Monday, March 11, 2013

Interesting And Remarkable World Of Plastic Products


Can you name an area where we are not using molded plastic items? Molded plastics are used in many industries including medical, healthcare, vehicles, agriculture, packaging, construction, marine, utility and consumer products. It is difficult to pinpoint a particular area where plastic is not used in any of its processes.

Fabrication of plastic parts is done using injection molding technique. Plastic injection molding is a process where raw plastic resin is injected into a mold to make a wide variety of plastic products. Any type of plastic product that we use in your day to day life is made using such techniques. Water bottle, mug, plates, jars and the packet in which we get cereals and pulses is made of plastic.

Plastic is one such material that can be used over and over in different forms by recycling. The process of injection molding is versatile. Here plastic is heated to take a thick liquid form and further gets a shape by reaching the injection mold. It is the artistic hand of a designer that gives shape to the mold. As per requirement the mold can be made in to any shape or size. Various types of plastic toys we see today are made utilizing this methodology. The difference lies in the quality and thickness of plastic used.

Tools required for injection molding process include an injection molding machine, raw plastic material and a mold of any shape and size. Do you know the process of injection? The raw plastic material will be placed on the molding machine to melt. When it completely melts, the liquid plastic will be injected into the mold. It will be allowed to cool and solidify in the mold. After solidifying it will be taken out from the mold for carrying out final touch-ups. Most of the plastic products like plastic automotive fasteners and military tactical vest are made in such a way.

Some of the materials used in molding process are cellulose acetate, acetyl acrylic, poly-amide 6, poly-amide 6/6, polyester – thermoplastic, poly-ether Cellphone, poly-carbonate and polyethylene - high density. Handle bars and frames of eye glasses are mostly made with cellulose acetate. Acetyl is another type of material that is used for making bearings, rollers, rota-tors gears and valves. Poly-amide 6 is another material used for making bearings, bushings, gears and rollers. Meanwhile, poly-amide 6/6 is used for making handles, levers, zip ties etc. The selection of material is based on the use and desired characteristics of the final product. When some products need extra strength and rigidity, certain others have to be tough and temperature resistant. One should be able to choose the material that is appropriate based on the product type.

Some of the advantages of injection molding are same molding can be used to make a large number of products. This automatically reduces the production cost. Accuracy and quality are the other important factors that make injection molding process a highly successful one in the plastic manufacturing industry.

Another benefit of plastic is re-usability. The same plastic material can be used to make any other product without wastage. Zero product wastage makes plastic a favorite among manufacturers.

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