Dive Into 3 Different Mold Shops With Me

When it comes to mold shops, I’ve learned first-hand that size, spanning from shop-to-shop, is variable. Over the past few months with MMT, I’ve had the opportunity to visit three very different mold shops. My biggest takeaway? Size doesn’t matter. In fact, there are more similarities between shops of all different sizes than I could’ve ever imagined.

The MMT team and I had the chance to visit Model Die & Mold Inc. and Paragon D&E, both in Grand Rapids, Michigan, as well as Matrix Plastic Products Inc. in Wood Dale, Illinois. Each experience was different from the last in terms of shop size. Model Die & Mold proved to be a smaller shop, Matrix Plastic Products is mid-sized and Paragon a very large shop. 

What follows is a dive into all three of my visits, highlighting the different types of shops found within the moldmaking community, as well as the similarities I saw among them. 

Stop 1: Model Die & Mold Inc.

My first ever mold shop visit was with Model Die & Mold back in March of 2023. Model Die specializes in the design and build of injection compression molds.

While touring the smaller-sized shop, I was instantly struck by how intimate and close-knit the work environment felt. It really seemed like the type of place ‘where everybody knows your name’. Model Die & Mold’s VP of Business Development, Jon Hamming gave us the go around the shop floor and something that immediately stood out to me was the camaraderie between all of the workers. They were truly happy to be there and clearly were putting their all into every project. As we toured, Hamming introduced the employees to us by name, shared what they were working on as well as their expertise in the industry. 

Founded in 1996, the company employs over 65 experienced tradesmen. Leadership at Model Die & Mold believes in a hands-on approach in all elements of the company. This has been a big driver of successful relationships between employees and customers alike. 

While there, I saw a few different innovative problem-solving approaches. The first was simple: conversation between coworkers. While walking the shop floor, Hamming checked in with each and every tradesman who was hard at work, many conversing among themselves to troubleshoot any issues they were working out. The workstations were near enough to one another that collaboration was easy and necessary to keep things running smoothly. 

The second problem-solving approach I saw was the use of CAD/CAM technology. Model Die’s CAD/CAM system, called Siemens NX, assists in design, engineering and manufacturing processes. Hamming discussed the way CAD/CAM has grown to revolutionize the shop floor in terms of efficiency and how the systems continue to take root. Benefits include:

• Reduced design time
• Reduced machining time via higher speed and more accurate machines (opening up time to run other projects). 
• Reduced tryout time, using front-end simulation to eliminate the need for expensive and time-consuming tool changes.

These benefits of CAD/CAM work to the advantage of customers and shop workers alike, as saving time, money and resources is vital. 

Stop 2: Paragon D&E

The same day I visited Model Die & Mold, I also had the chance to visit Paragon D&E. The immediate and obvious difference between the two was size. 

Paragon’s facility was far more expansive and spread out in terms of machine spacing and floor space. This shop screamed go big or go home. 

In such a shop, its crucial to manage workflow efficiency across a large amount of shop workers as well as machinery to ensure smooth operation. In order to maintain efficiency and quality across the board, Paragon first and foremost focuses on its workplace environment. The company is committed to fostering a positive workplace to promote growth and function at the highest level.

While visiting Paragon, I noticed how seasoned the employees were. Many having been in the moldmaking industry for over 25 years. I think this speaks a lot to the culture of the company. With over 155 employees working a 24/hour schedule, it is imperative that everyone be on the same page. A way that Paragon achieves this is via electronic smart boards located throughout the spacious facility. These help keep projects in order, manage time and enable workers to know what’s going on in other areas of the shop. 

Another aspect of this large shop is its implementation of useful technologies across the shop floor, similar to Model Die & Mold. From gundrilling machines to CNC and large five-axis machining equipment, as well as CAD/CAM software, Paragon understands the need to bolster a shop with various useful technology.

The result:

• Reduce set-up times
• Decrease mold cycle times and make room to run more
• Minimize maintenance/ repair costs

Paragon is a shop with various certifications to do a lot of confidential projects (ISO 9001, ITAR, AS 9100, etc.). Because of this, there are higher stakes and less room for error. That is why properly managing such a large shop is a huge element of running Paragon’s business.

Last Stop: Matrix Plastic Products

Last and certainly not least, my third and most recent mold shop visit was to Matrix Plastic Products this past September. A happy medium between the sizes of Model Die & Mold and Paragon, Matrix is a shop that is in the process of growth.

This mid-size shop offers injection molding and moldmaking services with surgical precision.

When the MMT team and I sat down to meet with Tom Ziegenhorn, manufacturing operations manager and Anne Ziegenhorn, sales and marketing manager at Matrix, one of the first things they touched on was the company’s desire to expand into a larger space.

As of now, the shop floor is close to capacity with machinery. Over the years, the company has filled its shop floor as it has continued to grow in terms of employees, projects, and technology/machinery.

To manage this growth, one system Matrix has in place that is a custom ERP system. Anne navigated us through the system, detailing how it keeps track of every going on within the company. Whether it be when one of the employees is not on-site on a certain day, to the progress marking of a project, this system keeps track of it all. 

As I’ve discussed with Model Die and Paragon, the need for organization to optimize efficiency is key, whether your shop is small or large. Matrix’s ERP system functions to balance the growth the company is seeing in terms of customers, as it ensures strict specifications are met and traceability throughout the process is recorded.

The sense of community was also more than present within Matrix’s shop. As we toured, I was struck by how young the employees were. Some had begun working with Matrix right out of high school and seemed incredibly proud and excited to be a part of this team.

Each employee we walked by was more than happy to show us the technology they were operating or the project they were working on. I saw a range of machinery, from automatic tool changers that were up-and-running to gundrilling, EDM machining, CAD/CAM software and an extensive amount of inspection equipment and quality lab as the company handles a lot of medical parts.

Size Doesn’t Matter

After experiencing these three very different-sized mold shops, I was surprised at the amount of similarities they had to one another rather than differences.

But my biggest takeaway is that size doesn’t matter. You could have the smallest mold shop or the largest and it doesn’t mean anything unless you have employees who are confident in their work, forming a collaborative team with the willingness to come together as a community.