Automotive Mold Makers Excel with CAD/CAM

Computer aided design and manufacturing (CAD/CAM) is a necessity to injection mold makers around the globe.  Injection molding today is complex with precision parts requiring tight dimensional tolerances.  Thermoplastic resins provide many benefits over other materials and are being used in many critical applications worldwide, including components for the Automotive, Aerospace and Medical industries.  Meeting these tight tolerances with complex injection molds requires the skilled use of CAD/CAM by an experienced injection mold design engineer.

CAD/CAM Delivers for Automotive Suppliers

Automotive OEMs demand the best from their suppliers, and expect perfection with zero defects, continual improvement plans and even cost reductions.  In order to satisfy the demanding requirements of the Automotive industry today, injection mold makers must operate in a lean and effective manner.  

Michiana Global Mold utilizes the latest in technological advancements with CAD/CAM design and mold making capabilities.  Our skilled design engineers have decades of experience constructing custom, precision molds used in critical applications by OEMSs worldwide.  

Our design engineers can quickly identify problematic dimensional areas, and address all concerns with the customer via easy file sharing.  Michiana Global Mold is experienced with UniGraphics, SolidWorks, Mold Flow Analysis, and various computer aided milling machine centers.  

Michiana Global Mold Offers Modern Injection Mold Making

View Michiana Global Mold’s Equipment List and see why we are you one stop full service injection mold making and service facility.  We currently have a full line up of EDM and Milling centers with Charmilles, Hurco and Hansvedt to name only a few of the best names in mold making machinery.   We have top of the line wire EDM, grinding, turning and drilling equipment, driven by technologically advanced CAD/CAM software and equipment.

Combining advanced equipment with the skill and experience of our design engineers and journeyman mold makers, we are able to offer to you high quality precision tooling, on time and within your budget.

Michiana Global Mold is an ISO Registered mold making facility serving OEMs worldwide with high performing, precision injection molds for complex components.  Contact us today for a FREE cost estimate of your next injection mold project requirements.  

Injection Mold Design for Engineering Resins

Thermoplastic engineering resins are the most common type of plastic resins used in the injection molding process.  With many different types of plastic resins each with their own unique properties, it takes great care and consideration to properly design and construct a mold for use with thermoplastic resins.   These highly useful polymer resins have varying properties of elasticity, resistance to temperature, corrosives, shrinkage and right down to the exterior finish such as a matte or a glossy finish.  

Shrink rate is a very important property of thermoplastic engineering resins used in injection molding, as the cavities must be carved out to accommodate to this shrink rate.  If shrink rate is not accounted for properly, a part may shrink too much after cooling and deviate from customer requirements. Knowing the cooling and shrink rate of the polymer resin used for any molding process is of the utmost important to the journeymen mold makers constructing the tool.  

Cooling rate is also important for the part to become completely solidified prior to ejection.  Cooling rate must be configured into the injection molding cycle time, to ensure proper cooling and ejection without damaging the part.  

Each polymer resin will have a MSD sheet, Material Safety Data sheet along with material specifications clearly defined in each numbered lot of all thermoplastic resins.  If working with a new material, a mold designer may prefer to use Mold Flow Analysis, for a computer simulated demonstration of how the plastic material will melt, flow and fill.   Predicting the flow of thermoplastic resins prior to cutting steel is vital for accurate geometrical tolerances in the final product.  

Even with a material spec sheet which is necessary, nothing helps a skilled mold designer more than experience.  Skilled mold design engineers are very familiar with the various properties of engineering resins allowing for precise mold construction with even the most specialty of molding resins.  

Michiana Global Mold is an experienced mold design and construction company, with vast experience with various thermoplastic resins used in injection molding.  We employ highly skilled journeymen mold makers and expert design engineers to satisfy even the most demanding of customer requirements.  We tackle the complex mold designs that other companies shy away from.  For complex, precision molds that must meet tight tolerances, contact Michiana Global Mold today for superior mold design and mold making services.

