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Spring 2009 SPE Injection Molding Division

Molding ViewsMolding ViewsMolding ViewsMolding ViewsMolding ViewsBrought to you by the Injection Molding Division

of the Society of Plastics Engineers

Historic Moments and Turning Points

IN THIS ISSUE:

Disclaimer: The editorial content published in this newsletter is the sole responsibility of the authors. The Injection Molding Division publishes thiscontent for the use and benefit of its members, but is not responsible for the accuracy or validity of editorial content contributed by various sources.

No. 78, Spring 2009

Continued on page 3

On January 20, 2009, history was made several times over when Barack Obama wassworn in as the 44th President of the United States. This event was cheered and witnessedby an estimated 1.5 million people on the Capital Mall, with another 100 million TV and theWeb viewers watching. The main campaign themes of President Obama were about “change”and “yes, we can.” Indeed this team made their slogan a reality, showing that they (or anyonewith determination, a firm belief, and a well-thought-out strategy and execution) could winagainst all odds. I hope we the people (or the plastics engineers in the context of thisorganization) can overcome the daunting but temporary challenges and excel and triumph inthe end.

You may recall that I shared my thoughts for the SPE IMD in the last two newsletters:“Keeping a Positive Prospective” and “Embracing the Perfect Storm and Repositioning

Chair’s Message 1IMD Leadership 2Education Committee 2Student Activities 3Feature: Your Time at ANTEC 4Feature: Reasons to Attend ANTEC 5Fellows & HSM Report 5Ask The Expert (Injection Molding Questions) 6Featured Article: In-Mold Labeling 8Ask The Expert (Hot Runner Questions) 12Feature: ANTEC Career Solutions 14Feature: Job Search Tips 15Ask The Expert (CAE Questions) 16IMD Best Paper Finalist 19

Coupled FEA Simulation of theDemoulding Process of IM Parts

Sponsorship Opportunities 23

Featured Technology: Mold Cost Estimating 24Member Profile 28Committee Reports 29IMD Best Student Paper Finalist: 30

The Effects of Radiused Corners onMelt Flow Imbalances

Machinery Corner: Nissei 34SPE & Industry Event Calendar 36SPE Webinars 37SPE IMD Ballot 2009 38Councilor’s Report 40IMD BOD Meeting Minutes 43New IMD Members and Companies 46Membership Application 47Sponsors in this Issue 48Publisher’s Message 48Feature: Who Attends ANTEC and Why 48

Chair’s Message

Lih-Sheng (Tom) TurngProfessor, UW-Madison

Ourselves.” In them, I outlined the four major goals I wanted to accomplish during my term as Division Chair. • Increase the value and benefits of IMD membership by offering technical programs on the fundamentals of

injection molding and emerging technologies and materials,• Collaborate with other international or regional polymer processing or plastics organizations worldwide,• Strengthen the IMD Board of Directors by encouraging participation from our members and recruiting new

Board members, and• Recognize the achievements and contributions of our members through the nomination and sponsorship of

SPE Honor Service Members and Fellow Members


IMD Leadership

DIVISION OFFICERS

IMD ChairLih-Sheng (Tom) TurngUniv. of Wisconsin–[email protected]

Chair-Elect, Alt. TreasurerDave [email protected]

Past Chair,Executive Committee LiasonHoa [email protected]

Secretary,Student Activities ChairWalt SmithXaloy, [email protected]

Technical DirectorPeter [email protected]

TreasurerJim [email protected]

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Awards ChairJim Peret, [email protected]

Communications Chair,Website ChairLee Filbert, [email protected]

Councilor, Reception ChairJack Dispenza,Design [email protected]

Education ChairPat Gorton, [email protected]

Engineer of the Year AwardKishor MehtaPlascon Associates, [email protected]

Historian, Fellows &Honored Service AwardsLarry SchmidtLR Schmidt [email protected]

Membership ChairNick Fountas, [email protected]

Nominations ChairDon AllenPhillips Sumika [email protected]

TPC 2009Brad JohnsonPenn State [email protected]

TPC 2010Jan [email protected]

TPC 2011Susan MontgomeryPriamus Sys. Tech., [email protected]

Board MemberErik FoltzThe Madison [email protected]

Board MemberAdam KramschusterUniv. of Wisconsin–[email protected]

Board MemberRaymond McKee, [email protected]

Board MemberMichael Uhrain, [email protected]

Emeritus Board MemberLarry CosmaPerformance [email protected]

Emeritus Board MemberMal Murthy, Doss [email protected]

CONTRIBUTORS

Newsletter: Sponsorship,Editor/PublisherChris [email protected]

Education Committee

Education: Where Should I Go To Gain Expertise?By Pat Gorton, SPE IMD Education Chair

You’ve asked us how to gain more knowledge in applying the latest technological advances in the injectionmolding industry. Whether it is advances in automation, solving a tricky molding problem, or learning about the latestdevelopments in mold design, we’re diligently working to provide you with ways to find the resources you need. Weall thirst for new tools that can add dollars to our bottom line, reduce scrap to help create a greener environment, ordesign the next generation of products that will blow away our competition.

The difficulty is often not in what we want to know, but how to find the right avenue to gain that knowledge. Isyour best option to contact your suppliers? Or should you try to find a course that might give you the next idea?Maybe you should call a colleague and see what he or she thinks. Isn’t there an easier way to figure this out?

The Education Committee is committed to helping make this process easier, or at least more user friendly. Wehave a lot of ideas, but we need input from those of you who wishing for an easier way. The wealth of information onthe internet, ready access to on-line communities, significant technical advances in web-based seminars, and visualtradeshows are all part of the mix.

But let’s be mindful of our future plastics engineers as well. Shouldn’t we share our knowledge with them,encouraging them while they are in their formative years in high school or at a local community college? Yes,knowledge is a two-way street of continuous improvement. Not only can we help each other, but we can encourageand educate those who will change the world and design the next generation of materials and products.

So while you’re thinking about it, drop us a line and let us know what’s on your mind and how the EducationCommittee can help you. We’ll continue to work at getting you the resources you need, but we want to make surewe’re on track to satisfy your needs as well as the needs of future SPE IMD members. Send us an e-mail [email protected]. We thank you in advance.

IMD Leadership


Chair’s Message

Continued from page 1

In this issue, I am pleased to report that we successfully organized a MiniTec conference on “EmergingTechnologies and Materials: Nanotechnology and Biopolymers” with the SPE Milwaukee Section that took placein October, 2008. We also sponsored three major conferences by working with the conference organizers andother international plastics groups: the Innovations and Emerging Technology Conference at Penn State Erie, Erie,USA; SAMTMP08 in Beijing, China; and Molding 2009 in New Orleans, USA. For the Board, we successfullyrecruited six devoted and qualified Board members (Foltz, Gorton, Kramschuster, McKee, Montgomery, andMurphy) to take on various critical tasks along with other Board members to better serve our members. Inaddition, I would like to congratulate the newly elected Fellow (not yet announced) and Honored Service Member,Robert Beard, as well as the Engineer of the Year Award recipient, Mrs. Hoa Pham.

Tremendous progress has also been made on the quality and content of the newsletters, thanks to the tirelessefforts of our newsletter publisher, Mrs. Chris Lacey, and the contributing authors and sponsors. Last but not theleast, the IMD received the largest number of 2009 ANTEC paper submissions among all divisions and specialinterest groups, and the quality index of these papers also improved compared to those of previous years. Thiswouldn’t have been possible without the great efforts of the IMD Technical Program Director, Peter Grelle, 2009ANTEC TPC, Brad Johnson, and members of the Technical Program Committee. Finally, I would like to recognizeMr. Larry Cosma, Past Secretary of the IMD Board and now Emeritus Board member, and Mr. Jim Peret, whowill be retiring from the IMD Board this June, for their many years of service and their remarkable contributions tothe IMD Board and the Division.

President Obama’s message continues to be one of change and empowerment. As members of the IMD,we too must share his courage in going forward in tough times, keep a positive attitude, and believe his motto:“yes, we can.”

Lih-Sheng (Tom) TurngChair, 2008-2009

Student Activities

Student Activities ReportBy Walter S. Smith

The Injection Molding Division offers a $3000 scholarship that is awarded annually to a graduate orundergraduate student. Applicants must have experience in the injection molding industry, such as courses taken,research conducted, or jobs held. The scholarship is awarded through the SPE foundation. General FoundationScholarships range up to $4000/year. Scholarships requiring specific knowledge or background can range up to$7000/year. The SPE Foundation gives out over $60,000 annually in scholarships. In addition, the Society ofPlastics Engineers offers membership to over 120 student chapters.

The Injection Molding Division will, once again, sponsor the Injection Molding Reception at ANTEC 2009.Students heavily attend this event. This is a great opportunity for students to network and meet professionals intheir chosen field. The Injection Molding Division also works closely with local SPE sections and student chaptersto provide various activities such as plant tours, IMD speakers, and scholarships.

Experience, network, and learn with the help of SPE. Get involved in an existing SPE chapter, or start yourown! For more information on what it takes to start a student chapter, or to find out what SPE can do for yourplastics program, contact Tricia McKnight at [email protected].

I strongly recommend that all students get involved. I promise you, it will be worth your time and effort.

Chair’s Message -cont-


How to Make Your Time at ANTEC a Success

ANTEC is a large and sometimes overwhelming experience for people who have not figured out the best way tonavigate all of the options and opportunities available. To make ANTEC a success for you, try the following tips.

Set some goalsTake a minute and really think about what needs to happen at ANTEC for it to be worth your time and money!Write down specific goals on why you are attending. Some common examples include:

o I want to broaden my professional network with people who work in my industry area to enhancemy own productivity and expertise.

o I want to be sure to meet the following customers or colleagues while I am there (make a list).

o I want to hear about new technologies in my area of the industry and evaluate whether or not theyare right for my company.

o My company is struggling with a specific problem, and I want to seek out advice and direction fromothers with similar experience.

o I want to enhance my skills by taking a seminar while at ANTEC.

o I am unemployed or an independent consultant and want to seek out job opportunities.

o I’m new to the industry and need an introduction to the industry and would benefit from thefundamentals coursework offered at ANTEC to better position me in my new job.

o My job has changed and I need a refresher in my new area.

o I need to develop management skills and perspectives. ANTEC offers me management sessions andtraining opportunities sponsored by the American Management Association.

Plan your attack! The ANTEC program and exhibitor list is available online. Plan out each day to ensure that you are leavingyourself adequate time to do all of the things you want. Don’t wait until you are there.

Make appointmentsIf there are key people or exhibiting companies you want to be sure to meet, don’t leave it to chance. UseSPE’s online member directory or exhibitor listings to contact folks ahead of time and set up appointments.

Take care of the little things early!Make sure you register to attend well ahead of ANTEC. Likewise, make hotel reservations and other travelarrangements early. Nothing is worse than rushing to find a hotel room or arriving and being unsure of how toget where you need to go. To help plan your trip, visit: http://www.4spe.org/conferences/antec-2009

Call SPE ahead of time or stop by SPE’s boothIf you have any questions or difficulties with registration, hotels, or just knowing how to make the most of yourtime at ANTEC, ask one of the SPE staff members for help. SPE has a large booth at ANTEC—you can’tmiss it! You can also call SPE Headquarters at 203-775-0471.

Don’t forget to relax and have funANTEC is full of opportunities for social networking, as well as professional networking. Don’t wear yourselfout by over-scheduling your time. Build in time to enjoy the city, attend receptions, participate in the SPE FunWalk, attend the SPE Celebrates banquet and other activities to make sure you return to work energized.

ANTEC 2009


Top Five Reasons To Attend ANTEC@NPE 2009This year, SPE will take its full program—more than 750 technical presentations—to NPE. This will allowour members to experience the two biggest plastics events in North America in one jam-packed week!

1. Understand the Impact of New Technology. Help your company see the future faster. Confer with theplastics industry’s leading technical experts to see what new technologies and techniques are being developedtoday.

2. Broaden Your Understanding of the Plastics Industry. ANTEC is the only place where you can attendsessions covering the full spectrum of the plastics industry. Unlike specific topical conferences, ANTEC is aplace to gain exposure to developments and people throughout the entire plastics industry.

3. Build New Skills. ANTEC offers seminars, workshops, and other forums for people of all levels within theplastics industry. Take advantage of one or more of our special sessions to enhance your skills and knowledgebase.

4. Network. Meet with fascinating, informed, and creative colleagues from around the world to share insightsfrom a broad range of disciplines and industries within plastics.

5. Recharge Your Own Career and Interests. Set new goals and focus on your opportunities at ANTEC tomeet people and attend sessions that can take you where you want to go.

ANTEC 2009

SPE Fellows and Honored Service Membersby Lawrence R. Schmidt

Do you know an IMD member who has made outstanding contributions to the injection molding industry or theSociety of Plastics Engineers? The IMD Board of Directors would like to identify these individuals as candidates forFellow of the Society and/or Honored Service Member (HSM) awards.

The SPE bylaws limit the distinction of Fellow to the top 5% of the Society’s membership. The bylaws state thatthe honor is in recognition of “outstanding achievement in the field of plastics engineering, science, or technology, orthe management of such activities.”

The Fellow election process requires a nomination by the Board, biographical information provided by the nomineeincluding a list of his/her most outstanding achievements, two sponsor letters from colleagues who can elaborate onthe importance and significance of the nominee’s accomplishments, and a technical critique from the InjectionMolding Division. A Fellow Election Committee will review all of the information submitted before making itsrecommendation to the SPE Executive Committee for their final approval.

The Honored Service Member (HSM) distinction was created to honor SPE members who have given outstandingservice to the Society. The bylaws state that, to be elected, a candidate shall have “demonstrated long-term, outstandingservice to, and support of, the Society and its objectives.” Like the Fellow distinction, HSM is limited to the top 5%of the members of the Society.

The HSM election process is similar to the Fellow election process. After nomination by the Board, the nomineemust provide a list of all SPE service—e.g., Division and Section offices held, committee memberships, ANTEC andother technical conference organization, etc.—and two sponsor letters to elaborate on the impact of major servicecontributions. After a review of the service record by the HSM Election Committee, a recommendation to the SPEExecutive Committee for final approval will be made.

The newly awarded Fellows and Honored Service Members will be formally recognized for their achievementsat the awards banquet during ANTEC.

The IMD Board would like to congratulate the aforementioned award recipients and nominate additional divisionmembers who have distinguished themselves during their careers in the plastics industry. If you know of an IMDmember who deserves the special recognition of Fellow or HSM, please send me (Larry Schmidt, [email protected])a letter or e-mail with a brief description of the individual’s accomplishments.

