Technology Roundup: Maintenance, Repair, Surface Treatment Tools

Non-Hazardous Degreaser/Cleaner Safe for Most Metals and Cleaning Equipment

D-Greeze 500-LO's aggressive cleaning action penetrates, dissolves, and removes lubricating oils, grease, cosmolin, adhesive deposits and other contaminants. Photo Credit: Solvent Kleene

Solvent-Kleene’s D-Greeze 500-LO is a non-hazardous cleaner that cleans quickly at room temperature. According to the manufacturer, it outperforms trichloroethane. Unlike aqueous and many other non-hazardous cleaners, the solvent does not compromise per­formance for safety. It can be used in most existing equip­ment, including immersion tanks, ultrasonic systems and parts washers with little or no modification.

D-Greeze 500-LO’s aggressive cleaning action penetrates, dissolves and removes lubricating oils, grease, cosmolin, adhesive deposits and other contaminants. With its low surface tension, low viscosity and said to be superior cleaning proper­ties, the cleaning fluid is said to quickly penetrate and clean small orifice openings, blind holes and other difficult-to-clean surfaces.

Micro Welder Simplifies Mold and Die Repair

Photo Credit: Rocklin Manufacturing Co.

The Rocklin Manufacturing Co. MoldMender Micro Welder delivers simple and cost-effective mold and die repair in-house through a low heat, non-arcing welding process. Instead of sending molds out for repair or scrapping them prematurely, the MoldMender solves scratches, imperfections, pin holes, parting lines flashing and other mold and die imperfections with no welding experience necessary.

The ribbon, wire, paste or powder repair material used is normally the same material as the workpiece, producing a fully hardened repair ready for finishing. Since the amount and location of the repair material can be precisely controlled by machine setting, the minimal finishing that is required can easily be performed with any standard methods such as EDM'ing, grinding, machining, plating, polishing, etc.

End Bristle Brushes Produce Uniform Finish for Mold Surfaces

Cristone End Bristle Brushes are the ultimate tool in the field of mold maintenance and repair, says Boride Engineered Abrasives. They can be used for a range of finishing applications, including surface polishing, removing tool marks after the cutting process, cross-hole deburring and EDM scale removal. Their structure produces a uniform finish and finish surface roughness with only one fine grit.

Photo Credit: Boride Engineered Abrasives

Each brush can be dressed to match the form of the user’s work surface. Cristone End Bristle Brushes are available in one size, with grits ranging from 150 to 6,000, enabling work on the hardest of materials such as carbon or stainless steels, and non-ferrous metals such as aluminum or copper.

Digital Tool Services Solve and Troubleshoot Coating, Finishing Issues

Photo Credit: Bales Metal Surface Solutions

Bales Metal Surface Solutions has launched three digital tools designed to help manufacturers learn about and solve an array of finishing issues. The free digital tools extend Bales’ finishing expertise and quality customer service online. They are said to simplify the finishing process, giving manufacturers access to valuable information about coatings and finishes anytime, anywhere from a mobile device.

Injection Mold Cleaning Wipes Effectively Clean, Maintain or Prep Mold Surfaces

Photo Credit: Slide Products

Slide Products offers a large selection of different types of mold cleaners, but its non-abrasive Mold & Metal Wipes in particular are said to be an ideal solution for many shops, especially for mold building, maintenance departments within medical molders and for those working in a cleanroom environment.

Mold releases and resin build-up may require scrubbing with a cloth saturated with mold cleaner, says Slide Products, and the pre-saturated Mold & Metal Wipes are an effective, offline option that quickly clean almost any mold surface. They can be used for preparing molds for both production and storage, for surface prep prior to secondary operations, general maintenance and all-purpose cleaning. With a working temperature between 32-400°F, the colorless liquid that saturates the wipes evaporates completely and requires no additional cleaning.

Tooling Enhancement, Finishing Services Optimize Mold Performance

Texture mold repair is one services featured by Standex Engraving Mold-Tech. The company offers the ability, knowledge and experience to restore the damaged area of a mold to a harmonious texture with no distortion. For example, a texture can be lightened in a local area to help the mold run smoothly. Also, welds can be reworked to blend in undetected and burrs can be removed without risk of flash or parting line damage.

Photo Credit: Standex Engraving Mold-Tech

Exclusively available at Standex Engraving Mold-Tech, Tribocoat is said to be a proven composite electroless coating combining corrosion and wear resistance, dry lubrication and adhesion properties. Mold life is extended, cycle time is reduced and the coating ensures a quick release.

Spray Washer Targets Cleaning of Batch Parts

Photo Credit: Ransohoff

Ransohoff, a division of the Cleaning Technologies Group LLC, has introduced its Cell-U-Clean Cell Jet spray cabinet. This new, small footprint wash and blow-off machine platform provides an energy-efficient, reliable solution for high-volume cleaning, along with an innovative design for smaller part cleaning applications.

