moulding masterclass | Moving moulds In the 34th instalment in his
masterclass series, moulding expert
John Goff looks at how previously
discussed process setting strategies can be applied when moving
moulds between machines
Transferring mould tools
Main image: High speed irrigation dripper production on a 64-cavity
Männer mould in an Arburg all-electric Allrounder. Many moulders have to deal with the challenge of moving moulds between different machines
During the writing of the previous articles in this series a number of topics were introduced but left to be followed up later. Over the next few editions we will be returning to some of these topics, beginning with the challenge of moving tools. This task is regularly encountered by moulding companies worldwide – fre- quently giving rise to productivity and/or component quality issues – and arises in circumstances that require a mould tool to be transferred from one injection moulding machine to another of: the same make and specifi cation ; the same make but with a different injection unit specifi cation;
a different make and specifi cation but with the same diameter for the screw and barrel assembly;
a different make and specifi cation with a different diameter of screw and barrel assembly. G&A is regularly asked to provide advice in order to
resolve the productivity or product quality issues that arise. Typically, when a mould tool is initially installed into a designated moulding machine the resultant outcome will become the bench mark for subsequent production runs, especially when performance has achieved high output rates, high OEE’s, and good process capability at the required AQL. As a matter of good moulding practice, process
26 INJECTION WORLD | November/December 2013
setting sheets are commonly derived, together with all the other documentation to support the requirements for component compliance and customer quality assurance acceptance purposes. The more detail that is included on the setting sheet, the less time consuming it becomes when setting the mould tool into a different type and make of moulding machine for a further production run. Naturally, if the production requirements necessitate
the process to run continuously 24/7 in the designated moulding machine then the matter of transfer does not arise. But in circumstances when it does, in addition to the creation of a setting sheet a process window study should also be undertaken. Such a study will allow the moulding technician to make changes to certain process parameters of the base line conditions during subsequent production runs without affecting compo- nent quality and output performance. For the majority of the moulding industry, numerous
mould tool changes take place during the daily production shifts. Problems can frequently be encoun- tered when a mould tool is installed into a different moulding machine. It is certainly not uncommon to hear frustrated complaints such as: “When this moulding machine is used to run this mould tool we have no end of moulding quality problems and it takes two to three times as long to produce the same quantity as it did
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PHOTO: ARBURG
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