Contact Michiana Global Mold today to speak with one of our skilled mold designers and learn how we can assist you with your next injection mold making project.  We are an ISO9001:2015 Registered mold making company with vast experience constructing custom, precision injection molds using various thermoplastic engineering resins.  

Precision Molds for Complex Part Designs

Injection mold designers must use careful consideration when designing a mold for a complex part design.   Intricate plastic injection molded parts may contain several critical areas that must be carefully designed to meet part specifications.  Parts that contain a very thin wall, for example, would be a critical fill area.  It takes expertise in mold design to fill a part completely without any overfill or under fill while still maintaining the integrity of such a thin critical dimension.

Critical areas should be identified on the part print, and throughout the entire mold design phase.  Sophisticated CAD/CAM software is used to develop a viable tool design given all part design specifications and other exterior design considerations such as the specified material and press size.  With a superior design software program like Unigraphics or SolidWorks, mold designers can develop the entire mold construction phase and test critical areas with computer simulation software.  This advanced quality planning phase is crucial to constructing precision molds to customer specification, and within the established lead time.

The part print will also contain specific information such as the resin used and the surface finish or texture required of the final part.  Any restrictions on knit or parting lines must be identified for proper gating.   It takes an experienced mold designer to implement a successful tool design and construction of a precision mold for injection molded parts with a complex design.

Download our FREE Book on Design Considerations for Different Molds, and contact us today to learn about our discount and rebate programs.  

Michiana Global Mold is an experienced injection mold design and construction company, supplying precision tools to various industries since 1964.  We are an ISO registered mold shop, satisfying the strict requirements of the Automotive industry with high quality complex molds.  Contact us today to speak with one of our knowledgeable engineers for a FREE design consultation.  

Custom Injection Mold Supplier Partners with OEMs

Finding the right injection mold manufacturing company to be a part of your supply chain is a very important decision.  Mold making companies that want to be on a preferred vendor list need to have a competitive edge, something that sets them apart from other mold making shops.   OEMs today need to choose suppliers that can handle large projects, and delivery quality tools on time, regardless of the complexity.  

Michiana Global Mold is an experienced injection mold making facility, supplying high-performing precision molds for over 52 years!  We are experienced with complex designs for molding of critical components in various industries, including precision Automotive components.  

We employ expert mold design engineers, and journeyman mold makers with vast experience in all aspects of custom injection mold design.   Michiana Global Mold utilizes the latest in technologically advanced equipment and software, using CAD/CAM software integrated with our milling centers.   

ISO Registered Mold Making Facility

We are an ISO Registered mold making facility, that will partner with you from the beginning.   Meticulously following a detailed checklist, we are able to identify any critical areas with precision tolerances that may be affected by mold flow or design.  We can even assist with reverse engineering, enhancing your design by alerting you to potential issues prior to cutting steel and working together to obtain the optimum design for your application.  

We are then able to sample your parts and make any necessary final adjustments to your tool, delivering quality parts, on time.  We can construct mold inserts, fully functional molds, mold compositions, over molds for insert molding, and tool adaptations including engineering changes.  

Contact Michiana Global Mold today to learn how our vast experience, knowledge, and technical capabilities will add value to your supply chain.  We partner with our customers from the beginning, providing quality, precision molds for a wide array of applications over various industries.  Michiana Global Mold is an ISO Registered injection mold construction supplier, providing quality class  steel molds since 1952.  

Custom Plastic Injection Mold Making

A custom plastic injection mold maker has expertise with designing a plastic injection mold to manufacture a unique plastic part.  Custom injection mold making is used in several industries, especially those requiring new parts with new model releases such as the Automotive Industry.

When new projects require complex parts that fit into existing assemblies, or critical components used in interior automotive parts, you need a precision custom plastic injection mold making company.  At Michiana Global Mold, no part is too complex.  We excel at designing and manufacturing precision, tight tolerance, custom designed molds for critical components.  Our specialty is providing quality precision tools for complex, custom parts.  

