1. Thin Wall Molding
Thin wall molding is an injection molding technology that achieves a plastic part with a very thin wall. It is often used in test apparatuses, electronics, vessels, tubes, and other enclosures. Plastic injection molders who do thin wall molding have to consider every aspect of the part design, mold design, and processing in detail to ensure that the thin wall geometry will hold up without quality issues. Here at Micron, we use a sophisticated vision system to examine each completed part to ensure that no cracks have appeared.
2. Gas-assisted Injection Molding
Gas assist is a process used in injection molding whereby a nitrogen bubble is injected into the melt stream to core out the part and leave a hollow tube-like cross section.
3. Metal Injection Molding
Metal injection molding (MIM) is a metalworking process in which finely-powdered metal is mixed with binder material to create a "feedstock" that is then shaped and solidified using injection molding. The molding process allows high volume, complex parts to be shaped in a single step. After molding, the part undergoes conditioning operations to remove the binder (debinding) and densify the powders. Finished products are small components used in many industries and applications.
4. Liquid Silicone Injection Molding
Liquid silicone rubber injection molding is a thermoset process that cools the material delivery system, while heating the mold tool to cure silicone material into parts. The liquid silicone injection molding process is highly automated with short cycle times to reduce the silicone part price. Liquid silicone injection molded parts are elastic with a high degree of chemical, electrical and thermal resistance. In addition, the parts are biocompatible and can be subjected to sterilization. Typical applications for liquid silicone rubber are products that require high precision such as seals, sealing membranes, electric connectors, multi-pin connectors, infant products where smooth surfaces are desired, such as bottle nipples, medical applications as well as kitchen goods such as baking pans, spatulas, etc. Often, silicone rubber is overmolded onto other parts made of different plastics. For example, a silicone button face might be overmolded onto a Nylon 6,6 housing.
5. 3D Printing
Unlike traditional machining, 3D printing is an additive manufacturing process which fuses layers of material to create 3D objects.
Our company offers Selective Laser Sintering (SLS), a technique that uses a laser beam and powdered material to build parts. Layers are added one-by-one until the part is finished.
This process differs greatly from traditional machining, which is a subtractive process that removes material from raw material stock to create finished parts.
6. Unique Material Formulations
While this isn't a plastic injection "technology" in the traditional sense, the use of unique material formulations does advance molding capabilities. Injection molding companies may, for example, use a carbon or mineral filler, a blowing agent, and a lubricity additive to add certain properties to a part. For example, here at Micron, we have run 40% carbon-filled ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) to achieve a degree of electrical conductivity in a plastic stud or sensor. The temperature of the mold and the plastic material are both important when adding a filler, additive, and blowing agent, so we are constantly refining our process to achieve the best advantage for these unique materials.