Fellows and HSM Report


The Milwaukee SPE section conducted theirmonthly meeting with a panel of ten industry experts.It was moderated by Bob Hatch of “On The RoadWith Bob Hatch” fame. The theme was “Making MoreMoney by Molding Better Parts.” The panel answeredprearranged questions in their specialty and fieldedquestions from the participants. All in all, it was a well-attended and very informative session. Unfortunately,not all of the questions could be addressed due totime constraints and product sensitivity.

After the meeting, a product design and leadengineer approached me with questions related to thefailure of an injection molded plastic part she wastrying to get into production. The part failed 100% ofthe time by bursting in the same area when subjectedto a pressure load in product testing. The area of failurehad a cross section of about 0.200 inches and wasthe thickest point on the part.

The part was made of 20% glass-filled blackpolysulfone (PSU). It was used for blending hot andcold water in an industrial sink application where highpressures could be encountered due to water hammerforces. Temperature, environmental, and chemicalrequirements had to be considered, all of whichseemed to be addressed by the polysulfone. Thissame material was specified for different, though lesssevere, applications and plastic part failure was notan issue.

The part was molded in a single cavity mold withfour slides and a single hot tip nozzle with a gate about0.075 inches in diameter. The injection point was onthe opposite side of the part from where the failureoccurred, in a much thinner wall section. I learnedthat the failure always occurred in one specific areaof the part, a heavy section where internal voids werepresent. The part was exposed to tensile stresses as

Injection Molding Questions

Ask The Experts

the valve saw repetitive, sudden, and high cyclicalpressure spikes.

The part had three male threaded features forconnecting water lines with compression type pipefittings and a cross slot for a retainer clip. Failure alwaysinitiated in the area above the cross slot. While the weldline (the meeting area of the two flow fronts) in the sectionof the three male threaded regions logically would bethe weakest area of the part, the metal compressionfitting apparently added support to the plastic.

The failed parts exhibited small voids and the grainstructure at the break appeared very course to the nakedeye. While I’m thinking that the voids were the result ofthe gate freezing prior to the center of the thick partbeing packed out, I asked that they confirm that thematerial was dry and that the voids were not due tomoisture from improperly dried material. The engineerdid not know the processing conditions as the part wasmolded at an outside supplier.

My first thought was that the gate size and locationwere the problem. Changing the gate size would nothave been a problem. Changing the gate location,however, would be a costly and time-consuming

Bob Dealey, owner and presidentof Dealey’s Mold Engineering, Inc.answers your questions aboutinjection molding. Bob has over 30years of experience in plasticsinjection-molding design, tooling,and processing. Reach Bob by emailat [email protected].


Ask The Experts

endeavor. It seemed like a good idea to explore other possibilitiesand, as luck would have it, plastic part design guru Glenn Beall walkedpast just at that moment.

Glenn quickly pointed out that the rule of uniform wall thicknessthroughout the part had been violated, the gate was in the wrong

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location, the material might be over specified for the operatingtemperature, and polysulfone could be a challenge to mold. We questionedwhy the part never failed at weld lines and was told that the compressionfittings provided additional support where the hoop stresses could be absorbed.

The engineer told us that other experts had indicated that the carbon blackused for colorant was the likely cause and had explained that it could ball upduring the filling process and interrupt the PSU molecular chains. Glenn wasquick to point out that the “carbon black” theory could be quickly proven orruled out by running some natural color material. The only problem was withthe company’s marketing department who liked black parts, but it would betried.

Glenn also noticed that the orientation of the glass fibers appeared to beparallel to where the part failure occurred. The fiber alignment in itself, coupledwith the voids, would considerably weaken this cross section. Part redesignwas discussed and included changes that would even out the wall sections,modify the gate placement to ensure against non-desirable fiber orientation,add contour changes, and use coring throughout the part. The upside was thatthe engineer got a lot of free consulting from Glenn on how to make a strongpart. The downside was that a new part design and mold would take time andmoney to complete.

The conversation turned to the molding process and how PSU should bemolded. The engineer was not familiar with molding PSU and we suggestedthat she ensure that certain processing conditions were followed. We suggestedthat the material be dried at 275° to 300°F for about four hours to ensure amoisture level of 0.01% to 0.02%, and that a melt temperature of 660°F anda mold temperature of 250° to 300°F be used. The injection rate should bemedium fast with pack and hold times extended to provide maximum packingof the thick section.

It was then learned that the molder was concerned about the heavy sectionand had installed a beryllium copper slide to form the slot adjacent to the thicksection where the part failure occurred. The molder stated that the objectivewas to cool the area faster to avoid sink marks. This revelation became themost important piece of the conversation since rapidly cooling the area couldresult in the molecular structure of the part being improperly formed duringthe required cooling phase.

We came up with a game plan of sampling with the previously suggestedprocessing conditions, with emphasis placed on ensuring that the temperatureof the slide was in the 250° to 300°F range. We are now awaiting results ofthat trial, but ask that any reader with input let us know their thoughts as well.


Feature Article

Manufacturers Get “In” on In-Mold LabelingBy Dave Coughlin

Product durability. This is something consumersexpect from manufactured goods and, in turn, somethingthat manufacturers strive to achieve.

Yet durability of the product extends beyond themanufactured piece alone. It also includes add-ons tothe end product such as labeling. Labeling, which includesdecorative, branding, and safety labels, must be asdurable as the product itself. If not, the product’s overallvalue is lessened and, in the case of safety labels, theconsumer is put at risk and the manufacturer could facecostly litigation.

The durability or lifetime of a plastic-based product,for example, is generally expected to be from three toten years. Thus, the labeling that is a part of the productis expected to not only last just as long but also to be ofthe same quality as when the product was brand new.Labeling must withstand any adverse conditions thatmight cause label failure, including:

• Indoor and/or outdoor environments, such asfreezing, direct sunlight, baking, etc.

• Harsh and abrasive chemicals and solvents• Overt attempts to remove the labelsIn other words, the labels for plastic products must

be extremely durable and permanent. While pressure-sensitive labels can experience shortcomings in theirdelivery of permanence and durability on plasticproducts, one type of label excels in these areas: in-mold labeling. In-mold labeling is a technology thatallows manufacturers to enhance the appearance of their

products by expanding available decoration space,including products that have curved, contoured, ortextured surfaces. In-mold labels actually bond with themolded part, providing permanent, non-removablelabeling that lasts for the life of the product.

Manufacturers of plastic parts have traditionally usedpressure-sensitive or other forms of post-mold labelingand decoration. Most are either unaware of in-moldlabeling, or assume it to be too complicated and/or tooexpensive to pursue. However, in-mold labeling is quitethe opposite of these assumptions and produces asuperior overall product at lower costs.

What is In-Mold Labeling?

In-mold labeling or in-mold decorating is theapplication or bonding of a label during the plasticmolding process. By applying the label within the moldingequipment, a manufacturer is able to eliminate the posthand- or machine-applied, pressure-sensitive label fromthe container or plastic molded part. By including thelabel in the molding process, it becomes a permanentfeature and improves accuracy and durability of thefinished label on the part or product.


Feature Article

The process begins by having a label placed insideof a mold. The label can be located through robotics orby hand and is typically held in place by vacuum ports,electrostatic attraction, or other appropriate means. Oncethe label is positioned, the mold is closed (if required),and the molten plastic is injected into the mold. Themolten plastic material envelopes the label and makes itan integral part of the molded object.

The largest difference between an in-mold label anda traditional adhesive-applied label is that the in-moldlabel is “in” the product while the traditional adhesive-applied label is “on” the product. Plus, in-mold labelingoffers a wealth of flexibility to manufacturers by:

• Working with and adapting to the manu-facturers’ molding equipment and tooling

• Establishing compatibility with nearly all moldingmaterials

• Conforming to a product’s shape and texture• Exceeding Food and Drug Administration

(FDA) and child safety requirements• Ensuring durability and fade-resistance

Why Use In-Mold Labeling?

In addition to durability and permanence,manufacturers can benefit in a variety of ways byusing in-mold labeling on their plastic products andcomponents. These include adding value to theproduct, promoting and protecting the brand, andensuring proper safety messaging.

Adding Value to Plastic Products

There’s no end to the decorative possibilities forplastic products when a manufacturer uses in-moldlabeling to add colorful, photo-quality images. By

adhering to the shape and texture of a product, the in-mold label allows manufacturers to add high-qualitycolor graphics to areas where decorative graphics werepreviously impossible, all without image distortion.

For example, a manufacturer of patio tables waslooking for a way to change the perception of its productfrom a commodity to a decorative product for the home.The company chose a high-quality color graphic whichcovered the top surface of the table and wrappedflawlessly around the curved table edge, providingfoolproof conformance to a complex surface whiledelivering unmatched durability. By decorating theproducts this way, both the manufacturer and the retailerwere able to realize higher margins.

An additional example is found with a manufacturerof surf boards. The company wanted to add decorativegraphics to its boards to help them stand out from thecompetition, but it needed a process that would standup to sun, surf, and sand. By adding highly fade-resistantin-mold decorative graphics to their boards, thismanufacturer was able to improve the value of itsproducts and achieve a meaningful competitiveadvantage, exceeding the performance of other labelingalternatives.

Promoting and Protecting the Brand

The value of a recognizable and respected brand isnearly impossible to assess. The fact is, next toemployees, a manufacturer has no greater asset than itsbrand image. Thus, they want to avoid promoting theirbrand with labels and imprints that fade, chip, peel, orotherwise deteriorate.


Feature Article

In-mold labeling protects a manufacturer’s valuablebrand with a process that is unmatched for durability,image sharpness, and color accuracy. Just like thepreviously mentioned product decoration, in-moldbranding labels adhere to the shape and texture of aproduct without image distortion. This allows amanufacturer to brand its products in areas wherebranding was previously impossible.

For example, according to Bob Freund, anentrepreneur and inventor, “In-mold decorating andbranding allow me to significantly improve the value ofmy products and give me a competitive advantage. Mycustomers love the premium graphics and are willing topay a premium price for a product that really stands outfrom the competition.”

Ensuring Proper Safety Messaging

There’s no question that responsible companieswant the people who use their products to do so safely.That’s why they put prominent safety warnings onpotentially dangerous items. Due to increasing legislation,safety warnings are increasing even on innocuousproducts.

What happens when a well-intentioned companyplaces a warning label on a product that later peels,chips, or wears off to the point that the safety messageis unreadable? Not only can product users becomeinjured, in today’s litigious society the financial impactand damage to a company’s brand image, not to mentiontheir bottom line, can be devastating.

In-mold labeling integrates colorful safety messagesinto a manufacturer’s plastic product with no fear ofpeeling, cracking, or wearing off. Incredibly sharp,picture-perfect images are fused into the plastic during

the molding process without adhesives, allowing thegraphics to become part of the product itself. Plus, theelements of nature, rough handling, gasoline and manyother chemicals won’t alter the safety message.

All of these features help provide peace of mind formanufacturers, according to Mark McCarthy, a partnerwith Tucker & Ellis, a Cleveland law firm specializing indefending manufacturers from product liability actions.“User safety is a huge concern. We want everyone whobuys products to have a completely safe experience.That’s why it is so important that safety warnings andother information remain legible and easy to read forthe life of a product. You can’t always get that withlabels that peel, scratch, or tear. And messages moldedinto plastic without contrasting color aren’t veryreadable. With [this] system, there can be colorful safetymessages that are hard to ignore—and stay that way—helping to protect companies from product liability.”

Moving to In-Mold Labeling

Based on the information reviewed here, manu-facturers should consider incorporating in-mold labelsinto their plastic products and components to takeadvantage of this sophisticated product and process. Inaddition to providing a cost-effective and secure methodof fusing product decoration, branding, and safetymessages into a plastic product, in-mold labeling:

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• Works with manufacturers’molds and tooling: In-moldlabeling lets manufacturers addcolorful, high-definition decor-ation to molded products withoutmodifying existing molds ortooling, saving the manufacturertime and money. Plus, the tech-nology works via both automaticand manual insertion processes.

• Automates the process: Forhigh-volume applications, filmplacement can be easily auto-mated with robots.

• Exceeds FDA and child safetyrequirements: In-mold filmscomply with all child safetyregulations for hazardous mate-rials and exceed FDA require-ments for food contact.

Feature Article

• Is competitively priced: The in-mold labeling process is competitive with other methods, includingpressure-sensitive labels.

• Is compatible with virtually all molding materials: With an in-mold labeling system, there’s no needto carefully match the material composition of the label to the molded material. In-mold technology isproven completely compatible with various polyolefins as well as ABS, polycarbonate, PVC, PET, TPO,TPE, elastomers, vinyl, glass-reinforced nylon, and styrene. It has also been molded into thermosettingpolymers and rubber during vulcanization. Decorative or safety images can be molded into non-rigid itemsbecause the image will flex or stretch with the product.

• Conforms to product shape and texture: The graphic image in an in-mold application assumes thetexture and shape of the mold surface. The image actually molds around curves and over steps to create acontinuous graphic that enhances the quality of the finished product. In-mold technology works in injection,gas assist, structural foam, blow, compression, injection-compression, and extrusion applications, as wellas some thermoforming and rotational molding applications.

• Provides incredible durability and fade resistance: In-mold images actually fuse to the surface of aproduct during molding and shrink with the product as it cools, without blistering, thus becoming inseparable.This process results in a graphic image that is highly fade-resistant and virtually impervious to the effects ofnature, dishwashers, autoclaves, gamma radiation, rough handling, gasoline, and other abuses.

About the Author: Dave Coughlin is Director of Operations for Industramark™, a Division of Standard Register.Starting his career with Standard Register in 2004, Dave has served as an assistant plant manager, plant manager,senior manager of Lean Six Sigma and, most recently, director of in-mold labeling technologies. Prior to joiningStandard Register, he was employed by Avery Dennison in manufacturing management and new product developmentroles. He holds a bachelor of science in chemical engineering from Cleveland State University.

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Ask The Experts

Hot Runner QuestionsTerry Schwenk, owner and presi-dent of Process & Design Tech-nologies, LLC, answers your hotrunner questions. Terry has over 34years of experience in the plasticsindustry, and more then 22 years inhot runner technology specifically.Email your questions to Terry [email protected]

Question:How can I get better color change from my hot

runner system?