Michiana Global Mold employs highly skilled designers and engineers, utilizing the latest technology to design the perfect tool for your complex part requirements.   Using Unigraphics software, we can create 2D and 3D models of the optimum design, quickly identifying critical dimensional areas prior to cutting steel.

Our designers and journeyman mold makers have vast experience designing complex tooling, even molds that require cam action or customized ejection systems.   Your custom injection mold will be designed to run in your press, and within your unique environment.   We’ll take your water lines and mounting plate into consideration for optimum placement, avoiding any future discrepancies with a smooth-running mold.

Full Service Injection Mold Making Supplier

Michiana Global Mold is a full-service injection mold making company, with over 600 years of combined experience.   Our knowledge, expertise with mold making, and vast resources give us the opportunity to provide the best value to our customers.  

We have a partnership with Modular Mold Solutions, located in China, giving us the ability to source tools overseas while still providing the same quality that you expect from a superior domestic mold making supplier.   

Both of our locations, in China and here in the US, are registered to ISO9001, following a strict quality policy in all processes.   We practice continual improvement on a regular basis, passing savings onto our customers with improved efficiencies and consistent quality.  

 

Michiana Global Mold is a full-service injection mold making company, providing high performance plastic and rubber molds to a multitude of industries including automotive, consumer products and electronics since 1964.  Contact us today to learn about our  free design consultation  and multi-tool discount for high volume projects.  

Partner with an Experienced Injection Mold Maker

Injection mold making is a very critical, precision process that requires not only knowledge and resources, but also experience.  Experienced journeyman mold makers make all the difference in the world when it comes to creating a quality crafted injection mold versus a sloppy tool that barely makes the mark.   Having experience with building precision tools for a multitude of applications gives invaluable skill that cannot be learned anywhere else.  An experienced journeyman mold maker is a valuable component of the injection mold making process.

Experienced Journeyman Mold Makers at Michiana Global Mold

At Michiana Global Mold we employ a highly skilled design and engineering staff and master journeyman mold makers with in-depth knowledge and vast experience in designing and constructing precision, complex tooling.  We partner with you from the very beginning, coordinating on every aspect of your project with clear, transparent communication.  

Our experienced team draws on traditional methods, combined with our cutting-edge technology, to provide the best solution for your precision injection mold requirements.  Our large capacity facility in Indiana is equipped with conventional EDMs and wire EDMs, CAD/CAM engineering equipment, CNC milling centers, grinders, drills and saws.  

One of our knowledgeable staff can assist you in determining the best type of tool for your project, with the most cost-efficient method while not compromising precision quality.  Michiana Global Mold specializes in manufacturing tight tolerance, complex, precision tooling.  We have the experience and the resources to provide the perfect tool for your project, on time and within specification.  

Michiana Global Mold provides custom injection mold making for any required tooling operation.  We are experienced at manufacturing hot and cold runner molds, hot to cold molds, insert molds, shuttle molds and prototypes.  Our production molds are built with experienced craftsmanship, and only the best in quality components.  

Michiana Global Mold has been in business since 1964, serving the injection mold making industry for over 50 years!  We are an ISO9001:2015 Registered mold making facility with domestic and off-shore molding capacity.  We have the experience and the resources to provide quality molds for any molding application, and the resources to handle multi-tool packages within specification, and on time.  

When Do You Need a Hot Runner Mold?

Avoid Costly Runners

A hot runner mold is desirable in situations where you would have a large runner that would go to waste, thus raising the cost with excess material.  While the cost of a hot runner tool may be more than a standard cold runner mold, an economic analysis may reveal that the cost savings could pay for itself in a reasonable amount of time.  This would be especially true if the material is a costly specialty raw resin.  

Improve Geometrical Tolerances

In a hot runner mold, the material is injected directly into the cavity through a nozzle, rather than flow through the runner system.  This is done with more pressure than a cold runner tool, and can improve filling and packing into critical dimensional areas.   The pressure utilized in a hot runner tool can improve consistency in the molding process, thus improving the quality of the parts.

