Some products include many custom-designed plastic parts. And the switch to mass production usually requires a high investment in high-pressure injection molds. I had a look at Kickstarter today and I saw a few examples of such products. It's likely that the companies behind these three products have to put a lot of money down on various types of tooling. And it always sparks legitimate questions such as 'can't we just use prototype injection molds for the first production run?'. … [Read more...]
QualityInspection.org’s Top Blog Posts & Videos Of 2021
The rollercoaster has continued in 2021! After a difficult 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic first hit, it's perhaps understandable that many of us might have hoped that things would settle down in 2021, however, since last year's roundup in the top posts and videos of 2020 it's been more of the same. Supply chains have buckled, commodity and sea freight prices have gone through the roof, covid continues to rage (what variant are we even on now!?), and importers have numerous reasons to feel … [Read more...]
7 Common Plastic Injection Mold Tooling Development, Approval, & Maintenance Pitfalls [Podcast]
![7 Common Plastic Injection Mold Tooling Development, Approval, & Maintenance Pitfalls [Podcast]](https://qualityinspection.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/7CommonPlasticInjectionMoldToolingDevelopmentApprovalMaintenancePitfallsPodcast-1140x445.jpeg)
Tooling is a large investment for any manufacturer, so what do we need to be wary of..? Andy Bartlett, an experienced British product designer who has 25 years of experience in product design, development, and working with manufacturers in China, returns to join us again on the podcast for a lively discussion about the kinds of issues and common pitfalls that can come up when developing, approving, and maintaining tooling for your plastic injection molded products. You'll learn why supplier … [Read more...]
List of 12 Plastic injection mold fabrication companies in China
High-pressure plastic injection molding is one of the most common fabrication processes. Tens of thousands of factories in Ningbo, Shenzhen, and in many other places have at least a few presses running near-continuously. If you develop your own product and it includes some custom plastic parts, you will probably need to invest in a mold. What should you know about this type of tooling, and what plastic injection mold fabrication companies in China can help you? … [Read more...]
All about Plastic Injection Molding and Thermoplastics [Videos]
![All about Plastic Injection Molding and Thermoplastics [Videos]](https://qualityinspection.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/AllaboutPlasticInjectionMoldingandThermoplasticsVideos-1140x445.jpg)
Do some of your products include plastic parts? If you purchase hard goods, that's probably the case. When writing a guide about plastics manufacturing last month, and I made a list of products that are made in China and incorporate thermoplastics. Here are a few: The casing of many electrical appliances and electronic products Many vehicle parts (e.g. instrument panels in PVC, a dashboard in ABS, bumpers in PP, cams in PA, buttons in PS…) Many construction parts (e.g. countertops, … [Read more...]
Avoiding 9 Plastic Injection Molding Defects: Key Preventive Measures
Plastic injection molding is one of the most common production processes here in China. And most Chinese manufacturers are not very good at setting up and maintaining their presses and their molds and this leads to plastic injection molding defects... If the right polymer is used, and if the factory adopts the right process control measures, there is a low probability for things to go wrong. I have met many manufacturers that don't understand that. There is a multitude of reasons for parts … [Read more...]
Selecting a Plastic Injection Material for China Manufacturing
By Fabien Gaussorgues Do you need to manufacture a plastic part in China? The first question is usually 'what is the best material?' comes before prototyping and before deciding on a manufacturer. The most common plastics used in China are acrylic (PMMA), acetal (POM), nylon (PA66), polycarbonate (PC), acrylonitrile (ABS), thermoplastic (PET), polypropylene (PP), low density polyethylene (LDPE), and polyetheretherketone (PEEK). There is usually no straightforward answer. Many criteria … [Read more...]