INDUSTRY FOCUS CHEMICALS & PHARMACEUTICALS
BALANCED FLOW MOULDER BOOSTS OUTPUT BY 50 PERCENT
German manufacturer elm-plastic is one of the latest precision manufacturers to realise the advantage of using activeFlowBalance from Sumitomo (SHI) Demag in its all-electric IntElect machine. In doing so, the producer of medical injectors has addressed the issue of producing thin- wall components in 32-cavity moulds, evening the fill, boosting output by 50 percent and also increasing general production quality
U
ntil recently, manufacturing flawless 8ml injectors in a 32-cavity mould had presented the elm-plastic engineers with a major challenge. When components with long flow paths also have small wall-thicknesses, as these have, difficulties can arise. The components in question have a prescribed wall-thickness of just 1mm, while the flow path is longer than 100mm. To boost output rates without
increasing production times, elm-plastic developed a 32-cavity mould in-house. But when they tried it on the company’s electric injection moulding machines, they encountered a big problem, uneven fill. Any increase in the injection pressure produced unwelcome burrs and defects. Using an electric test machine, a necessity in cleanroom production facilities, 24 evenly-filled cavities was the best result the manufacturer of oral dosing pipettes and injectors was able to accomplish. Rather than give in, the team set about exploring alternative options. They tried mounting the 32-cavity
mould on old hydraulic machines. Although this delivered the quality and even fill, the company had been moving over to all-electric systems for close to a decade and remain huge advocates of the benefits. “Electric machines offer a range of benefits for cleanroom production, while hydraulic machines always carry the risk of contamination,” emphasises Uwe Lehnert, head of production. “Moreover, we appreciate the increased precision of electric machines and their low maintenance requirements. And it is easy to deal with any errors that may occur.” An electric IntElect machine from
Sumitomo (SHI) Demag equipped with activeFlowBalance met the customer’s requirements on the 32-cavity mould.
12 JUNE 2015 | AUTOMATION
Managing director Sascha Möhs (right), head of production, Uwe Lehnert (centre), with new IntElect 220 in a certified elm-plastic cleanroom
“When Sumitomo (SHI) Demag’s sales
engineer offered us a solution to our problem, we were rather sceptical,” Sascha Möhs, managing partner of elm- plastic, recalls. As a short-term solution the company had closed off some of the 32 cavities to achieve an even filling. “This was only temporary and rather inefficient, but it allowed us to eliminate all quality- related problems,” Möhs explains. Even the company’s long-standing supplier of electric injection moulding machines was not able to offer a long-term answer. Spending half a day at Sumitomo (SHI) Demag’s test centre in Wiehe was enough to convert the elm-plastic team.
Below: Before and after. Left: Underfilled injectors produced without activeFlowBalance
Right: Even filling of 32- cavity mould on an IntElect machine with activeFlowBalance
SCEPTICS WON OVER Sent in advance were the 32-cavity mould and sample LLDPE material. Sumitomo (SHI) Demag’s technicians had already prepared the setup in readiness for the arrival of self-confessed sceptics Möhs and Lehnert. First up was the test on an all-electric IntElect machine without activeFlowBalance. The results looked familiar: cavities were filled unevenly, meaning that some injectors were not fully formed or they were marred by burrs.
Prior to the next series of tests, the
machine was equipped with activeFlowBalance. “That was a veritable ‘wow’ moment. It took only one series of tests to produce 32 virtually immaculate components,” Möhs explains. “After a few minor adjustments, we were decided: the IntElect machine with activeFlowBalance is our long-term solution. Although scheduled, we did not require a second day in Wiehe.” An order for an IntElect with a clamping force of 2,200kN swiftly followed.
UP TO 50 PERCENT MORE OUTPUT “We realised that less was definitely more. We did not need higher clamping forces for these components. The activeFlowBalance feature ensures that all cavities are being filled evenly and that we fully meet our quality requirements while increasing our output rate by 50 percent compared with that of our injection moulding machines from other manufacturers,” Möhs points out. Today, elm-plastic’s IntElect 220 is
running smoothly in a certified cleanroom. The machine was integrated into the production data acquisition system (PDA) for maximum production transparency and versatility. Initially, elm-plastic’s machine setters
were apprehensive about operating the new machine. “But it didn’t take long until we had it figured out,” Lehnert concedes. And (SHI) Demag offered to provide us with advanced training if required.” “Sumitomo (SHI) Demag’s machines are now our first choice when we plan new acquisitions,” says Möhs.
Sumitomo (SHI) Demag
http://uk.sumitomo-shi-demag.eu T: 01296 739500
Enter 205 /AUTOMATION
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