Answer:Achieving better color change in hot runner systems

can be done on several levels and it revolves aroundunderstanding the characteristics of plastics. All plasticsflow laminar, whether flowing through a cold runner ora hot runner system. The velocity of the material flowingthrough the runner path affects the amount of non-flowtowards the outer walls of the flow channels and has adirect relationship with the flow diameter. In examiningthe nature of non-Newtonian materials in laminar flowthrough same-size flow channels at different velocities,we can generalize the amount of the non-flow region inthe melt channel due to viscosity changes (see figure 1).

Figure 1. Representation of material flow fronts in a runnerchannel at different velocities.

In the top diagram, the material has a slow flowvelocity and the non-flow region is at a minimum. Themiddle image shows a moderate flow velocity wherethe non-flow region is larger. The bottom view shows ahigh flow velocity and the non-flow region is large.

The fill velocity is very important when designing ahot runner system for color change. As you can see inthese scenarios, at high fill velocities, if the runner

channels are too large, the residence time increasesdramatically depending on the type of material beingmolded and the shot size, thus resulting in a longer colorchange. When purging through a hot runner system, tryslowing down the velocity to reduce the non-flow regionand improve color removal.

One way to calculate the true residence time of anexisting hot runner system is to introduce a colorant atthe melt entrance of the hot runner system. Then, countthe number of shots before you first start seeing thecolor on the part, and subsequently, count the numberof shots before the color disappears. That total numberof shots is the true residence time of the hot runnersystem. Now you can use the total number of shots,multiplied by the weight of each shot, to calculate thetotal material used. Next, calculate the volume of thehot runner system, convert it to the material weight, andmultiply that number by the number of shots for the colorchange test. Now compare the two numbers of totalmaterial weights. The difference between these twonumbers gives you an idea of the amount of materialthat resides in the non-flow or slow-flow region of thehot runner system. If this number is greater then 25% ofthe hot runner system volume, the bore channels aretoo large in the hot runner system.

Other more obvious things also contribute todifficulties in color changes. One item to consider is themelt entrance of the hot runner system. It is veryimportant to match the machine nozzle orifice to themelt entrance of the hot runner system to eliminate deadspots (see Figure 2). Dead spots are any area in thedirect flow path of the material where a mismatch insteel conditions result in a material hang up.

Figure 2. Left: A mismatched molding machine nozzle. Right: Acorrect molding machine nozzle.

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Additional issues arise with the designs of differenthot runner systems. For best color changes, you wantto select a hot runner system that has an open pipelinedesign with minimum bends, turns, and intersections.These are all areas where material can hang in the system,causing longer then normal color change times.

Understanding how materials flow, the types ofcolorant, and hot runner designs are key to improvingcolor changes on any hot runner system.

Furthermore, hot tip systems are treated differentlythen valve gate systems. Most hot tip systems aredesigned where the largest dead spot of material is theinsulator around the gate tip (see figure 3).

Figure 3. Material cross section of a typical hot tip systemafter color change.

In the case of a hot tip system, the procedure forcolor change is to introduce the new color and purgethe machine and hot runner system with new color,getting as much of the old color out as possible. Thenstart molding parts, elevating the hot tip temperaturesby approximately 50°F. After most of the old color hasbeen purged, reduce the tip temperatures back to theiroriginal setting. This usually does the trick for most hottip systems. For really stubborn color changes, trystopping the molding process and turning the heat off tothe hot runner system. This allows the material in theflow channels to cool and shrink away from the flowchannel walls, resulting in the removal of non-flow layersfrom flow channel walls. Reheating the system andpurging it will remove the trapped material. You mayhave to repeat this process a couple of times, but doingthis results in far less material waste and reduces colorchange times. This is the ideal process method forremoving trapped material from the back side of the

In summary, there are several things that can bedone to improve color changes in hot runner systems.Some items are easy and straightforward, while othersare very specific to the processes and types of materialsbeing run through the hot runner system.

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When you attend a molding event such as aconference, exhibit, or trade show, you can share yourexperience with thousands of IMD members. The IMDNewsletter features the column “Things On The Road”to provide members with an opportunity to contribute tothe IMD community. We also welcome informativefeature articles by our readers.

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valve pin on valve gated systems as well, resulting in adrastically improved color change time (see figure 4).

Figure 4. Assembly view of a typical valve gate hot runnersystem.

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Career Advice

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negotiation skills, performance reviews, and working with teams.2. Job-Search services: View job openings and apply for jobs. Top companies post jobs

on our site. Up to 150 have been posted this year! Right now there are over 25 jobs openand waiting for applicants!

3. “Job Agent”: Receive emails with information on jobs that match your search criteria4. Résumé posting (confidential option is available): Let employers find you5. Résumé-writing assistance is available6. Career coaching, planning services, and more!

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Be proactive! Create your FREE job-seeker account today to learn more about the availablejob opportunities and tools that can help your career thrive!


Career Advice

Ten Tips for Conducting a Job Searchby Alvah Parker

1. Plan a daily schedule. Have specific hours duringthe day that you are at your desk working on finding anew job. Be sure to leave time for exercise and beingwith friends. Keep your schedule similar to the one youhad when you were at work.

2. Set aside enough time to do the job search well.Be realistic about the time you need to do these tasks.If you do not allot enough time you will be carelessabout the job applications.

3. Treat your job search as a business. You are asales executive in your business selling a product, andthat product is YOU. As with any product, you have tohave a lot of prospects before you make one sale. Havelots of balls in the air. Ask any sales person about his/her “sales funnel.”

4. Be a good record keeper. Keep track of the jobsyou have applied for and where and with whom youhave had interviews. Follow up will be easier if youhave the information all in one place. Keep notes onphone conversations and interviews.

5. Have other meaningful work. Do some volunteerwork or contract work. It gives you something to talkabout when you interview and makes you feel produc-tive and useful.

6. Stay positive. Do what it takes to keep happy andoptimistic. No one wants to hire someone who is angryor sad. This may mean splurging on dessert, letting goof the anger you feel about the job you lost, buying anew outfit, and/or taking the weekend off. Denial orholding a grudge will not make you happy. Do not putyour life on hold.

7. Find a partner to work with. A job search can bevery isolating. Find a friend or a coach to talk regularly.Tell him/her what is happening in your search. Brain-storm and strategize with your friend or coach. Rehearsewith the person when you have an interview or whenyou are going to make an important call.

8. Work to objectives. Set realistic goals (number ofnetworking contacts, number of interviews, etc.) thatyou are able to accomplish and then feel good about.

9. Strengthen your confidence. Do whatever it takesto make you feel confident and happy during your jobsearch. This may mean part time work or being withpeople who recognize you as the capable person youare. You must exude confidence and energy to be hirable.

10. Join a group for support. Exchanging ideas withothers is helpful. A job opportunity that is not right forone member of the group may be right for you. Youmight look to the group for social activities too. If thereis no existing group in your area, think about startingone.

Alvah Parker is a Work/Life Coach with SPE CareerSolutions, specializing in high potential, careerfocused people who are in career transition, looking to start a new business, or boost their overall

performance. You can reach SPE CareerSolutions at +1-877-262-2470 or online at www.4careersolutions.org


CAE Questions

John Ralston, operations andengineering manager of BeaumontTechnologies, Inc., answers yourquestions about flow simulation.John has over 18 years of CAEexperience using various flowsimulation packages. Reach John [email protected] with asubject line of “SPE and CAE.”

Question:Our company currently has CAE plastics flow

analysis work performed by outside consultants.Management is looking to cut costs and bringeverything in-house. They would like to use themoney spent on consultants to justify purchasingthe software. As such, what are the main factors indeciding whether to purchase the software or tocontinue using outside consultants?

software suppliers have packaged their software intoseveral levels or price points depending upon the analy-sis method. You should be aware that many of the lowercost, user-friendly software programs come with limitedfunctionality. On the other hand, you do not want tobuy into a full “top shelf” package if you will not use theenhanced features or solution methods. You mustconsider what your outside consultants commonly usefor your simulation projects and be sure to include thoseadditional modules (if needed) when estimating thesoftware cost.

Most plastics CAE simulation software supplierssell a license to use a base filling analysis program andthen offer additional licensing options for add-on modulesto meet your project needs. Add-on modules mayinclude solution methods for part/mold cooling, partwarpage, thermoplastic over-molding, gas assistinjection molding, reactive molding, microchipencapsulation, or thermoset injection molding.

Also consider any other programs that yourconsultants use in conjunction with the simulationsoftware to accurately estimate the total value of theconsultant services. Additional engineering softwareprograms often needed for model development includesolid modeling packages (Pro-Engineer, Catia, Autocad,or Solidworks) and external mesh building software(Hypermesh, Rhino, or FemB).

Additionally, companies often overlook othersoftware costs, such as the yearly maintenance feesrequired for the upkeep of the software. Softwareproviders typically base yearly maintenance fees on apercentage of the total software cost. The maintenancefees will apply to the flow simulation software as well asthe associated engineering software and will entitle you,in most cases, to free software upgrades as well as someform of technical support. Annual maintenance fees canbecome a significant portion of the analysis cost unlessa high volume of analyses are performed.

Hardware Considerations

Do your computers and/or servers have thecapability to run the software? If not, what upgradeswill be required and at what cost? Special high-end,

Answer:This is an interesting question and one that many

companies struggle with when they see the purchaseorders being issued to have someone on the outside runflow simulation on their parts. It is natural to think thatmoney would be better spent internally, and people willquestion: “Why doesn’t our company have this capabilityinternally?” There are often hidden costs associated withrunning CAE successfully in-house that must beconsidered.

To answer your question, it must be understoodthat it is not as cut and dry as comparing the purchaseprice to the outsourced costs. There are many otherassociated costs to consider. To make the best decisionyou must first determine the tangible and intangible costsassociated with CAE simulation. To compare these twooptions, we need to examine the value of the software,the hardware, the analyst, and the project. Let’s startoff by looking at some decisions you will need to makewhen considering in-house CAE.

Software ConsiderationsOver the years plastics flow analysis solution

methods have evolved from 2D to 2.5D (midplane), todual domain, to full 3D analyses. Consequently, the

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64-bit computers loaded with extra RAM may berequired for complex or larger models. Also ensurethat the software you are considering for purchasewill take advantage of the higher end computers andnew chipsets (dual core, quad core). Note thatcomputers running high-end solution software willneed to be upgraded more often than typical companycomputers to ensure that maximum efficiency isachieved.

Staffing Considerations

The direct and indirect costs of labor will mostlikely be a significant portion of the expenses whenconsidering in-house CAE software. In terms of labor,it is essential to have a trained analyst perform thesimulations to achieve reliable results. It is recom-mended that the analyst also be experienced in plasticsprocessing, part design, and tooling, thus ensuring thathe/she is capable of applying reasonable judgment tosimulation decisions and results.

There are two different skill sets required of aqualified CAE analyst: the skills required to set upand perform the analysis, and the skills to translatesimulation results into practical recommendations.Obtaining a new analyst can occur one of two ways:hire an analyst, or use an existing staff member. Ifyour company decides to hire a new CAE analyst,there are still some important decisions to make.

Do you hire an experienced analyst at a higherpay scale or seek a lower cost employee and considertraining? Is the analyst skilled in both injection moldingand CAE simulation? If not, how much training isrequired and at what cost? Will a less skilled analystrequire more time to perform the analysis? If so, whatis the cost/time difference between analysts? All ofthese factors contribute to the validity of the analyst’ssolutions.

Suppose you decide to assign a current employeeto perform the simulations. Most of the same questionsregarding their skills apply. Does he/she possess thenecessary skills? Is training required and at what cost?Will that person’s current responsibilities fall behinddue to the additional work load, or will you need tohire someone to take over his/her old responsibilities?More time working with CAE means less time

dedicated to existing work, especially during the learningphase.

The indirect costs associated with a poorly trainedanalyst (regardless of whether it’s a new hire or an existingemployee) can stack up quickly. Let’s consider a warpageanalysis for a new part design, after which the tool will bebuilt and sampled. The analyst selects a gate location toreduce the warp and the mold is built to specification. Butthe analyst did not know to look at all of the componentsthat effect warp; hence, the results were misunderstoodand incorrect decisions were made. When the parts weremolded, they ended up warping differently than expected.The error is now cut into the mold. The indirect cost ofthe poorly skilled analyst now includes the troubleshootingtime and cost, the cost of labor for mold rework, thematerial cost of mold rework, and lost production time.This is just one “what if” example, but when inexperiencedor inaccurate interpretation of the analysis results find theirway into the mold or process, it can be a very expensiveand time-consuming process to correct these mistakes.

When considering personnel costs it is impossible tosay which route is going to be the most economical, but

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we can say that an experienced and trained analyst is amuch better option in the long run since that person willhave the experience to help you avoid costly mistakesin data interpretation.

Project Considerations

A key economic decision that needs to be addressedas well is the number of simulation projects you plan toperform in-house. Are these projects similar, or will eachsimulation be a unique analysis? How many simulationswill it take for the “software to pay for itself” each year?Does your company have specific cost savings data fromconsulting services to validate this?

It is very difficult to estimate cost savings at a broadlevel because it varies per project. One project mayresult in reducing maximum pressures and savings onenergy costs, while another may have minimized materialvolume, resulting in material cost savings. Then there isthe issue of quantifying savings from cost avoidances.For example, if an acceptable gate location was foundusing CAE there is a reduction in costs for gatingmodifications during mold validation. This reduces laborcosts for tool makers and processors, as well as moldmodification costs and potential transportation costs.

As such, it is nearly impossible to quantify thepotential savings for all projects. To narrow this category,consider using an average project as an example, andidentify the downstream mold maintenance andmodification costs. Compare these costs to a differentproject where CAE services have shown a reduction inmold maintenance and modification costs, and use thiscost savings as a benchmark. Apply these savings to allof the projects you’ve planned to utilize CAE simulationswith, and generate a total for mold cost reductions. Notethat this assumes that the in-house analyst possessesthe same software resources and skills as the consultant,so the actual savings may vary.

Another question to ask is “How will you use thesoftware?” Infinite design possibilities allow a skilledCAE analyst to perform iterative solutions, optimizingthe process, part design, and tool design. The true costsavings comes from the fact that all of this can beachieved before steel is cut, machines are contracted,or material is even purchased. In-house services are

ideal for multiple iterations, while it is less economicalto pay consultants for each solution.

