Plastics & Injection Molding Manufacturer Blog

Last month, in our article “How to Get Your Injection Molded Parts On-Time and Keep Your Production Lines Running,” we addressed the lead times and production concerns around the resin industries and what Ferriot is doing to help our customers weather the storm. We will continue to update you on this evolving issue.  

Plastics processors all over the country are seeing severe resin shortages and staggering price increases. Every indication is that this issue will continue through June.  What caused this? What resins have been impacted? How will this impact the resin market in the coming months? What should OEMs with plastic components in their products be doing now?  

The reason for injection molding delays is that resins – the materials that your plastic parts are made from – are in short supply. With lead times for resins increasing and their cost going up, it’s only natural that your injection molded parts will face the same challenges.

Custom injection molders use ultrasonic welding as a secondary operation when two thermoplastic parts need to be joined together. The bonding of two parts into one may be specified when there is a complex design that is not feasible to mold as one part – so the part design is changed to be manufactured as two or more parts that must be assembled. This is determined early in the Design for Manufacturing phase (DFM) of new product development.

Injection molding is a tried and true manufacturing method that has experienced small, incremental changes over the years. It used to be, if you had a product or part to be manufactured, your injection molding manufacturer would provide you with a list of polymers to choose from. Your design and engineering team would work together along with the injection molding team to select a resin that would suit your needs. A variety of factors would be considered including durability, cost, flexibility and cosmetics.

Ready for a secret? It still works like that.

With most manufacturers, you are going to need to select the resin for your part from a list of available options. However, modern facilities have moved into a more advanced method of providing an option not previously available on that list—custom engineered resins.

How selecting the right design specs, resin and molding process can answer them
Injection molding is a highly-engineered process, and demand for it only continues to grow as more manufacturers replace traditional materials like wood, steel and fiberglass with thermoplastic resins that are lighter in weight but just as durable. Applications and uses for injection molded parts are numerous and expanding, with increased use in the medical, automotive, industrial, housewares, electronics industries, to name a few.

We get it: some people are just not “list” people. But when it comes to a successful injection molding project, getting down to as much detail as possible is the best way to ensure a project’s success.

Applications and uses for injection molded parts are numerous and growing, with increased demand from the medical, automotive, industrial, housewares, electronics and many more industries. As such, more product designers, engineers and Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) are inquiring about switching some parts or entire products to injection molded plastics.

Resin selection can be a tricky business. On top of balancing cost, performance, function and moldability to figure out the right resin for the job, it’s necessary to think how the part will be cleaned and if it will touch food or be used in a sterile medical environment. It’s easy to get overwhelmed and fall into a few traps. We’re here to share our experience to help you to avoid them.