Improve Cycle Time

Due to the increased pressure, a hot runner tool may bring an improvement in cycle times.  All plastic processors know the value of an improved cycle time as increased efficiency equates to increased profits.   When applied to a multi-cavity tool on a high-volume project, the savings in cycle time alone could be quite significant, not to mention improving lead times with production parts.   The volume of production required from the tool is a big consideration when weighing the benefits of a hot runner tool versus a cold runner tool.

Flexible Gate Location

A hot runner tool allows for flexibility with the gate location, which can be placed in the most desirable area for consistent filling and packing.  In parts with high visibility, gate location is important to the aesthetics as well as function of the molded product.

There are two different types of gating mechanisms for hot runner tools, a thermal gate or hot-tip gating system, or a valve gate.  With a thermal gate the nozzle hardens at the tip, allowing the parts to disconnect from the nozzle prior to ejecting.

In a valve gating system, a valve slides over the nozzle tip prior to ejecting, assisting with ejection if the material does not solidify completely in the tip.  

Michiana Global Mold has knowledge and experience designing and manufacturing precision hot runner tools for customers demanding a high level of quality.  Contact Michiana Global Mold today for a free cost analysis of your next mold building project.  

How a Prototype Mold Can Benefit Your Project

When engineers are designing new models of mass produced parts, you want to know if your new design will function as it should in the assembled product.  One way to verify your new part design is with a Prototype mold.

A Prototype mold can be constructed for less money than a full size standard mold to verify the functionality of the desired part.  Prototype molds are typically constructed with a less expensive material such as aluminum, non-hardened steel or P20, and usually contain just one cavity rather than multiple cavities, as only one part is needed to verify dimensions and part function.

This is advantageous in many industries such as the Automotive industry, where new model year automobiles combine new parts with current parts on the same vehicle.  In some designs, not all parts are updated or replaced yet all parts in any particular assembly must function perfectly together. A Prototype tool will give you the flexibility to test out and alter if need be, a newly designed part that will function to your specifications.  

Advantages of Prototype Molds

Since Prototype tools are constructed with less expensive, and less sturdy steel, it can only be used to produce short lots for testing purposes.  The material would not hold up for any large or standard production runs.  

This can still be a very worthwhile investment, however, especially if you are uncertain as to how the dimensions on one part will fit with your application, or if you just want to test it out prior to building the production mold.  Since the Prototype tools is quite economical, it could be advantageous to start here if you have any questions about a new project.

Michiana Global Mold has the resources, the experience and the experts on staff to build your Prototype tool to your specifications, allowing you to test your products prior to investing in standard mold bases.

Michiana Global Mold has vast experience helping engineers and designers achieve their geometrical and dimensional goals with design assistance and Prototype Mold Construction.  Contact Michiana Global Mold today to see how we can assist you with your project development goals.  

Designing and Building Complex Three-Plate Tools

Experienced mold designers must know how to adapt to challenging geometrical dimensional specifications.  Employing a three-plate tool can be a solution when searching for an ideal gate location, or when multiple gate locations are necessary.  

A three-plate tool has an additional stripper plate acting as a buffer between the injecting plate containing the multiple gate locations, and the B plate housing the cavities to mold the parts.  With this precision design, the sprue is ejected in between the first and second plates, and parts eject in between the second and third plates.  This allows for the parts and runner to separate, and is easily adapted with any automated auxiliary equipment just like any other mold and ejection system.

A Three-plate tool design can provide a more consistent flow to cavities with multiple gates, without the need for a hot-runner tool.  In most cases a three-plate tool will be less expensive than a true hot-runner tool, but still provide the increased pressure to fill and pack critical dimensional areas with an even flow of material.  This is beneficial in areas containing thin walls or tight tolerances.  

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Michiana Global Mold has vast experience designing and building complex three-plate tools for various industries, including the demanding quality standards of the Automotive industry.  We have experience building three-plate tools, hot-runner tools, hot-to-cold tools, MUD units, Prototype Tools, Shuttle Molds, and more.  