Summary

As you can see, it is not a simple task to quantifythe value, and therefore the costs, of CAE services andtheir practical applications. Often times we seecompanies purchase the software and it ends up sittingon the server with no one capable of, or dedicated to,running it effectively. Then the overall use of the softwaretool dwindles and may become non-existent. Whencomparing in-house CAE versus consulting services,the value of the software is the only cost that translatesequally between the two. Our best recommendation isto benchmark the various costs versus savings andestimate how well your company will be able to duplicatethose results. In the end, the decision requires bothfinancial and plastics insight to determine what scenariois best for your company.

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Abstract

A reasonable design of the injection mould has toguarantee that the moulded part can be demoulded withoutdamaging either the ejection system in the mould or thepart. In the conventional mould design this damagingoccurs at the very end of the development process ofthe injection mould when it is already assembled.

A simulation procedure is presented which enablesthe mould maker to mechanically layout the demouldingsystem. It combines a process simulation with a structuralanalysis and hence maximises the advantage of usingCAE.

Introduction

The last phase of the injection moulding process isthe demoulding of the part from the injection mould.During the opening of the mould the part sticks normallyon the moving half of the mould. This is caused byundercuts, adhesion and residual stresses in the part. Theejection of the part is then induced by the operation ofthe ejection system. All demoulding systems have incommon that they induce local forces into the injectionmoulded part. The sum of these forces has to exceedthe holding forces which keep the part in the movingside of the mould to ensure a successful demoulding ofthe part.

An ejection system which is incorrectly designed bythe mould designer regarding the occurring forces andloads leads to specific problems. These problems are e.g. a destruction and a deformation of the part or adamaging of the material (Fig. 1). In the classic moulddesign this occurs at the very end of the developmentprocess of the injection mould when it is alreadyassembled. It is therefore the aim of a research projectto develop a simulation concept which helps the moulddesigner to quantitatively layout the demoulding systemregarding the mechanical loading of the injection mouldedpart during the ejection process.

Description of Friction Mechanisms

The ejection forces occurring during the demouldingprocess can be divided into forces caused by the shrinkingof the part onto cores and forces needed to move thepart relatively to the mould surface [1]. The latter forces

Coupled FEA Simulation of the Demoulding Procedureof Injection Molded Parts

Walter Michaeli and Bernhard Helbich, Institute of Plastics Processing atR WTH Aachen University (IKV), Pontstr. 49, 52062 Aachen,Germany

IMD Best Paper Finalist

are mainly dependent on the dynamic coefficient offriction whereas the forces caused by shrinkage are theresult of the static coefficient of friction. For thedemoulding process the static friction forces are theimportant ones.

The surface pressure between the mould and theplastic part combined with the local friction coefficientleads to the resulting friction force. This is described byCoulomb’s law of friction [1]:

Ffric =μ · ps · Ap (1)

where Ffric is the resulting friction force [N], μ is thecoefficient of friction [-], ps is the surface pressure [N/mm2] and Ap is the participating surface [mm2].

The parameter A p can be determined for geometricallysimple parts by a qualitative consideration of the overallshrinkage of the part. The determination of theparameters μ and ps is more complex. The local surfacepressure ps is the result of the shrinkage of the part andis therefore highly dependent on the material of the partand the processing parameters [2, 3, 4].

The parameter μ is not only influenced by thecombination of the plastic resin and the metal surfacebut also by the surface pressure, adhesion effects andthe processing parameters [5, 6]. Therefore the idealway to measure this parameter directly is during theinjection moulding process [6].

A quantitative determination of the friction force Ffricturns out to be difficult as satisfying simulation conceptsfor the determination of friction forces currently do notexist. The demoulding forces are therefore in most casesonly estimated by the mould designer based on hispersonal know-how leading to the risk of a falseestimation.

Development of a Concept for the Simulationof the Demoulding Process

The aim of the development of a calculation conceptfor the simulation of the demoulding process is to ensurea mould development with a reduction of the risk of iter-ations in the construction process due to an improperdesigned ejection system. The concept has to enable thedesigner to simulate the complete demoulding procedureand hence to be provided with the possibility to predict



the mechanical loading in the part during ejection.To calculate the quantitative values of the mechanical

loading a procedure was developed in the FEA torepresent the complete injection moulding processbeginning with the injection of the melt into the cavityuntil the part is ejected at the end of the cooling time.For this purpose firstly a filling simulation is performedwith the complete simulation of the shrinkage of the part.The filling simulation was performed with thecommercially available process simulation softwareCadmould, version 6.3, simcon kunststofftechnischeSoftware GmbH, Würselen, Germany. The result of thecalculation is then the residual stress distribution in thepart at the point of ejection. These residual stresses canbe exported to a binary file (Fig. 2).

The calculated residual stresses are then being usedin the structural analysis to calculate firstly the surfacepressure. In a second step the ejection of the part is thencalculated using the measured friction coefficients. Thestructural analysis was performed using the FEAprogramm ABAQUS, version 6.5, Dassault SystèmesSimulia Corp., Rhode Island. The developed simulationprocedure is a coupling of the two different describedsimulation tools. The effect is an added value of availableresults compared to the separate use of each softwaretool.

The simulations were performed with an amorphouspolycarbonate. The mechanical and rheological propertiesused in the simulations could be extracted from thematerial data sheet provided by the raw material supplier.

The values of the coefficient of friction could not bemeasured in an injection moulding process but could onlybe approximated with measurements on an inclined plane.For that a specimen of the polycarbonate used for thevalidation of the simulation procedure was heated up toglass transition temperature with an infrared emitter. Theconditioned specimen was then placed on the plane. Ontop of the specimen an insert from the injection mouldused for the validation was placed which was heated upto demoulding temperature. The angle of the inclinedplane was then increased until the insert started to slide.The resulting angle of the inclined plane was then thebasis for the calculation of the coefficient of friction.

Validation of the Simulation with InjectionMoulding Experiments

The simulation was validated using an injection mouldfor the production of simple box-shaped parts. Theinjection mould has an ejector system incorporated whichallows the user to choose between different configurationsof the ejector pins. During the validation two different

configurations were chosen which lead according toexperience to different results concerning the demould-ability of the part (Fig. 3). Configuration 1 with fourejectors in the outer area of the box is supposed to beeasily ejectable by the ejector pins whereas Configuration2 with five ejectors in the inner area of the box inducesa higher loading in the part.

The construction of the demoulding plate allows tomeasure the occurring ejection forces. For this purposea load cell is incorporated between the ejector boltcoming from the injection moulding machine and theejector plate which transfers the movement of the ejectorbolt to the ejector pins (Fig. 4).

The chosen construction of the ejector systems allowsan easy change and evaluation of different ejectorconfigurations without disassembly of the mould.

The location where the force is measured during theejection process is between the ejector bolt and theejector plate. At this location the measured force is notonly the force that is transferred from all ejector pins asa sum into the plastic part but also contains a fractionwhich is caused by friction in the demoulding system.For the validation of the simulation of the ejection processit is necessary to subtract the fraction which is onlycaused by the friction and does not help to eject the part.Therefore the injection moulding experiments werecarried out as follows to determine the fraction of themeasured force, which is caused only by friction in thedemoulding system (Fig. 5). After the end of the coolingtime the ejector system was operated. The first strokeof the ejector pins then demoulded the part. After thisdemoulding stroke there were three more strokesexecuted with no part in the mould. These strokes werethe so called no load strokes. The measured forces werein this case only the result of the friction in the demouldingsystem and could therefore be averaged and thensubtracted from the first demoulding stroke. The resultingforce achieved by this operation is the force that is actingon the part during the demoulding stroke of the ejectionprocedure.

Results and Discussion

The results achieved with the described simulationconcept show that it is in general possible to simulate thedemoulding procedure of injection moulded parts. It ispossible to qualitatively simulate the values of the ejectionforce (Fig. 6). The slope of the rising and the fallingsection of the simulated curve is in good accordance tothe measured values of the ejection process. InConfiguration 1 with four ejectors in the outer area ofthe part a very high slope is simulated in the beginning of



the demoulding process. After a very short time themaximum value is reached. After that point the part ismoved out of the cavity with a continuing decrease ofthe needed ejection force. The part ejected withConfiguration 2 with five ejector pins in the inner area ofthe part shows a slightly different behaviour during thedemoulding process. The slope at the beginning of thedeformation is smaller compared to Configuration 1. Themaximum force at the point of time when the part haslost its adhesion is higher than in Configuration 1. This isin accordance to the expectation. The force decreasesafter the loosening of the part very fast until the part hasno contact to the mould anymore.

The higher values needed to demould the part withejector configuration 2 can be explained with Fig. 7. Bothejector configurations lead to a deformation of the boxshaped part during the ejection process. The reason isthat the base of the box is deformed due to the force,which is induced into the base. The result is an additionalsurface pressure arising from the elongation of thematerial. This additional surface pressure especially actson the side walls of the box. By that the resultingfrictional force which has to be exceeded is rising withincreased deformation of the part. Therefore the forceneeded to eject the part with Configuration 2 is highercompared to Configuration 1 as Configuration 2 leads toa higher deformation of the part.

The maximum values simulated with the developedconcept do not match the values obtained in themeasurement. Possible error causes are the simulationof shrinkage of the material. Although it is nowadayspossible to calculate the shrinkage of amorphous plasticmaterials quite realistically it is still difficult to predict thequality of this simulation technique. Another error causemight arise from the measurement of the frictioncoefficient. As this parameter was not measured in theinjection moulding process it is possible that this parameteris slightly inaccurate leading to wrong values of thesimulated ejection force.

However the qualitatively very good correlation ofthe simulation with the measurements admits to use theresults of the simulation for investigations that cannot beachieved with actual measurements on the part. Oneexample for these results is shown in Fig. 8. This figuredisplays the stress distribution in the part during the ejectionprocess. The comparison of both ejector configurationsshows that the stress level that occurs during the ejectionof the part with Configuration 1 is smaller than withConfiguration 2. Furthermore the areas where themaximum stresses occur during the ejection process aredifferent depending on the simulated ejector configuration.

Conclusion

The results show that the use of the developedsimulation method can increase the quality of the injectionmould in a very early stage of the design process. It ispossible to simulate the demoulding process of injectionmoulded plastic parts qualitatively very well. This canbe shown with the conducted experimental verificationof the ejection process. The deviation of the simulationcompared to the measurements might be caused by theaccuracy of the shrinkage simulation and themeasurement of the friction coefficient.

The simulation concept adds further value to the useof FEA during the construction process of injectionmoulded parts and moulds. It enables the designer tocalculate the occurring stresses in the plastic part duringthe demoulding process. The use of this tool can help toreduce iterations during the mould design and by thatreduce development costs.

Acknowledgments

The investigations set in this report received financialsupport from the Federal Ministry of Economics andLabor (BMWA) by the AiF e.V. (No. 13448 N), to whomwe extend our thanks.

Key Words

Filling simulation, demoulding, ejection, structuralanalysis, injection moulding, friction Words

References

1. G. Menges, W. Michaeli, P. Mohren, Spritzgie-ßwerkzeuge, Hanser, München, pp. 399 (2002).

2. A. Kaminski: Entformung. VDI Kunststofftechnik:Spritzgießtechnik. VDI-Verlag, Düsseldorf, pp. 241(1980).

3. R. Malloy, P. Majeski, Design of Pin EjectorSystems for Injection Molds, Annual TechnicalConferences, Society of Plastics Engineer, 1989, pp.1231 (1989).

4. U. Daniels, B. Hamer,. Beschichtung erhöhtStandzeit und Produktqualität, Kunststoffe 9, 83, pp.659 (1993).

5. C. Burke, R. Malloy, An Experimental Study of theEjection Forces Encountered During the InjectionMolding, Annual Technical Conferences, Society ofPlastics Engineers, pp. 1781 (1991).

6. G. Menges, H. Bangert, Messung von Haftreibung-skoeffizienten zur Ermittlung von Öffnungs- undEntformungskräften bei Spritzgießwerkzeugen,Kunststoffe, 9, 71, pp. 552 (1981).


Figure 3. Examined ejector configurations. Figure 6. Comparison of simulated and measuredejection forces.

Figure 2. Procedure of the simulation concept. Figure 5. Determination of the demoulding force.

Figure 1. Damages on a plastic part due to theejection system.

Figure 4. Detail of the ejector system.



Figure 8. Comparison of the stress distribution independency on the ejector configuration.

Figure 7. Schematic of demoulding process at theejector Configuration 2.

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Mold Cost Estimating – Quickly, Accurately, and ConsistentlyBy Gunter Fischer, TransCat Kunststofftechnik

and Jeff Lambing, JDL Technical Services

With all of the advances in moldmaking over the years—including high speed machining, EDM, and the use ofCAE software—there is one area in moldmaking that has not received the same attention: mold cost estimating. Ithas and continues to be done much like it had been done in the past—with a well educated guess or by self-designed spreadsheets based on past experience and expertise to get a reasonable method of compiling the costs.

OEM’s (not only in the automotive sector) ask for cost breakdowns for the quotes they receive which are verytime consuming, and although only a small percentage of these quotations become orders, every calculation mustbe detailed in order to be competitive.

It is quite normal for mold buyers to send dozens of RFQ’s to their mold suppliers, often overloading thoseresponsible for mold and part estimates. This results in a lot of highly skilled workers using a majority of their timemaking quotations for projects that will never turn into purchase orders.

As the estimating staff is quite often the most experienced and highly skilled personnel of the company, theconsequences of this are huge costs to the company and a large loss of skillful help in the operations of the business.The quality of their estimating represents a high share in the financial success of a project. Because of the high costsof estimating many companies tend to try to decrease the time per calculation, which can lead to misjudgments anderrors in the calculations.

Figure 1. Use of the calculation system, CalCard, for mold makers as well as buyers.

A solution for this situation is the use of professional software that supports the complete calculation processfor molds and parts. In the multitude of software packages on the market, there are few that can be classified as“expert software.” Many packages are solutions in the environment of ERP systems and are database driven. Inmany cases, manufacturing hours still have to be estimated by the user. The advantage of this kind of system is thatmany databases can be imported and the calculation can be incorporated into the company ERP system.

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Figure 2. Three-dimensional analysis software with projected area and detected undercuts (green). Informationderived from the analysis software can be exported directly into the geometry description in the calculation software,thus minimizing manual inputs and measurements.

Unlike a database solution, expert software like the software CalCard (Transcat/Germany) derives all costsdirectly from the description of the part and the mold specifications. The user first enters the geometry of theplastic part with parameters such as dimensions, special features like undercuts, surface complexities, and finish.