The Cell-Jet, a member of the company’s Cell-U-Clean line of parts washers, is a cabinet washer for point of use batch cleaning where very little floor space is available.

Cleaning Unit Eliminates Limestone Deposits and Impurities from Mold Conditioning Circuits

Photo Credit: Ermanno Balzi

The CDC control unit, offered by Ermanno Balzi, is capable of eliminating all limestone deposits and other impurities from the molds conditioning circuits. The CDC is provided with two tanks, one containing a solvent liquid and the other a passivating liquid. The first liquid descales the calcareous deposit, while the latter restrains the corrosive action of the solvent occasionally left in the circuit. The CDC is completely pneumatic, allowing for maintenance to happen directly on the injection molding machine (IMM) without need for electric supply, and is equipped with a cooling circuit automatic emptying device.

Abrasives for the Final Finish, Repair of Hardened Tools

DW Sales provides specialty stone solutions designed to cut through 55 Rockwell hardness and higher to meet these surface treatment needs, including CNB stones and diamond Ceramic Super Stones. The CNB stone, comprising fine ceramic fibers encased in glass and sandwiched into a stick form, easily cuts hardened tool steels and welds.

Photo Credit: DW Sales

Established Laser Services Support Global Mold Builders

Photo Credit: Precision Laser Technology

To assist customers with mold maintenance and repairs that offer durability, and to ensure a quick response, Precision Laser Technology (PLT) operates four laser welding stations, plus a Micro-TIG station, ranging up to 300W and optimized with multiple axes systems, boom extensions and CNC programming as well as tilting and swiveling optics. PLT services mold with a variety of tool metals including S7, H13, stainless steel, 17-4, P20, A2, D2, M2, Elmax, Stavax, AL—including QC10—and BeCu, including MoldMax and MoldStar.

Dry Ice Blasters Prove Sustainable, Non-Abrasive Mold Cleaning Action

Photo Credit: Cold Jet LLC

Cold Jet’s dry ice blasters are smart machines incorporating a 7" LCD screen, Industry 4.0/IoT Cold Jet Connect capability for remote monitoring and service capabilities, programmable cleaning recipes and are capable of full automation. The PCS60, for example, gives molders the ability to adjust the process to accommodate any mold metallurgy or surface finish by selecting one of 28 different dry ice particle sizes.

Laser Workstation Facilitates Surface Enhancement of Tooling

Photo Credit: Trumpf Inc.

Trumpf Inc. has developed laser technology, the TruMark Station 7000, that can be used for a variety of applications, from part marking, cutting and welding, to 3D metal printing and surface modification. Trumpf laser systems are used to process a range of materials including metals, plastics, glass, rubber, leather and many more. Mold builders can also utilize the laser to enhance the surface of their molds.

Automated, CO₂-Based Blast Systems Specializes in Cleaning Mold Surfaces

Photo Credit: Cool Clean Technologies

Cool Clean Technologies, using CO₂-based technology, has shifted its focus from gentle CO₂ spray cleaning solutions to incorporate a powerful, blast cleaning product to clean various surfaces, molds and tools. The company’s Omega CO₂ cleaning solutions specialize in cleaning mirrored finishes and micro molds, by removing thin films, residues and oils from the mold surface that create defects on a molded part.

Mold Repair Servicer Specializes in Mold Polishing, Laser Engraving/Texturing, Laser Welding

Photo Credit: High Tech Laser & Polishing

High Tech Laser & Polishing is a service provider that supports mold builders with multiple services that include mold polishing, laser engraving/texturing and laser welding. The polishing department offers finishes from mirror diamond, paper, stone and blasted according to the SPI industry standards. Many of the company’s projects require its polishers to work under a microscope for small, detailed jobs. 

Laser Welder Optimizes Mold and Die Repair Expenses

Photo Credit: Sunstone Welder

Sunstone Welders’ Orion Combo 200 laser welder is said to makes fast work of shaping and adding metal to worn or damaged molds and dies. Mounted on an articulating arm, the Orion Combo 200 easily moves to any position needing repair. The power range is adjustable from 0.1 to 200 joules, applicable for work on a wide variety of metal types and applications including edge repairs; hole repairs; identification engraving; small weldments; EDM pit repairs; adding material for shimming; tool repairs and porosity repairs.

Laser Engraver Combines Stability, Speed and Precision

Photo Credit: Alliance Specialties and Laser Sales

Alliance Specialties and Laser Sales’ new NGRV Titan is equipped with a 9" x 48" table capable of holding up to 750 lbs, with a table travel (X-axis) of 36", saddle travel (Y-travel) of 12", a knee travel (Z-axis) of 16" and is equipped with an optional two-axis digital readout for precise location. Engineered and built in the U.S., the Titan is powered by an IPG Pulsed Fiber Laser available in 50W and 100W power outputs, providing what Alliance concedes is the highest quality laser systems available.