Our vast resources allow us to provide you with complete service from design to mold construction and even product sampling.  We follow a strict quality policy, adhering all processes to our ISO9001 registration.  Our experience and resources allow us to provide quick turn-around on single or multi-tool projects.  

Contact Michiana Global Mold today for a free design consultation, and to learn more about our innovative and technologically advanced mold building capabilities.  We have what it takes to be an integral part of your valuable supply chain, providing solutions to your mold building projects with quality built tools, delivered on time and to your specification.

Experienced Brass Forging Die Maker

Brass and copper forgings are used in several industries, providing parts with consistently accurate dimensions with high density.  Many industries such as plumbing, marine, transportation, automotive, aerospace, medical, lawn and garden, heating and cooling, and architectural utilize brass and copper forged parts for various applications, providing long lasting durable strength.  

As a forging company supplying these specialized industries, you need a Brass Forging Die Maker that you can rely upon.  At Michiana Global Mold, we are a full-service machine shop and currently produce several brass forging dies to specification, and in a timely manner.

We have the expertise required to construct forging dies to meet your specific tolerances, including tight precision tolerances required for critical applications.   We can construct forging dies with heat treated polished finished, ready for single or multiple part runs.

If your part design changes, we can perform engineering changes to alter a part slightly, perhaps on one side that would require engineering changes to one half of the mold.  Our CNC machinery is top of the line and utilizes the latest technological advancements, giving us the ability to produce your dies in a very cost effective manner, providing the best value for your investment.

We can take your design, or assist you with creating the design required for your purposes with reverse engineering.  Our highly skilled staff includes veteran mold designers and engineers with decades of experience constructing forging dies and injection molds.  We utilize the latest in technological advancements, CAD/CAM Software with integrated programming at our milling centers.  

Our forging dies are inspected per our own strict quality policy.  As an ISO9001:2015 Registered Mold and Machine Shop, we will provide you with quality molds, to your specification and on time.  

Our experience coupled with our highly skilled staff ensures that you receive the best value for your investment.  Contact Michiana Global Mold today for top quality brass and copper forging dies, from an experience mold supplier.  

Precision Injection Molds for Electronic Components

Constructing an injection mold for small electronic parts requires skill and experience, coupled with quality tools and equipment.  Plastic injection molding of electronic components can be tricky with thin walls in tight spaces and intricate critical dimensions.  

Custom electronic parts are molded out of various materials including thermoplastic elastomers (TPE), polycarbonates (PC), polypropylene (PP), and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS).  When constructing the mold to make these types of parts and components, you need an experienced mold maker that knows the properties of the various types of polymers and how they will flow in your mold.  We have the ability to provide mold-flow analysis, identifying any critical geometrical areas prior to cutting steel.  

Michiana Global Mold has the skill and the experience to provide a class A quality tool on time and within your budget.  We specialize in highly complicated electronic part molds requiring a high level of skill and precision.  Since precision, custom molds are our specialty, we can provide to you the most value for your investment.  We understand the importance quality, timely mold production, to ensure that your project is up and running with quality parts and components when you need them.  

Our skilled moldmakers have been supplying quality tools for electronics parts and components for over 50 years, satisfying stringent quality requirements for various industries including Automotive, Consumer Electronics, and other various industries requiring precision electrical housings and electro-mechanical switches.

Michiana Global Mold utilizes the latest technology with our CAD/CAM software and integration with our milling machines.  Our highly skilled staff is comprised of a very experienced cross-functional team, providing exemplary service to each and every customer.

Total Customer Satisfaction is our main goal.  As an ISO9001:2015 Registered mold making company, we will add value to your supply chain with adherence to our Quality Policy, providing best in class quality tools, on time and in spec.  

Michiana Global Mold has the experience and the skilled staff to provide a quality tool, on time, and to your specification even in tight tolerance, critical areas.  Contact us today to learn how we can work together to produce custom, precision electronic parts and components.