiltonpsl.com
HEUBACH GmbH
32
www.heubach.de
30
27
39
31
8
36
12
28
34
15
www.novatec.com
www.ppe.com
www.rocklinmanufacturingco.com
www.rotogran.com
www.scottsinfo.com
www.vecoplanllc.com
www.weimaamerica.com
www.windsormoldexpo.com
www.wittmann-canada.com
37
14-01-23 10:11 AM
technical tips
How to obtain even wall thickness in
extrusion blow molding (it ain’t easy)
By Ottmar Brandau, Apex Container Tech Inc.
I
n the extrusion blow molding (EBM) process, a hollow tube of
molten material (called a parison) is extruded out of a head and
through a male and female part, commonly referred to as pin
and bushing or mandrel and die.
It might sound simple, but a whole host of factors must
come together to let this parison inflate into a part of even wall
thickness in both the axial and hoop direction. The melt coming
from the extrusion screw must be homogeneous; the heat in the
head must be even; the parison must be straight and have even
wall thickness; the parison wall thickness must be programmed
to reflect the container geometry; all parisons in a multi-cavity
system must have the same length; if the container is oblong, the
parison wall thickness should reflect that; and venting must be
sufficient to avoid any air entrapment.
Let’s examine each factor in turn.
EBM extruders should have an L/D ratio of 24:1, 22:1 for
heat-sensitive materials like PVC. EBM materials have a
ve r y low melt flow index compared to injection molding, and
generally need longer residence time to properly melt. Barrier
screws with or without end mixers have become very popular
lately. Parisons are easier to control when they run at the lower
end of the temperature range and modern screws allow this to
happen.
If the parison has a warmer and colder side, the warmer
side will always blow into a thinner wall. Even parison heat
is therefore paramount. Heater bands should not be aligned along
the head — it might look pretty when they are, but it leaves a
slightly cooler area in the same parison part. All thermocouples
must have good contact with the metal of the head, distributor,
and extruder.
While the pin is always stationary horizontally, the die is
moveable and must be adjusted so that the parison runs
straight. If it “hooks” to one side, the parison will be thin on that
side, and the die must be moved in that direction. In a perfect
world, a straight running parison guarantees even parison wall
thickness. However, because of slight temperature and pressure differences in the head, the parison may run straight with
uneven wall thickness. This can be tested by squashing the end
of the parison as it comes out of the head and letting head support inflate it. The warmer and/or thin side will inflate more,
and this is easily observed by the development of the inflating
bubble. In this case a compromise must be struck between a
straight and even parison if there is no time to investigate the
reason for this discrepancy.
Almost every EBM machine now uses a wall thickness
controller or programmer that changes the die gap during
extrusion to reflect changing container geometry and/or counters
the propensity of the parison to sag under its own weight. On
1.
2.
3.
4.
38 shuttle EBM machines, it can be a challenge to correlate particular points on the container with the parison programming points.
Why? Because there’s a distance between the top of the parison
and the die bottom, depending on the distance between head and
knife. Operators should use the “marking” feature of the programmer that increases or decreases wall thickness dramatically
for suspected points and lets them see the result in the container.
This helps greatly in optimizing overall wall thickness.
When there’s more than one cavity, parisons must have the
same length or else the programmed parison points don’t
end up in the same spot on the container. Parison length can be
adjusted with either temperature or chokes in the distributor
between extruder and head. The former method must be used
with materials like PVC — which doesn’t allow for chokes —
but otherwise is not recommended, as it introduces variation in
parison temperature that will affect shrinkage.
Oblong containers will have thinner walls in the far container sides as the parison thins out during inflation. To
counter this, parison wall thickness can be increased in those
areas that will form these far sides. This is mostly done by cutting pockets into the die after the parison has been marked to find
the proper parison locations. Because of weight swell of up to
200 per cent, these cuts must be done in increments, as they may
have a large effect on the container. Two or even three iterations
can be necessary to get it just right. Companies that sell die sets
often have experience for common bottles that allows them to get
it right the first time.
The mold halves contain air when they’re closing, and this
air must have a way out — otherwise entrapped air prevents
proper distribution and cooling of the plastic. All molds have a
surface texture tailored to the material being molded; polyolefin
molds are sand-blasted, for example. The texture allows the air to
move behind the inflating parison towards the mold faces where
vents with a depth of approximately 0.05 mm (0.002 inches)
allow escape. Special geometries, such as handles, may also
require hole or corner vents that are increasingly cut with lasers
instead of drill bits.
In summary, many parameters have to come together to yield
perfect containers. It’s not easy, so don’t be surprised that operators need training and experience to master the art.
CPL
5.
6.
7.
Ottmar Brandau is the founder of OB Plastics Consulting (now
Apex Container Tech Inc.), and has trained machine operators
and engineers online and in-house around the world. His latest
book, “A Practical Guide to Extrusion Blow Molding,” can be
found at www.blowmolding.org/shop. He can be reached at
705-429-1492, or [email protected]. Also, visit www.
blowmolding.org.
Canadian Plastics Februray 2014 www.canplastics.com
CPLFeb2014 p38 TechTIPS.indd 38
14-01-23 10:15 AM
40
HOT RUNNER
th
th
ANNIVERSARY!
ANNIVERSARY!
TEMPERATURE CONTROLS
SALE!
FOR RUNNERLESS MOLDING SYSTEMS
HOT RUNNER SYSTEM
QTC EDGE

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195.00
SALE

MICRO PRECISION SERIES

THE NEW STANDARD IN PERFORMANCE AND SIZE
NEW Q SIZE
SMALLER MODULES & MAINFRAMES
REDUCE SPACE REQUIREMENTS

40
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ADVANCED SERIES

$
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180.00
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FULL 2 YEAR WARRANTY AND FACTORY REPAIR SERVICE FOR ALL PPE HOT RUNNER CONTROLS.
P LASTIC P ROCESS E QUIPMENT,

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CPLFeb2014 p39 PPE AD.indd 39

14-01-23 10:15 AM
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CPLFeb2014 p40 Conair AD.indd 40
14-01-23 10:16 AM