Optionally, it is possible to get support in editing this data with an additional software package that analyzesthe 3D-model. This software is a mix between a powerful 3D-viewer and a complete 3D-analysis softwareincluding analysis features of typical CAD-solutions. Quite often another problem during the estimating process isthat staff are only equipped with 3D-viewers which are easy to use but have a lack of additional and importantfeatures. The use of a complete CAD-station does not make sense as it is too expensive and requires a lot of usertraining. The software Magics CalCard combines an easy to use conventional 3D-viewer with powerful analysisfunctions such as detection of dimensions (including volume and projected area), undercuts, openings/insert areas,wall thickness, draft angles, and other useful information.

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Figure 5. Calculation overview.

Figure 3. Geometry information derived from three-dimensional data. Afterthe geometry is described, the procedure follows Figure 4.

In addition to the geometry of an individual part, the calculation requires information about mold specifications,the manufacturing environment, and of course the economical background. All of these parameters can be definedindividually by the user as customizable defaults or templates.These templates will include information such astypes of steel and heat treatments methods used, runner systems, ejection details, quality of the water line system,surcharges, and other special costs.

Figure 4.


It is also very important to consider themanufacturing equipment used for the calculation.Different manufacturing philosophies can influencewhether details are milled or if EDM’ing is preferred.All of the technical information and specificationsof the equipment are used to generate an estimateof the manufacturing times needed.

Costs for machining times will be influenced bythe correct hourly and machine burden rates as perthe template being used. A machine burden ratecalculator is a built-in feature included in thesoftware. For this purpose, flexible databases areneeded to afford the opportunity to react to changingmarkets or regions.

The result of entering geometry and calculationinformation is at first a ballpark price calculatedcompletely automatically by the system, an exampleof which is shown in Figure 5. Further tweaking ofthe cost generated can be easily done by severalsection menus in which any changes are instantlysummarized. Comparative quotes can also be donebetween steel types, mold types, number of cavities,different customer standards, or even the countryof manufacture. From the calculation screen,detailed cost breakdown sheets can be exportedinto a spreadsheet showing summary pricing,components, material, manufacturing times, machinetimes, and more.

In addition to the mold costs, part costs can bederived from the part geometry and the moldfeatures. The press size is suggested automaticallyand the corresponding press and machine burdenrate is chosen. The cycle time is calculatedautomatically as information like material and wallthickness is pulled from part geometry descriptions.Additionally, costs for such things as additionaloperations, procured parts, logistics, maintenance,scrap recycling, etc. can be easily worked into thepiece price. Production times and costs, as well as

material demands (per lot or annually), are alsoderived automatically, as are overall program costs.

Further advantages of purchasing an expertquoting system include:

• Plug and play; no time-consumingdevelopment or maintenance by companypersonnel is necessary

• Same calculation platform for all users: moldmakers and mold buyers

• Well-structured and documented moldquotes in a short time are possible

• Completely customizable to yourcompany’s unique requirements

• Can create more available time for yourmost experienced personnel to work onother, more productive projects

As already shown in Figure 1, the system canbe used by all kinds of companies that needquotations for injection molds or injection moldedparts. This includes large automotive OEMs as wellas small tool shops. In closing, using expert moldcost estimating software can save time and money,and make the quoting process more reliable.

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Booth #W104009


Member Profile: Raymond McKeeby Lee Filbert

Meet one of your SPE Injection Molding Division (IMD) Board members,Raymond McKee. Ray has been a member of SPE since 2005; his first IMDBoard meeting was last summer at the Milwaukee ANTEC.

Ray grew up in a small town called Tionesta, Pennsylvania, which is abouttwo hours southeast of Erie, PA. The town is in the middle of the AlleghanyNational Forest. Ray was one of 36 students in his high school graduationclass; there were just over 250 students in grades 7 through 12.

Ray played the tuba in his high school marching band and carried thatthrough into college where he played for the Penn State Erie Concert and PepBands. He still tries to play in his free time and recently played in a TubaChristmas event with 75 other tuba and baritone musicians in front of a crowd of 400 people.

Ray knew that he wanted to go into plastics since the ninth grade. His inspiration was his father, whoworked at Osram Sylvania for over 15 years in its injection molding operations. Now Ray and his fatherhave impassioned discussions about how to process certain jobs and materials.

Having plastics in his blood, Ray studied Plastics Engineering Technology at Penn State Erie. Hissenior project investigated the effect of sharp corners on mold fill. He also studied the effects of secondaryrunner lengths. This research was done with one of his peers at Penn State, Joshua Hoover. Their paperwas honored with a 2nd place award at ANTEC 2006.

During his senior year, Ray worked part-time at Formtech, a profile extrusion company. He worked asan engineering intern doing CAD drawing updates and reviewed customer part designs for manufacturability.In addition to this job, Ray was a teaching assistant, a resident assistant, and had 19 credit hours of classes.He states this schedule overload prepared him well for the real world.

After graduation, Ray went to work at Rexam Plastic Packaging in Erie, PA, as a manufacturingtrainee. For one and a half years, Ray performed various duties including setting up molding machines,working in the tool room, leading improvement projects, and working in the Quality Assurance department.His most rewarding assignment was as shift supervisor for an assembly department of 25 union employees.He recently revisited the department and was greeted like Norm from Cheers.

After completing his training, Ray was promoted to Sacmi Compression Molding Department Supervisorand Lean Coordinator where he now oversees 23 employees. He enjoys advancing compression moldingtechnology and hopes to grow his experience in strategic development. As lean coordinator, Ray leadslean manufacturing initiatives at the Erie facility. He has worked on 5s initiatives, Kaizen events, and VisualWorkplace development.

Now that Ray’s career is full steam ahead, he and his wife of one and a half years are expanding theirfamily. They are expecting their first child this May. So it looks like their dog, Sarah, a Bichon Frise, isgoing to have some competition for attention. Ray also enjoys carpentry and traveling with his wife. He isa welcome addition to the SPE IMD Board.

Member Profile


Committee Reportsby Dave Karpinski

In pursuit of the mission of the Injection MoldingDivision, the work is carried out, in large part, by variouscommittees. Each committee is chaired by a member ofthe Board of the Injection Molding Division. However,any member of SPE can work on one or more of thecommittees. Indeed, participation from outside the Boardis welcomed and encouraged. It is a great way to get toknow some of the Board members and to get an insideview of how the Injection Molding Division functions.There are fourteen (14) active committees within theDivision (listed below). If you are interested in gettinginvolved and serving on one or more of these committees,please contact our Chair, Lih-Shen (Tom) Turng, [email protected].

• Technical Committee• ANTEC Technical Program Committee• Communications Committee• Newsletter Committee• Website Committee• Division History Committee• Membership Committee• Annual Reception Committee• Education Committee• Student Activities Committee• Nominations Committee• Awards and Recognition Committee• Fellow and Honored Service Member Committee• ‘Engineer of the Year’ Award CommitteeEach committee chair reports to the Board at each

Board meeting. The last meeting was held on Friday,February 6, 2009, at the headquarters of Tupperware inOrlando, Florida. Some of the highlights of several ofthe committee reports are included below.

Student Activities Committee

The Injection Molding Division, through the SPEFoundation, sponsors one scholarship award annually of$3,000 to a graduate or undergraduate student. Applicantsmust have experience in the injection molding industryor relevant coursework. The Injection Molding Divisionalso sponsors an ANTEC Best Student Paper cash awardeach year. In addition to the best paper award, theDivision supports students by contributing to the SPEstudent author travel fund, which is used to reimbursestudent travel expenses for student authors presentingat ANTEC.

Website Committee

Many exciting things are planned for the InjectionMolding Division website. The IMD owns thewww.injectionmolding.com URL. One of the primary goalsof the committee is to create a website that goes wellbeyond simply disseminating information and provides ameans to more fully engage our membership. Look fornews about exciting website developments in the monthsto come.

Division History Committee

Did you ever wonder who some of the leaders ofthe Division were from years past? Many fineprofessionals have served over the years. The DivisionHistory Committee has been very busy compiling thissignificant history, including past Board Members, BestPaper Awards, Officers, etc. If you have some interestinghistory you’d like to share about the Division, or thepeople who were a part of it, please contact committeechair Larry Schmidt at [email protected].

Nominations Committee

Each year, the Nominations Committee recommendsa slate of candidates for election or re-election to serveon the Board. These candidates are presented to theBoard during the winter meeting. Once approved, theNominations Committee conducts an election to solicitvotes from all members of the Division. Look for theemail notifying you that it is time to vote once again forIMD Board Members. Newly elected and re-electedBoard Members will be installed during the ANTEC IMDBoard Meeting. If you are interested in serving on theBoard, please contact Don Allen, [email protected], theChair of the Nominations Committee.

Membership Committee

The IMD is constantly driven to deliver value to ourmembers. As times change, we recognize that ourmembers’s needs change as well. In order to betterunderstand how the IMD can deliver increased value toyou, our members, we will be conducting a survey in thecoming months. Please watch your email and participatein this survey. We need your valuable input. If you haveany ideas, or would like to get more involved, pleasecontact the membership committee chair, Nick Fountas,at [email protected].

Committee Reports


The Effects of Radiused Corners on Melt Flow Imbalances

Patrick J. Harris and Patrick T. MillerPenn State Erie, The Behrend College

Abstract

A special case of mold filling shear inducedimbalances in a geometrically balanced runner system isstudied in a four-flow mold. The case compares andcontrasts the detectable differences, theoreticallyattributed to corner effects, seen in the two outermostflow channels. A ninety degree corner and a full radiuscorner are investigated through use of interchangeablemold inserts which create both conditions.

Introduction

Previous studies have reasonably concluded that thereexists melt flow imbalances within a runner system dueto shear heating. This paper is not intended to prove orsustain such reasoning; however, the theory behind shearinduced imbalances is critical. Information from the meltflow studies will support the reasoning and hypothesis ofimbalances which may develop at a sharp ninety degreecorner in a runner system.

During filling, the two outermost runner channels fillfirst due to shear along the wall of the runners in themold. While there is an imbalance between the innerand outer cavities, there exists also an “imbalance withinthe imbalance” between the outer two cavities. [1] Thehypothesis is that shear heating around a ninety degreecorner will have an effect on shear between the twoouter cavities.

Background and Theory

During injection, molten plastic is injected from thebarrel into the sprue. The sprue will eventually branchinto a dividing runner system. After flowing through therunner, molten melt is typically passed through the gateand finally filling the hollow cavity to create an injectionmolded part. Plastic flows in a layered fashion and istypically described as a “laminar” flow. The traditionallaminar velocity is known to be parabolic howeverpolymer flow has more of a flat faced profile. In thisinjection profile there are many layers of flow laminatesthat will experience different shear rates due to shearthinning (Figure 1A).

The velocity across the channel will increase greatlyfrom zero at the wall to its maximum flow at the centerof the channel (Figure 1B). In the center of the channelthe velocity will be the greatest resulting in fountain flow.

IMD Best Student Paper Finalist

The terminology of fountain flow originates from theplastic material which is being pushed forward from thecenter of the channel in a fountain like manner. Duringfilling the melt is forced through the mold at extremelyhigh pressures and filling velocities. As the plastic passesthrough the channel the polymer will experience additionalfrictional heating that allows the polymer chains toelongate. The polymer molecules which are beingsheared will align in direction of flow ultimately orientingthe polymer chains. By elongating the polymer chains itallows the melt to flow faster because of lessentanglement between polymer chains. Shear heatingfrom friction will reduce the viscosity of the melt allowingit to flow easier. By the viscosity being lowered in theouter laminates of the channel, the flow rate will increasecausing a filling imbalance in the seemingly geometricallybalanced cavities. The high sheared material will followalong the outer edge of the channel following the moldwall to the cavity in the mold (Figure 2A). The primaryrunner splits into branching runner channels which flowinto the four cavities. The sheared material will split inhalf following the outer channel walls. After the shearedmaterial is split, the less viscous melt travels in a halfmoon shape (Figure 2B) to the cavity, creating fillingimbalances. This cavity imbalance will result in thematerial having different material properties because ofchanging temperature, viscosity, and flow rates into eachcavity. A geometrically balanced four cavity mold willhave sheared material along the outer edges of the runnersystem (Figure 3A). This material will flow faster due toa decreasing viscosity, resulting in the filling of the outertwo cavities first. This phenomenon is typically referredto as shear induced imbalances in a geometricallybalanced runner system. The more obvious imbalanceexists between the outer and inner cavities. However,previous studies have shown an imbalance between theouter cavities.

Experimental Procedure

An injection mold was created previously for specifictesting similar to this experiment. The mold was designedto exclude such geometry as a gate and a part, givingthe focus to the runner alone. The mold consists of asprue and a geometrically balanced runner system whichconsists of four total melt streams. In addition to themold, two sets of interchangeable mold inserts were



produced. These inserts allowed for testing imbalancesbetween a radiused corner and a sharp ninety degreecorner. Also, a piece of equipment was built in order tocollect each of the four melt streams as the plasticsheared through the mold. This equipment basicallyhoused equally weighted aluminum foil pockets forcollection of the melted plastic. Dimensions for the runnergeometry were as follows:

DiametersSprue: 5.56 mm diameter + taperRunners: 6.35 mm diameter

In the slow fill rate (Figures 5A and 5B), an unpre-dictable behavior occurred in the filling of the runnersystem. With a slower fill rate, cavities #2 and #3 heldroughly 3 to 4% more plastic by weight than that ofcavities #1 and #4. This was completely opposite fromthe fast fill rate. Once again, however, there was nodetectable difference between the ninety degree runnerinsert and the full radius runner insert.

Discussion of Results

Flow Length w/ 90° InsertsSprue: 146 mmSprue to first split: 228.6 mmFirst split to second split: 50.8 mmSecond split to exit: 63.5 mmTotal flow length: 488.9 mm

Flow Length w/ Full Radius InsertsSprue: 146 mmSprue to first split: 198.6 mmFirst split to second split: 50.8 mmSecond split to exit: 63.5 mmTotal flow length: 458.9 mm

High density polyethylene (HDPE) was used to runthe molding process. HDPE was injected at two injectionspeeds which emptied the entire large shot. The totalshot weight was approximately 280 grams. This includedfour flow streams, the sprue, and the runner volume(Figure 3A and 3B). The two opposite extreme injectionspeeds resulted in two fill times: 2 seconds and 35seconds. Melt temperature and mold temperature werenot varied during the entire procedure. Water flowingthrough the mold was kept at an even temperature of 32°C. Ten melt shots from each of the two fill rates were

retained per style of runner corner. This resulted in atotal of forty shots. All molding was done on a 200T VanDorn molding machine. All four samples (four flow mold)from each of the forty shots were weighed on a scale.The equally weighted aluminum foil was retained withinthe measurements. Lastly, a stopwatch was used todetermine the time of injection.

