MMT ARTICLE ARCHIVE
Feature Articles
Making the Jump to Five-Axis Machining Easier
Recent CAM software advances make five-axis machining easier than before.
Diamond-Like Carbon Mold Coatings for Increased DurabilityHardness, wear resistance, deposition temperature and uniformity are the main elements to consider when choosing a coating for mold components.
Tool Steel and Aluminum Staying StrongA roundtable of mold material suppliers discuss how new offerings result in easier machinability, better weldabilty, increased strength and improved surface hardness.
The Real Cause of Multi-Cavity Mold ImbalancesA lesson on shear induced melt variations ends some confusion regarding balancing runner systems for multi-cavity molds.
Case Study
Long-Term Accuracy Meets Moldmaker/Molder’s Machining Needs
“Where you do find time savings is five years or 10 years down the road, when other machines are losing their accuracy, these pieces of equipment are still accurate.”
Precision Toolholding Optimizes Tire Mold ProductionCase Study / Toolholding / Automotive
Technology Investment Pays Off for New England MoldmakerFor Wepco, the reward of reduced cycle times and increased productivity, which enabled them to book more jobs per week without sacrificing quality, was worth the risk.
Customer Collaboration Yields Better Product, Reduced Costs and Plastics InnovationThe Water Outlet assembly is made possible through the development of a complex injection mold, incorporating multiple sequential valve gates to prevent material over-pack and gas entrapment.
Machining Centers Allow Moldmaker to Hold Consistent Tolerances/Finishes“When the difference between success and failure, or profit and loss, can be measured in thousandths of an inch, experience is your most important asset.”
Tip of the Month
Five Steps to Polish an Aluminum Mold
In time and with practice, each polisher will develop his or her own tricks and short cuts.
Product Focus
Finishing Stone Polishes Variety of Surfaces
The Rasp an all-around finishing stone.
Tooling, Engineering and Molding Services; Booth 530Mold and part manufacturing.
High Thermal Conductivity SteelsProblem-solving specialty steels.
Non-Contact Tool Breakage Detector UnitNew Mida TBD.
Valve Gate Hot RunnersZenith Valve Gate Hot Runner System and Unitized Valve Gate System .
Mold System Reduces Product Development Time, Costs; Booth 605ProtoBridge.
Software Offers Data Repair, Modeling for Manufacture; Booth 411The Solid Doctor.
VMC Features Built-In Spindle for High-Speed CuttingThe Hwacheon Sirius UL+ VMC.
Aluminum Mold Plates Feature Dimensional Stability; Booth 617K100-S aluminum-cast tooling plate, M-1 aluminum mold plate and the M-5 aluminum mold plate.
System Tracks Mold Performance, History; Booth 607CVe monitor.
Polishing, Deburring System Accommodates Multiple Tools; Booth 226Ultramax MF.
Machine-Ready Blanks Save Time and Money on Custom Mold Bases; Booth 322High precision machine-ready blanks.
Elite CAD/CAM Software; Booth 109CAM-TOOL Version 8.1.
Quick/Multi Connect Couplers; Booth 324Mold connections and components.
Full-Service Polishing and Plating; Booth 213Coating and finishing applications.
Hardware/Software Automates CNC Machining; Booth 222ToolMaster.
High-End CAD/CAM System; Booth 706Version 3.5.
Tight-Tolerance Injection Molds; Booth 331Producer of complex, multi-cavity, tight-tolerance molds.
Multi Material 3D Printing260 Connex.
CAD/CAM/CAE Software Useful in Multiple Industries; Booth 111VISI CAD/CAM/CAE and VISI PEPS laser/wire software.
Alignment Lock Available in Three StylesZ series alignment locks.
Micro End Mills; Booth 716High-performance CBN micro end mills.
Moldmaking Trade AssociationAmerican Mold Builders Association.
Multi-Level Maintenance Certification TrainingTooling component repair course certification training program.
Tool Design and Development; Booth 633Plastic injection tooling and injection molding.
3D Digital Content Creation; Booth 211SpaceController.
Zero Point Tooling; Booth 510MTS zero point tooling system.
Components Available with Self-Lubricating Graphite; Booth 212Wear plates, wear strips, bushings and gibs.
CAD Comparison Technology; Booth 325KeyCreator Compare.
VMC Developed for Die and Mold Industry; Booth 511NTV158B.
Compact, Flexible Water Manifold System; Booth 102Koolflow manifold.
Rust Preventative Features Indicator Dye; Booth 725Mold Shield rust preventive.
Replaceable Tip Milling System Cuts Hard MaterialsMinimaster Plus.
CNC Mills/Lathes for Productivity in Small Lot Machining; Booth 317Trak line of mills and lathes.
Roughing Inserts; Booth 626WPR-AR.
From The Editor
The Race Is On
To Michigan. At least that is where Team MMT will be racing to this June for our annual amerimold expo, and we’re hoping to see you there too.
Mold Business Index
Uptrend Continues
Total Mold Business Index for March 2012: 52.7.
End Market ReportAutomotive & Consumer Products
Profile
The American Mold Builder’s Association: Rebranding and Building Value
The hope is that its members are able to reach out to the association on almost any issue related to the industry—whether it is operational, financial or technical.
New Business Opportunities
The Innovation Advantage
For mold shops, new opportunity can come in the form of innovative products and processes.
Your Business
Equipment Investment Trends
For businesses needing new equipment this year, the following are 10 equipment acquisition trends to help with their strategic equipment acquisition plans.
ISSUE
May 2012
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