Hot Runner Advances

Mold-Masters will feature its co-injection, medical and automotive hot-runner application capabilities at NPE and partnering with other premier suppliers of plastics-processing technology to host live demonstrations.

Mold-Masters will be showcasing its new IRIS technology in a live workcell on its booth. The innovative technology will be producing HDPE closures in a 16-cavity, fast-cycling closure mold. The system incorporates Mold-Masters' IRIS co-injection hot runner, an E-Multi secondary injection unit, and E-Drive servo driven valve gate control, all  integrated into a single control unit.  Precise dosing, flow and pressure control are all achieved via integrated control of the two melt streams and the movement of the servo actuated valve pins.

Using Mold-Masters new co-injection technology, the cap is molded with a 3-6 percent EVOH barrier encased in its center.  This results in a simple yet high performance cap that can be used directly, versus needing a secondary operation to insert or mold a liner.  

IMD, from Brügg, Switzerland, provided sophisticated testing equipment that has the ability to detect the presence, thickness, and location of clear barrier in all parts produced. The innovative testing System is supplemented with the whole downstream equipment IMDvista INOX Line for cooling, sorting and packing of the parts.

PolyOne (Cleveland, Ohio) participated as the HDPE material supplier via its PolyOne Distribution business unit by recommending a material from Dow Chemical.

Engel Machinery (York, Pennsylvania) provided the injection-molding machine, and the part design and mold comes from F&S Tool, based in Erie, Pennsylvania.

The IRIS technology will also be shown molding 0.5 mm thick, deep draw food packaging container, live in the JSW Plastics Machinery Inc. booth (Booth 463).  This system has been integrated by Nypro with a mold designed and built by NyproMold.  Co-Injection in thin- wall containers eliminates the need to use a multi-layer thermoformed structure with tie layers and glues. The benefit is that a net shape part is produced with no web scrap as well as additional design freedom to differentiate brand owners products while maintaining shelf life performance.  Simultaneous injection of 3-6 percent barrier in each cavity is achieved with balanced filling and unprecedented control of the melt streams.

Melt-Cube is a new innovative linear side gating system which allows for 20 percent higher pitch density than circular systems and is designed for easy tip replacement in the press. The patent pending design produces faster cycles, pristine gates and more accurate IML molding conditions because of an additional temperature control zone at the gate. It also yields a greater level of flow balance with its proprietary iFlow manifold brazing technology.  

CBW (Booth 3169), will be running the Melt-Cube, in a 16 cavity automated system producing a 5-6cc polypropylene (PP) medical syringe with IML.  In-mold labeling enables high-impact branding, anti-piracy features and graphics flexibility, all with reduced footprints. The syringes will be branded with each of the logos of the partners and will showcase an anti-piracy tag.

CBW Automation (Fort Collins, Colorado) is a supplier of high-end automation equipment for injection-molding applications. Tech Mold, (Tempe, Arizona) which designs and builds molds for high-volume production of precision components, supplied the mold for this demonstration. Milacron supplied the machine and the material-handling equipment.

The new Vision product line, Sequential Valve Gate (SVG) controller, TempMaster M1, and many more new technologies will be showcased. The Vision product is a drop-in, angled system, designed specifically for the automotive lens and white goods component market.  Its engineered design boasts a variety of design and cost benefits for the user.

Control will also be a key topic at the show.  The new Sequential Valve Gate controllers offer precise control of the order and timing of cavity fill for valve-gated hot-runner molds.  Leading edge control for up to 48 zones will be demonstrated in the new TempMaster M1 hot-runner controller.  This user friendly addition to the TempMaster controller line can help to maximize molding performance while offering the lowest cost of ownership and quick return on investment.

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