Results

The predicted shear induced imbalances were veryapparent when comparing the inner runner channelsverses the outer runner channels.

The four flow melt streams are labeled #1 to #4, with#1 being located closest to the operator. In the fast fillrate (Figures 4A and 4B) cavities #1 and #4, had roughly8% more material by weight than cavities #2 and #3.This was seen in both the full radius runner and the ninetydegree runner system. At the fast fill rate, there was nodetectable difference shown with the change in cornerinserts.

First, the discussion of the full radius insert versesthe sharp ninety degree corner: In both cases of a fastand slow fill rates, there was no detectable differencesfound from a radiused corner verses a sharper ninetydegree corner. Possible reasons for this may be attributedto the closely related total distances of the two flowlengths. As shown above, the total difference betweenthe two flow lengths vary by a mere 30 mm. With such aminute variation, the shearing effect may not besignificant enough for detectable difference between thetwo sets of inserts. Also, material being sheared arounda sharp corner is not necessarily the main culprit forshear induced imbalances. The cross section of the actualrunner plays a larger role in how the laminates will react.Looking directly at the cross-section, laminates will flowunchanging through the runner length regardless of acorner existence or a radiused corner existence. Theselaminates will flow accordingly, unless altered by strategicmelt rotation technology.

Secondly, the results outline a specific behavior notcommon, that is, the inversion of flow channels #1 and#4 with flow channels #2 and #3. This behavior may beattributed to the rate of heat transfer through the crosssection of the runner. In the case of a fast fill rate, thetime for the mold to cool the runner channel issignificantly less compared to a slow fill rate. With anextremely slow fill rate, the amount of heat transfer intothe mold overcomes the amount of heat transfer fromshearing. Basically, the hottest laminates in the slow fillrate is found towards the center of the profile ratherthan typically being found at the outside laminates.


Summary and Conclusion

The degree of assistance in which a radiused runnersystem like that used in this project is not significantenough to minimize shear induced imbalances. Theradiused runner system did not provide any balance tothe shear induced imbalance. This study proved the caseof shear induced imbalances between channels #1 and#4 versus the runner channels #2 and #3. Also in aprevious study, [1] an imbalance within the imbalance asdescribed above was detected. However, this particularimbalance could not be reproduced during the course ofthis study. On the onset of this project, the main goalwas to determine what causes the “imbalance within theimbalance.” Further study must be done outside of lookingat a radiused runner verses a sharp ninety degree runnersystem.

This project also secondly concludes the effects ofan extremely slow fill rate on a runner channel. The heattransfer through the cross section into the mold overcomesthe heat due to shearing from the mold.

Future Work

The second half of the experime.nt will be studiedusing a simulation program called HyperXtrude. Theprogram may or may not pick up the detectable

differences of the plastic shear along the mold wall andcorner in the runner system. Following the simulation,the results will be compared with actual lab testing results.The outcome of the study may offer insight into moldingproblems in geometrically balanced runner systems.

Acknowledgments

The authors of this paper would like to thankProfessors Martin Dropik and John Beaumont as wellas Rick Coon and Lucy Lenhardt of Penn State Erie fortheir support in the work of this project.

References

1. Dropik, Martin. Isolation of True Runner SystemBehavior in Simulation Tools for Injection Molding, SPEANTEC, 2006.

2. Beaumont, J., Young, J., Jaworski, M. MoldFilling Imbalances in Geometrically Balanced RunnerSystems, SPE ANTEC, 1998.

3. Boell, Kevin and Beaumont, John and Young,Brian. Artificially Balancing Geometrically BalancedRunner Systems, SPE ANTEC, 2003.

McKee, Raymond and Hoover, Joshua. The Effectof Sharp Corners and Runner Length on Melt FlowImbalances, SPE ANTEC, 2006

Figure 1A: Shear rate profile through the cross section of therunner system using a centerline.

Figure 1B: Velocity profile through the cross section of therunner system using a centerline.

Figure 2A: High sheared materialthrough the runner cross-section

before splitting into two branches.

Figure 2B: High sheared materialthrough the runner cross-sectionafter splitting into two branches.

Figure 2C: Heat transfer allowsouter perimeter to cool rather

than shear along the mold walls.



Figure 3A: Path of high sheared material; in red. Figure 3B: Runner systems: sharp corner vs. radiused corner.

Figure 5A: Full radius runner with a slow fill rate. Figure 5B: Ninety-degree runner with a slow fill rate.

Figure 4A: Full radius runner with a fast fill rate. Figure 4B: Ninety-degree runner with a fast fill rate.



Nisseiby Mal V. Murthy, Ecogenus Group LLC

Machinery Corner

A Brief History

In 1946, after having returned from Manchuria,Katashi Aoki (1913–1988), founder and first chairmanof Nissei, came upon a piece of broken airplanewindshield in Tokyo. That piece of acrylic resin inspiredAoki to the possibilities of plastics: “If melted with heatand poured into molds, things of any desired shape canbe created.” Then and there he decided to commithimself to realizing these possibilities. The followingyear, 1947, found him inaugurating his molding businessin a humble henhouse-turned-workshop in Sakaki, hishometown. Aoki was completely absorbed in moldingprocesses and soon succeeded in developing a moldingmachine for in-house use. His company embarked onfull-scale production and sales of molding machines in1957. Successive launches of innovative injectionmolding machines in subsequent years allowed thecompany to rise to the pinnacles of its market by 1969,a position it maintains to this day. Aoki’s spirit of inventioncontinues to inspire our company to new achievements.

Our founder referred to his inventive endeavors as“invention based on self-denial,” and he used hisdedication to spearhead molding machine develop-ment. Behind his breakthrough inventions were hisfirm beliefs: “Think about how to simplify and how toenhance efficiency” and “In order to get the best of thepresent, you must not be content with present things.Only by denying the present can it become possible.”Even today, all of us at Nissei tackle the developmentof injection molding machines, living up to our founder’sspirit: “Let’s put ourselves into our customer’s shoesand create machines that will profit them.”

In 1957, Aoki’s company was re-incorporated asNissei Plastic Industrial Co., Ltd. In 1965, Nissei begun

opening offices overseas, including Plastamation in theUSA. In 1960, model AU-1 machines were sent to theUSA as the company’s first-ever export. In 1977,Plastamation was re-named Nissei America, Inc. withcorporate offices located in Burbank, California. Sincethen the Corporate Headquarters of Nissei America,Inc. has been re-located to Anaheim, California. Today,Nissei Plastics Industrial Co., Ltd. offers a wide rangeof injection molding machines from 3 tons to 1,400 tonsfor various applications in the USA, with a completeline of open loop, closed loop process controllers. Thesemachines are used for micro molding, liquid siliconerubber (LSR) molding, and metal injection molding(MIM). Nissei also offers general purpose injectionmolding machines which are all electric (NEX model),hybrid machines (PNX & FNX), vertical (insertmolding) machines, disc molding machines, two-colormolding machines, and others. For a full line-up, pleasevisit our web site at www.nisseiamerica.com

Competition From Imports

With the country in a recession, as well as the globalslowdown, of course molders will look to save moneyat any cost and will look into purchasing these cheapermachines. However, companies quickly discover thatsome of these machines have very limited functions ontheir controllers. We believe the issue is not the price ofthe machines, but rather the large supply of availableinjection molding machines on the market due tocompany closures.

Major Strengths

Nissei has a full range of machinery that will fit anycustomer’s needs. We have eight service centers to


Machinery Corner

provide timely service and parts to our customers inany part of the US. We provide the highest level ofservice at the lowest cost so that our customers canbenefit and profit from these savings. Nissei has a largeinventory of injection molding machines for fast deliverywithin the US. With our new hybrid machine (the X-Pump system), the molder can benefit from the use ofdirect clamping versus toggles/pins and almost the sameenergy savings as all electric models.

Vision for the Next One to Three Years

The shrinking market will place many manufacturingcompanies in a very difficult situation. I hope our newadministration will guide us in the right direction so thatmore domestic business will provide jobs to localpeople. If we all can make it to June of this year, weexpect to see a small upswing in sales.

Professional background of Mr. Takanori Taresawa

Mr. Takanori Taresawa graduated from theUniversity of Japan with a degree in MechanicalEngineering in 1970. He worked as a design engineerfor several years in Japan until he was assigned as theSingapore office sales manager in 1980. After returningto Japan from this assignment, he continued to work insales in progressively responsible positions until hebecame President of Nissei America, Inc. in 2007.

Contact Information

Takanori TaresawaPresident of Nissei America, Inc.1480 N Hancock St. Anaheim, CA 92807Phone: 714-693-3000 Fax: 714-693-7777Email: [email protected]: www.nisseiamerica.com


MARCH 2009

SPE Polymer Nanocomposites ConferenceMarch 2-4; Bethlehem, Pennsylvania USA

SPE Thermoset ConferenceMarch 4-5; New Orleans, Louisiana USA

The Failure Analysis & Prevention SIG’sVirtual Conference

March 5-6; On-line via SPE E-Learning

SPE 30th Industrial ThermoformingSymposium & Workshop

March 8-13; Dallas, Texas USA

6th European Additives & Colors ConferenceMarch 11-12; Antwerp, Belgium

Nanocomposites 2009March 18-19; Brussels, Belgium

Plast ‘09March 24-28; Milan, Italy

Plastics in Cables 2009March 31-April 1; Phoenix, Arizona USA

APRIL 2009

Plastics in Medical Devices 2009April 21-22; Brussels, Belgium

JUNE 2009

2nd Annual Asian Plastic Electronics Conf.June 9-11; Taipei, Taiwan

ANTEC@NPE 2009June 22-24; Chicago, Illinois USA

Polymers and the Environment:Emerging Technologies and Science

June 16-19; Chicago, Illinois USA

http://www.4spe.org/conferences-and-events and other sources

SEPTEMBER 2009

SPE TPE TopCon®September 14-16; Akron, Ohio USA

FOAMS® 2009September 14-17; Iselin, New Jersey USA

Automotive Composites Conference(ACCE) 2009

September 15-17; Troy, Michigan USA

9th China Plastics ConferenceSeptember 17-19; Taizhou, China

SPE Thermoforming Conference®September 19-22; Milwaukee, Wisconsin USA

SPE EUROTEC™ ConferencePostponed to Autumn 2011

OCTOBER 2009

Automotive TPO Conference 2009October 4-7; Sterling Heights, Michigan USA

Vinyltec® 2009October 5-7; Indianapolis, Indiana USA

CAD RETEC®October 19-20; Savannah, Georgia USA

5th Global Plastic Electronics ConferenceOctober 26-29; Dresden, Germany

DECEMBER 2009

Bioplastics 2009December 8-9; Hamburg, Germany

SPE & Plastics Industry Event Calendar


WEBINARS

An SPE e-Live® Webinar is a simple and easy way to view a live presentation from the comfort of your home. Youcan also participate in an SPE webinar along with your colleagues in an office or conference room. All you need isa direct or dial-up Internet connection and a separate phone line to access the teleconference portion of thepresentation. There will be a touchtone polling and question and answer period at the conclusion of the event.Presentations are recorded by the Society of Plastics Engineers for future distribution.Webinars are usually onehour in length (typically 11am to 12pm EST). The cost is $99 ($150 for non-members).

http://www.4spe.org/conferences-and-events/webinars

The Failure Analysis & Prevention SIG’sVirtual Conference

March 5-6, 2009

Fast-Scan DSCMarch 11, 2009

Closed Loop Control in Laser Weldingof Plastic Components

March 25, 2009

Resin Management StrategiesApril 1, 2009

The Formulation of Long-FiberThermoplastic Polypropylene

April 2, 2009

DMA: An Introduction and OverviewApril 15, 2009

Adhesion Promotion Using Flame-PlasmaSurface Treatment: A Viable & GreenAlternative to Conventional Methods

April 22, 2009

Nanostrength Block Copolymers for EpoxyToughening: ANTEC 2009 Preview

April 23, 2009

Enzymatic Biofuel CellsApril 29, 2009

Polymer Nanocomposites ContainingCarbon Nanotubes

April 30, 2009

Troubleshooting for Plastics & PolymersMay 20, 2009

Understanding Bioplastics and PropertyModification with Additives

May 21, 2009

POSS® Nanostructured™ Chemicals forPeak Performance Materials

June 3, 2009

Metallization Technology ofPolymer Products

June 4, 2009

Creep Rupture and Stress Relaxation inPlastic Product Design and Failure Analysis

June 11, 2009

Understanding the Consequence of Ductile-to-Brittle Transitions in a Plastic Failure Analysis

July 8, 2009

SPE & Plastics Industry Event Calendar


BALLOT 2009It is time for the Injection Molding Division membership to elect members to open seats on the Division’s

Board of Directors. Each individual elected to the Board serves a 3-year term. This year we are again offeringonline voting. In the next month, you will receive an electronic ballot from SPE. You can quickly and easily accessthe ballot by clicking on the given link and submitting your vote for the nominees. Note, only one vote per SPEMember will be counted. Below are the nominees for Ballot 2009.

Patrick J. GortonPat has nearly thirty years of experience spanning manufacturing and technical positions in

plastics, resins, and fibers. He has expertise in managing start-up manufacturing facilities forplastics molding and fiber manufacturing, as well as executing new product manufacturinglaunches in both consumer and medical products. His technical knowledge ranges from classicalinjection molding to high temperature injection, compression, and ceramic processes. Businessresponsibilities have included the management of numerous molding facilities ranging from 20to 50 medium to large-tonnage machines and employing over 250 employees. Pat is currentlyemployed by Energizer Personal Care, a wholly owned subsidiary of Energizer Holdings, astheir Director of Technical Services–External Manufacturing. He holds a BS and an MS degreein Chemical Engineering from Montana State University.

Susan E. MontgomerySusan E. Montgomery has been the President of North American operations at PRIAMUS

System Technologies, LLC since 2002. She has 14 years of experience in injection molding,nine of them in plastics process instrumentation and control. She earned her Bachelor of Sciencein Chemical Engineering from Cleveland State University and completed graduate studies inSurface Chemistry at SUNY–Buffalo. She is a member of SPE and a frequent technical speakerfor regional SPE meetings and seminars. Susan is also a Six Sigma Green Belt, which shereceived during her employment with GE Plastics. In June of 2007, Ohio Governor TedStrickland appointed Susan to be a member of the Ohio Commodores, an organization thathonors Ohio managers involved in international business.

