TECHNOLOGY | PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
clients with custom product requests, Turck says that it looked to PolyJet technology and Digital ABS from Stratasys for a 3D printing solution. “The challenge was finding a 3D printing technology strong enough to hold up to short injection moulding runs,” says Florinel Ciubotaru, Turck senior project
manager. “Digital ABS provides high temperature
Above: Proto Labs has introduced a liquid silicone rubber
capability to support
manufacturers of larger injection
moulded parts
the other tools in their toolbox. “Of course, with any new technology there are
current limitations. We provide a comprehensive technical application guide which illustrates the injection moulding best fit uses, and design and processing recommendations for the technology. It is always important to consider the size and quantity of moulds required. However, our technology is constantly improving as it relates to injection mould tools. With every improvement delivered, we continue to overcome the obstacles of adoption.” Stratasys recently assisted Turck, a company
recognised for its process automation applications in connectivity, sensor and industrial control solutions for factory and off-road equipment. Many of the company’s products, such as junction boxes, cordsets and splitters, are created using injection moulding. This process places components, such as cables and conductors, in the injection mould, to create a single part. Overmoulding eliminates the need to assemble connectors, improves the integrity of the connections, and protects the connectors from elements like moisture, dust, and excessive wear and tear. Turck offers about 900 overmoulded products
and frequently designs overmoulded parts for custom applications. However, before the company can start producing an overmoulded part, proto- types are required to evaluate the product’s form and fit. The prototypes ensure all critical areas are covered by plastic, and all accessible connections are free of plastic. In order to create a prototype for evaluation, the company usually orders, with steel moulds taking around ten weeks to build. On average, two iterations are required during the design evaluation, and modifying a steel tool takes about a month at a cost of $5,000. Using this approach, it took Turck about six months to produce a custom product, which sometimes caused the company to lose orders when the client needed the product more quickly. In order to save time and avoid losing potential
64 INJECTION WORLD | October 2017
resistance, toughness and rigidity, which are just what we needed in this application.” Using Digital ABS, Turck produces prototypes for overmoulded products just a few days after completing the design, cutting the time to market to four months instead of six. The cost of 3D printing the mould is about $1,500, considerably less than the cost of modifying a steel tool, and the mould can produce between 20 and 100 parts. Turck says that the ability to produce prototypes quickly has helped it get many orders that it would not have received in the past. The company adds that it can try more design concepts than before due to the less expensive 3D printed moulds. With more design freedom, Turck says that it can respond to customer requests for variants of existing overmoulded products. Often these product modifications have the same external dimensions, but different internal configurations, such as a bigger connector or cable. In the past, this required building new internal steel components such as pins and bushings for the mould, which was an expensive tooling investment. However, with Digital ABS Turck can build modified internal parts for high- or low-volume orders. If the part volume is high, prototype mould components are 3D printed and the final components are made from steel. If the volume is low, Turck uses the plastic mould components to make production parts. Rapid prototyping and on-demand manufac-
turer Proto Labs has invested around €4m on new manufacturing technology and facility renovations, primarily in Telford, UK and also at its other locations across Europe. The company is a digital manufacturing service provider in 3D printing, CNC machining and injection moulding, and has added new Haas CNC machines and Arburg injection moulding machines. Proto Labs says that the new Haas machines will be configured for either mould making or component machining, with both of these services growing at a rapid pace. Including the new machines, Proto Labs UK’s inventory now totals 130 CNC machining and 57 injection moulding machines. Proto Labs also reports that it is seeing in-
creased demand for its industrial 3D printing service, which operates from two sites in Germany.
www.injectionworld.com
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