steven's blog for plastic mold and plastic molding

Husky Injection Molding Systems launched its new Ultra SideGate hot runner technology at October's Fakuma International Trade Fair, where it was received "extremely positively," according to Martin Baumann, Husky's Business Manager, Hot Runners. Husky has started shipping its first systems to customers. The new hot runner is designed and optimized specifically for deep-draw parts for the medical device industry such as pipettes, syringe barrels and other small applications. It allows customers to direct gate parts that would otherwise require gating with a cold runner, making this new technology particularly valuable in the manufacture of injection molding parts where quality and gate vestige are critical. Husky's Ultra SideGate hot runner targets deep-draw parts with high quality and gate vestige requirements. Ultra SideGate allows for high-cavitation molds with a small footprint, while providing outstanding gate quality and offering moldmakers added design flexi...

demonstration of Sigmasoft at the K show, Kruse was impressed. "I was using a different software at the time, but I clearly identified what simulation software should provide. Sigmasoft was way beyond anything I'd ever seen," he states. "I had the pleasure of working with Sigmasoft for several years prior to their opening their own North American office. I have been using the Sigmasoft software ever since." "Pretty awesome" Rick Finnie, president of M.R. Mold & Engineering, remarks that the Sigmasoft molding analysis software is "pretty awesome," and does what it does "on a higher level than currently exists by using a 3D mesh." Sigmasoft molding analysis software takes the model and breaks it into tiny elements and runs the mathematical calculations to determine a vast variety of processing results. "We've used it a few times and it's amazing what it can tell us," Finnie says. Kruse notes that if the analyst d...

Currently, Rick Finnie is working on a thermoplastic injection molded part (M.R. Mold & Engineering is also known for its expertise in liquid silicone rubber (LSR) molds). The product is a secure lock box for the medical industry that requires tamper proofing. "The door is a highly visible part, so a direct sprue gate couldn't be used, which would be the usual choice," explains Finnie. "The second choice was to put the gate at the end of the door, but that would have required a 10-inch runner, so we had concerns with a side edge gate. There were just a lot of issues so we chose to have Kruse Analysis do a filling analysis for us." Initially Finnie thought the gate location he chose was "a terrible location" but the wall thickness at that site allowed the part to fill without flow or knit lines. The analysis also showed that the gate and sprue were freezing before the part was fully packed. Finnie's team redesigned the gate and sprue. Additional...