Hoa PhamHoa Pham is a Technical Consultant specializing in program management, product

commercialization, and material development. She has over fifteen years of experience in thechemicals and plastics industry, with much of that time spent in applications relating to injectionmolding. Hoa has served the Injection Molding Division in various capacities. As IMD Chair(2007–2008), she executed the funding of the IMD scholarship, kept the IMD 2007 newsletterssteady through a change in editor and publisher, and contributed to the revision of the IMDBylaws. As Chair-Elect (2006–2007), she assembled and organized the IMD activities toachieve the SPE 2007 Pinnacle Gold Level Award for the Division. For ANTEC 2006, Hoawas the IMD Technical Program Chair. In addition to being a reviewer of technical papers,she organized the technical program and introduced the panel forum that featured a keynotespeaker and a business panel discussion. Previously, Hoa was Chair of the Publications

Ballot 2009


Committee which provided oversight to the publication of SPE peer-reviewed journals, andChair of the Technical Volumes Committee which provided an additional revenue stream tothe Society through manuscript reviews and sponsorship of published volumes. Hoa alsocontributed to the SPE governance through her service on the Executive Committee as VicePresident (2002–2005) and Secretary (2004–2005).

Adam KramschusterAdam Kramschuster is an Assistant Professor at the Engineering and Technology

Department of the University of Wisconsin–Stout. While completing his Ph.D. in MechanicalEngineering at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, he served as the Society of PlasticsEngineers (SPE) Student Chapter President for more than four years. He dedicated himself todeveloping relationships with industrial partners through SPE, which has resulted in the donationof over $25,000 of equipment and plastic resin for research purposes. Under Adam’s leadership,the SPE Student Chapter at the University of Wisconsin–Madison won the SPE STRETCH(STudent Reaching Excellence Through CHapters) award in 2005, and the Outstanding StudentChapter award in 2007 and 2008. Adam has presented a number of papers at the SPEANTEC and was an invited speaker at an SPE Milwaukee Section technical program. Hewas the recipient of the Chester E. and Flora Jane LeRoy Fellowship in 2005 and the VilasTravel Fellowship in 2007. Adam has served as a scientific journal reviewer for various journals,including the SPE journal of Polymer Engineering and Science.

Erik FoltzErik Foltz is a Project Engineer for The Madison Group. Erik earned his Bachelor of

Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 2006. Amember of SPE since 2007, his interests include plastic component design as well as utilizationof finite element analysis for the optimization of polymer processing and product development.While working toward his M.S., Foltz acted as the Secretary of the SPE student chapter atUW–Madison, which was voted outstanding student chapter in 2008 by Milwaukee SPE. Asan undergraduate, Erik was the recipient of the 2005 Bob Mehn Scholarship from MilwaukeeSPE and an active member of the Polymer Engineering Center at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

Raymond McKeeRay is a graduate of Penn State Erie from the Plastics Engineering Technology program.

While at Penn State, Ray presented research at ANTEC. Ray has been working for RexamPlastic Packaging for the past three years and has worked in two different plants with Rexam.As the Department Supervisor of the Sacmi Compression Molding Department and the LeanCoordinator within the Erie facility, he oversees 23 employees. Ray’s professional interestsinclude advancing Compression Molding technology and doing more strategic developmentand planning in the future. He has worked on 5s initiatives, Kiazen events, and Visual Workplacedevelopment, and has been a member of SPE since 2005.

Ballot 2009


Councilor’s Reportby Jack Dispenza

It was my pleasure to represent the InjectionMolding Division at SPE. This is a summary of the 2008SPE governance meetings, recent initiatives, andcommunications with SPE Headquarters.

COMMITTEE MEETING NOTES

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2008

Finance Committee: Barbara Arnold–FeretSPE is dealing with the current cyclical downturns

in industry which seem to happen every seven to tenyears. However, the recent ‘Wall Street’ effect was notanticipated. The latest proposed budget is essential tosupporting new business models, products, and a strongfocus on member recruitment and value.

Sections Committee: Helen BassoThe Connecticut Section hosted the meeting and

was represented by Dick Nunn. Brian Grady presentedideas on merging Sections with the help of TriciaMcKnight. Structurally, two or more sections can decideto merge on their own; SPE cannot force such a merge.The Council can dissolve a section if there is not activityor representation or if there are vacancies. To make asection provisional, the following requirements must bemet: no Board of Directors, has not held meetings forone year, does not file a financial report or fails to respondto the Council. Members of a failed section can joinother active sections. The practice for merging sectionsincludes notification to Headquarters that they wish tomerge and adding a proposal in the agenda of theSections Committee and Council. The SectionCommittee then votes on the recommendation and, ifapproved, it goes to the Executive Council. Oncepassed, all effected members are notified.

Rebate Plans / Discussion: Tricia McKnightTricia provided 2009 rebate qualifications. Financial

reports were due by November 15, 2008. On the SPEwebsite, members can go to the SPE Leadership andResources page and pull down the Section Rebates pageto obtain eligibility requirements and the processcalendar. The criteria include communications frequencywith membership and technical programming. Templates

are provided for goals and planning purposes. Acompliance chart is available for Sections and Divisionsto see if they have met all of the requirements.

Divisions Committee: Dale GroveDuring the Divisions meeting, growth strategies were

discussed with emphasis on conferences and tutorials;education helps membership. The retainment ideasexchanged included recognition pages in newslettersshowing headlines, accomplishments, and memberservice. Another tactic includes contacting suspendedmembers to learn why we may have lost them and if wecan address their concerns. There is an excellentMembership User’s Guide that was sent to all membersand is available on the website. Toby Gabbauer,Membership Committee, is responsible for this tool.Another idea is for Divisions to push all newslettercontent into a central source in SPE so all Divisions canlink to one another’s information. SPE headquarters,some Sections, and some Divisions are working oncorporate outreach programs in an effort to buildmembership. The topic of corporate membership cameup during the discussion. We should expect to hear moreabout this as members present ideas on criteria forcorporate membership. A report from the BuildingConstruction Special Interest Group (SIG) wasprovided to Divisions. There is an excellent Boardrepresenting 415 members in this SIG. Papers onbuilding and construction topics have been received forthis year’s ANTEC.

Council-of-the-Whole Discussions: B. StrongBill O’Connell provided rebate criteria information

to the group. Last year, we were able to budget at100%. The algorithm for rebates remains the same;however, revenue may only allow for one-third of therebate. Budget increases, IT, web products, technicalpublications, NPE activities, and marketing to youngprofessionals have all contributed to the deficit. SPE isconsidering web tools such as Facebook, YouTube,Plaxo, Linked-In, and others to link up with the new,younger members of our industry. Publishing income isalmost three times cost. All three journals with Wileyare profitable and the publishing arm of SPE is the largest

Counsilor’s Report



cash producer. Following budget discussions, the groupfocused on the student activities committee work andassociated operating plan. Russel Broome identifiedcommittee members and explained goals and pastdeliverables such as receptions, award luncheons,transportation assistance, planned tours, and assistancewith the publication of resumes. SPE may provide webcams at plastics events and sessions for such topics asresume creation. One idea is to place a page in ournewsletters or SPE website that describes companieslooking for plastic professionals. Corporate sponsorsfor student awards are described in the Student ActivitiesCommittee report. Bill O’Connell provided informationon remote participation and electronic voting. TriciaMcKnight furnished information on using online meetingplatforms to facilitate remote collaboration, includingtechnical meetings, chair reports, committee reviews,open discussions, Council collaborations, and evenelections. All are very excited about collaboration toolsfor the membership.

COUNCIL MEETING NOTES

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2008

Lance Neward presented the proposed changes in by-laws to accommodate the following:

• Electronic participation• Election date of officers• Governance downsizing• Policies for establishment of new SIGs and

Student Chapters• Dealing with embargoes and sanctions• Additional information for the Code and Ethics

J. Williams presented issues requiring a vote.• Article 5 – Electronic participation definition,

quorum, and voting numbers• Article 6 – Governance structure, electronic

participation in Council• Article 14.7 – Electronic participation in

Committee meetings• Policy 15 - Vice Presidential Transition• Policy 20 – Code of Ethics• Policy 21 – Embargoes and Sanctions• Elimination of Prior Past President from the

Executive Committee

Election results:• Ken Braney was elected President Elect• Russell Broome was elected Senior Vice

President• Brent Strong was elected Vice President• Helen Basso was elected President Council of

the Whole

Jim Griffing presented the Governance Committee’srecommendations for reducing the size of the ExecutiveCommittee to make the EC more agile and to reducegovernance costs and expenses.

The Divisions and Sections discussions centered onbuilding SPE membership.

Communications Committee: R. KippRoger talked about the success of the Handbook

and recent additions to our website. There is also anew award called the Communications Award.

Finance Committee: B. Arnold-FeretNet income shows Topcons in the positive, Journals

doing very well. Plastics Engineering is SPE’s majorexpense as we transition to Wiley services. SusanOderwald and staff have quickly reduced expenses toface industry challenges.

Budget: Barbara Arnold-FeretWe will continue to get the dashboard in the

leadership enews. The budget continues to focus ondeeper IT/website/education for member value. SomeDivisions and Sections are doing well, others are in needof assistance. Special donations can be provided to SPEof course. All projections indicate that it will take up to2012 to reinstate rebates. There are a number of costreductions initiated by the Council such as the eliminationof the January meeting. After long discussions onhardships and budget issues, the Council did approvethe budget. There were nays which amounted toapproximately six against and 72 in favor.

Operating Plan: Paul AndersenActivity Plan and Council Committee goals

discussed during Council included:



• Plan objectives are prioritized, well defined, andtime bound.

• Improvements are planned for generation X andY benefits with better delivery plans, globalrecruitment, and retention processes.

o Trade partnerships, licensing, ande-media enhancements will add tomember value.

o Web communities, virtual conferences,and virtual trade shows are planned asupcoming venues.

SPE Virtual Conferencing: Leslie KyleThere are a number of reasons why we want the

capability of virtual trade shows to assist our membersnear and far. One such venue is the ‘Failure Is An Option’presentation given by Failure and Prevention SIG.Proposals include complimentary registration for eachlive presenter and complimentary registration at ANTEC.Approximately 15 webinars have been given on thistopic and others (repeated). The fee structure formember and non-member attendees is still in debate.The proposal for sponsorship is: Bronze $1.5K, Silver$3.5K, Gold $5K. We are seeking 17 sponsors ofvarious levels for each virtual trade show. The goal is165 paid attendees for each event. Events represent$100K gross with $50K in expense. The supplieroffering the virtual trade show is www.inxpo.com.Elizabeth Reagan is our Online Program Developer. AnSPE Virtual Conference is scheduled for March 5-6,2009, with the trade show staying open for 30 days.

The SPE Foundation: Gail BristolGrants:• $4,200 for the Plastic Van• $57,875 for Thermoforming Equipment Grants• Plastics Pioneers Plasti Van: Eight grants the 1st

year, two each in the four areas• Scholarships: $138,500, 33 students in 25

schools, $1K to $7.5K a year• Applications for 2009 can be found at

www.4spe.org_spe_foundation• Going forward the SPE Foundation is merging

back into SPE itself (merger, by-laws, boardstructure in the works) such that there will beonly one Board.

Awards and Recognition, New for 2009:• SPE Celebrates luncheon, Sunday between

Council meetings• Hall of Fame Banquet, Monday evening• New Award – Environmental Responsibility

Award (reduction of energy, water, andchemical consumption; sustainability)

Parting words:SPE is in much better shape than the economy with

the doors staying open and the lights on. Today itappears that Divisions will keep their rebates in reserveso if asked to assist a Section, for example, the individualDivisions will manage how funds may be disbursed.There were a number of proposals to give back rebatefunds to SPE Headquarters to establish and manage afund to help those in need.

Comments from our Executive Director, SusanOderwald:

To assist SPE with accounting, the auditors will arrivethe first week of February. To reduce overhead to anabsolute minimum, SPE placed its headquarters buildingon the market. An offer was received and a closing maytake place in May. SPE staff plan to lease back muchof the first floor at a very reasonable rate. Outsourcingcontinues for much of the publishing to reduce costs.Our experience with Wiley has been excellent. Staffcount in January was 24 and it is expected to beapproximately 16 by May. The focus right now is onour opportunity at the National Plastics Expo (Chicago)where our Society will hold the 2009 ANTEC.

If there are any questions relative to the afore-mentioned notes, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Jack Dispenza, Councilor,SPE Injection Molding Division

c/o Design Results, LLC2 Carriage Hill, Long Valley, NJ 07853(908) 797-2662

LGS Innovations / Bell LabsComposite Solutions15 Vreeland Ave, Florham Park, NJ 07932(973) 437-9769 office


IMD Board of Director’s Meeting - February 6, 2009 - Orlando, Florida

Board of Director Meeting Minutes

Chairman: Tom TurngChair-Elect: Dave KarpinskiCouncilor: Jack DispenzaTechnical Dir: Peter GrelleTreasurer: Jim Wenskus / Dave KarpinskiSecretary: Walter Smith

Chairman: Tom TurngStarted meeting at 8:30 AM, introduced Jose Timmermanof Tupperware.

Opening Remarks: Mr. Jose TimmermanTalked about the present business climate and earningsof Tupperware, along with emerging markets around theworld. Mr. Timmerman also talked about new productsbeing developed by Tupperware in areas of injectionmolding and transfer molding.

Secretary: Walter Smith• Review minutes of October 20, 2008, meeting.

Motion to accept October 20th meeting minuteswas made by Dave Karpinski and seconded byPeter Grelle. Motion passed by the Board.

• Board roster was circulated for updates andattendance.

Financial Report: Jim Wenskus / Dave KarpinskiAlthough financially sound and vibrant as ever, theIMD is taking a number of cost-saving measures inresponse to SPE’s reduction of the division mem-bership rebate by two-thirds. Normally, the rebateprovides the IMD with two-thirds of its income. Alively discussion was held during the IMD’s winterBoard of Directors meeting to determine where theIMD could streamline its efforts to best use the dollarsit has. A first attempt at adjusting the budget wasmade and will be refined at the June board meetingat ANTEC. Some items, such at speaker andmoderator plaques, will be replaced by speaker andmoderator certificates. Other normal ANTEC-relatedexpenses will be eliminated this year as they cannotbe accommodated owing to the co-location with theNPE in Chicago. Furthermore, some education-related items, such as the support of student authors,student paper awards, and student travel will not benecessary this year due to the unusual timing ofANTEC and lack of student papers and authors (i.e.,late June is summer break for most students). Inaddition, our annual contribution to the SPEscholarship fund (which remains ahead of the pledgedpayment schedule, thanks to our past aggressive andadvanced contributions) will be deferred so that wecan direct our resources to achieve our stated goalsand missions in this challenging time.


BOD Minutes - Cont -

SPE ANTEC 2009 Presentation: Leslie KyleANTEC 2009 – Three days of presentations.• IMD had the most paper submissions.• Fifty people have registered for ANTEC 2009

as of 2/6/09; this is typical since the technicalprogram has not yet been announced.

• Reduced advanced registration fee forANTEC 2009 from $685 to $550.

• Interactive sessions are scheduled for Tuesdayafternoon (1:30–5:00 PM).

• Action Item: Leslie Kyle to look into meetingroom for Sunday for IMD BOD meetingbefore ANTEC 2009 (25 people to attend).

• Action Item: Jack Dispenza and Leslie Kyleto work on ANTEC IMD business meeting/awards presentation meeting room forTuesday at 5:00 PM without reception.

SPE Update: Tricia McKnightSPE feeling current downturn in the economy.• Down to 16 full time employees at SPE.• There is a travel ban at SPE headquarters.• SPE is anticipating a membership decline in

2009.• 21 out of 24 SPE divisions have met rebate

requirements.• Nick Fountas, Lee Filbert, and Adam

Kramschuster to work with Tricia on socialnetworking for the IMD Division.

Councilor Report: Jack DispenzaNotes from SPE Councilor Committee meeting:• Discussed ways for SPE to grow.• Discussed ways to pool all division newsletter

content into one site.• Discussed reducing Executive Committee

members.• Discussed first virtual conference on March

6th. Jack to furnish link to other members.• Jack’s written Councilor’s report will go to

Chris Lacey for newsletter publication.

Chair Elect Report: Pinnacle Award, DaveKarpinski

• Must hold a business meeting once a year.• Must improve SPE headquarter’s database

accuracy.• Must have outreach program feedback that

promotes injection molding.• Must develop and implement one new service.• Must offer a social event or gathering at least

once annually.

Morning Session Wrap-up for Call-in MembersDiscussed morning meeting issues and topics with call-in members.

Technical Director: Peter GrelleTechnical Programs Update:• ANTEC 2009 at NPE: Paper submissions from

industry are up from 2008, while papers fromacademia are down. There were a total of 96papers submitted to the IMD for consideration forANTEC 2009. The APQ, or paper quality index,was up from 2008.

• Milwaukee MiniTec Report: Total income, minusexpenses, was about $1400.

• Alabama TOPCON: Report distributed on 11/15/08 to the IMD Board. May take place in 2010.

• Philadelphia TOPCON: Peter contacted DonHollenbach for possible TOPCON.

European Update: Jan StevensNot much change in the European SPE.

Engineer-of-the Year Committee: Kishor MehtaHoa Pham is the IMD’s 2009 Engineer of the Year.

Communications Committee Report: Lee Filbert /Chris Lacey

IMD Newsletter report:• Need “New Member Profile” columnist (formerly

Larry Cosma).• Deadline is February 10 for Spring IMD newsletter

content, July 10 for Summer IMD newslettercontent, and October 10 for Fall/Winter IMDnewsletter content.

• Sponsor ads and payment are due by the 20th ofthe month (as opposed to the 10th of the monthfor content) prior to newsletter release.

• Went over current sponsors for the IMDNewsletter.

• We have no new sponsors for 2009 at present.Difficult economy is blamed.

• Questioned whether the cost of sponsorship is toblame for the lack of sponsors. Discussed the costsof the ads as well as flexibility of these costs forthe IMD Newsletter. May look at furtherdiscounting ads to encourage more advertisers.

• Action Item: Mal Murthy, Lee Filbert, and ChrisLacey to discuss cost of sponsorship.

Website Committee: Lee FilbertBuilding content for the website to be ready to launchat a later date in a better financial climate.


• Archiving all of the past to present IMD news-letters.

• Looking into injection molding animation for thewebsite.

• Links to various technical injection moldingwebsites.

• Plans to list injection molding terms and resinsused in injection molding.

• Include an “Ask the Expert” section.

Membership Report: Nick Fountas• IMD primary membership was down by 9% in

2007–2008, as compared to the total SPEprimary membership change which was downby 8% during the same time span.

• IMD secondary membership was down by 13%.

Education Committee: Pat Gorton and SusanMontgomery

• Webinars are a good, low cost tool to educate.• E-mail blasts and newsletters are also good

educational tools.• “Ask the Expert” thru the future IMD website.• Recommend promoting careers in plastics at the

high school and college level.

Nominations Committee: Tom Turng (for Don Allen)Election of Officers for 2009–2010:

Chairman: Dave KarpinskiChair-elect: Lee Filbert (nominated for Chair-

elect position by Larry Cosma, seconded byDave Karpinski, voted on and passed by theBoard)

Secretary: Walter SmithCouncilor: Jack DispenzaTreasurer: Jim WenskusTechnical Program Director: Peter GrelleTPC: Brad Johnson 2009, Jan Stevens 2010Names that are coming up for election for a three(3) year term include: Eric Foltz, Pat Gorton,Adam Kramschuster, Raymond McKee, SusanMontgomery, and Hoa Pham.Motion by Larry Cosma to elect above people,seconded by Tom Turng, passed unanimouslyby the Board.Action Item: Hoa Pham to work with DonAllen to send ballots to SPE for election.

Fellows & HSM Committee: Larry SchmidtRobert A. Beard was elected HSM. S.C. Chen wasnominated for Fellows. Larry Schmitt nominated JohnBozzelli for Fellows, seconded by Tom Turng, votedon and passed by the Board.

IMD History: Larry SchmidtLarry seeking information on past officers andmembers. He would appreciate any help or newinformation concerning past IMD Board members.

Awards Committee: Jim PeretJim is going to order speaker certificates for ANTEC2009 in Chicago.

Student Activities: Walter Smith• The IMD still offers a $3000 scholarship that is

awarded annually to a graduate or undergraduatestudent who has experience in the injectionmolding industry, such as courses taken, researchconducted, or jobs held.

• SPE has over 120 student chapters to assiststudents in learning about and networking withinthe plastics industry.

Machinery Committee: Mal MurthyMal is researching OEMs for technical informationand articles.

New Business: All IMD BOD Members• Larry Cosma resigned from the IMD Board after

17 years of valued service.• Jim Peret also resigned from the IMD Board

after 15 years of valued service, effective June30, 2009.

• Tom Turng nominated Larry Cosma for emeritusboard member status, seconded by Peter Grelle;voted on and passed unanimously by the Board.

• Motion by Peter Grelle to nominate Mal Murthyto emeritus status, seconded by Tom Turng, votedon by the Board and passed unanimously.

Old Business: All IMD BOD Members• ANTEC 2009 board meeting location? Action

Item: Tom Turng to finalize location for Chicago.• Adjournment: Motion by Pete Grelle at

adjourn meeting at 3:51 PM, seconded by DaveKarpinski, and unanimously passed by the Board.

BOD Minutes - Cont -


Nazim AliAlbert ArslanianTim BabcockAlex BakoJames W. BegleyDanny R. BerryDan L. BevierSean BlanarDalena BobmanuelDaniel BrettPaul A. BrincatBruce BrinkSteve J. CarverRoger CaterDavid ChamberlainBob CheathamVeronica CuevasBarry J. CurtisSteve DenewethColin DoolittleAlex DragomirescuBruno DurantEstel EgloffFrank EndrenyiMartin EtrichTimothy M. FarrellJames Fiocchi

The IMD welcomes 103 new members from around the world.

The IMD also welcomes 102 companies and organizations that haverecently expanded their membership in the Injection Molding Division.

A. Schulman Co.APLIX Inc.APPArcelik A SArctic Cat Inc.AutodeskB.E.A. S.A.Badger ColorBASF Corp.BASF Corp.Bayer Material ScienceBemis ManufacturingBender Products Inc.BizprofitproBoston Scientific Corp.Box Enclosures / Feng Ping

GroupBrett Industries Inc.California State U. – ChicoCascade Engineering Inc.ChemidexCisco SystemsClassic Industries Inc.Cosmo Corp.Covidien/Surgical DevicesCurrier Plastics Inc.D&W Moulds Belgium

New Members

Gary T. ForsbergFred GalleThomas B. GarmanBruce GilgallonJames S. GingrichKen GlassenJohn G. Goessling Jr.Lloyd GolobayMatt GonzalesServ GoyalJim GreenhawGreg GriffinMichael GriffittsChris GrimesChelsea GrossSteven HanscomMark HartungKori P. HarveyGary F. HershnerMichael C. HillerPaul HorakBryce HaleyNancy HallJames M. HappMichelle HartmannDavid HillgemannAugustus Holt

Dennis IrwinFanny JaubertFlemming JensenAbubakarr KabbaJosh E. KelleyGary J. KiefferRahim LaljeeWilliam S. LarrimerAnthony D. LauzonAndrew D. LeitzZhanjun LiBruce W. LitchfieldDavid MacCallumEdward L. MagieraPhilip J. MaleDaniel MarchGlenn MarxAntonio MesquitaDavid L. MinickMohamed AbbasMohamed-SaeedChris MonroeScott NelsonRyan L. NewmanKevin OldBrandon OlsonGuillermo Orihuela

Nobuhiko OsadaEd PapenhauseJesse PasternakJennifer PhillipsSteve PierikEric PipkinJason M. RashRobert C. RoachJohn R. RobertsRachel E. RockPhilippe RodeMichael RogersDavid M RoseShideh Fathi RoudsariWilliam J. SchreiberJacob A. RowleyQuresh SacheeR. Andrew SchiesswohlNicholas C. SchroeckM. Wayne SchuchartNevin SiqueiraStuart N. SimonRyan A. SimsAmardeep SinghShivshankarSivasubramanianRanvir Kumar Soni

Daniel J. SpenceJoe SpuriaAdam SribniakHobie G. StevensWilliam F. ThorneHakan TuncaJeffrey A ToroneTheresa M. ValenciaTrevor Van EerdeGer VangShannon T. VaughnBob VermillionSteven E. VerrierThorsten VossNathan WalkerDwight Roger WarnezJace WeaverRob B. WeberMarvin WhiteAndrew T. WilliamsMichael J. Wolbert Jr.Alex WoloszNathan G. WrightYingping Zhang

Datakey Electronics Inc.Dayton SuperiorDesign Molding ServicesDickten Masch PlasticsDRS Laurel TechnologiesDubuque PlasticsELM Products Corp.FCIFluoro-Seal InternationalFrench Trade CommissionGAF Corp.GECOMGira Giessiepen GmbHGreene TweedHallman Group Inc.Halosource Inc.Hollister Inc.Husky Injection Molding

Systems Inc.Incoe Corp.Industrial Technology

ServicesIPEX Inc.Jenplas Extrusionblow

MouldingJTI, LLCKaysun Corp.

Kettering U.Labcon N.A.Leggett & PlattLehigh TechnologiesLomanco Inc.Madison Area Tech. CollegeMarkworks EnterprisesMarplex Australia Pty. Ltd.Melet PlasticsMitsui Chemicals AmericasMohawk IndustriesMRC PolymersNCI PackagingNew Concept Machine &

ToolNike Inc.NokiaNorthwest State Community

CollegeORYMOOsco Inc.Partec InstitutePenn State EriePlastilos EriePMC Smart SolutionsProCompsProgram Mgmt. Specialties

Quabbin Sales & Engr. LLCQuantum Business SolutionsQuick Point Inc.Quickie ManufacturingRehrig Pacific Co.RexamRMV Technology Group LLCRogers Corp.RTP Co.RunnerTechSahly/Anderson & Assoc.Seeber USAShawnee TechSilver Bait LLCSMP SourcingSolo Cup Corp.Solvay Advanced PolymersStihl Inc.SuloSyncroness, Inc.TAC, LLCTechnology RanchTeleflex MedicalThomas & BettsTupperwareU. Mass. LowellWoodstream


Membership Application


ANTEC 2009

Who Attends ANTEC™ and Why?Who Attends:

• Research and Development: 34%• Training and Education: 20%• Engineering, Manufacturing, Purchasing, and Quality Control: 18%• Sales and Marketing: 16%• Management: 12%

Why They Attend:• Hear previously unpublished research and findings• Learn about advances in technology• Find solutions to their challenges• Shop for materials and services• Develop new vendor relationships; reinforce current relationships• Network with peers and industry leaders

http://www.4spe.org/conferences/antec-2009

Chris LaceyNewsletter Publisher

1513 University Ave.Madison, WI 53523T: 608-263-5963F: [email protected]

Dear Readers,

I hope you’ve enjoyed thespring edition of the SPE IMDnewsletter. Last year saw theintroduction of the EventsCalendar, the Ask the Expertcolumns, and the FeaturedTechnology column. I hopeyou’ve found these additionsuseful. Please let me know ifyou have any other ideas.

As our valued subscriber,I encourage you particpate inthis newsletter. Send in your

BEAUMONT 17www.BeaumontInc.com NPE 2009 Booth #131011

D-M-E 11www.DME.net NPE 2009 Booth #W103000

HANSER PUBLISHING 10www.HanserPublications.com NPE 2009 Booth #W131005

INCOE 6www.Incoe.com NPE 2009 Booth #77032

JDL TECHNICAL SERVICES 27www.JDLTech.ca NPE 2009 Booth #W104009

PRIAMUS 7www.Priamus.com NPE 2009 Booth #87010

PROCESS & DESIGN TECH. 13www.ProcessDesignTech.com

XALOY 18www.Xaloy.com NPE 2009 Booth #32031

questions to our three injection molding experts fortheir timely and insightful responses. Submit a FeatureArticle (in this edition, Dave Coughin wrote a veryinteresting piece on in-mold labeling, see page 8) ora Feature Technology (Jeff Lambing wrote an articleon cost estimating software, see page 24). And don’tforget to send in your reviews of ANTEC 2009 andNPE 2009!

As always, I invite you to take advantage of oursponsorship opportunities. It’s a great way to reachover 5000 individuals in the injection molding industry!Sponsorship details can be found on page 23.

Sponsors Editor & Publisher

spe imd spring 2009-final - beaumont technologies inc · spring 2009 page 3 spe injection molding...

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