High-cavity mold for delicate automotive components

Geometric Finesse: Managing Internal Undercuts

With a diameter of approximately 20 mm, the fixing ring’s unique internal geometry posed significant challenges for mold design. The primary complexity lay in an internal undercut, which required a sophisticated and delicate demolding process to ensure part integrity.

Precision Collapsible Core Technology

Undercuts necessitate specialized ejection techniques to prevent component damage. We utilized high-precision collapsible cores within the injection mold to form the complete internal diameter. These cores had to be manufactured with razor-sharp edges and extreme accuracy. To guarantee consistent quality across all nests in a high-cavitation setup, strict adherence to exceptionally tight tolerances for the steel components was mandatory.

These cores had to be manufactured with razor-sharp edges and extreme accuracy. To guarantee consistent quality across all nests in a high-cavitation setup, strict adherence to exceptionally tight tolerances for the steel components was mandatory.

From 8 to 32 Cavities: Scalable High-Performance Tooling

We systematically increased production capacities throughout this project. Production initially launched with an 8-cavity tool, followed by a 16-cavity version. Today, we produce using a high-performance 32-cavity mold on a suitably sized injection molding machine.

This scaling demanded the highest level of craftsmanship: for the 32-cavity tool alone, nearly 200 individual segments were fabricated for the collapsible cores. Both dimensions and surface finishes of these steel parts must be identical to eliminate any irregularities during the demolding process.

Intelligent Handling: 3D-Printed Gripper Systems with Error Detection

For part removal, we designed and built an in-house 3D-printed EOAT (End-of-Arm Tooling) system. This system extracts all 32 parts and their runners, depositing them in a cavity-separated manner. Each gripper is equipped with limit switches that immediately detect if a part fails to mold or demold properly.

If an error is detected, the entire shot is automatically segregated into a reject bin. This monitored removal process virtually eliminates tool damage caused by stuck parts and ensures that a precise, predefined quantity of parts from each cavity is placed into the collection bags.

Maximum Output Through Proactive Spare Parts Management

For this high-volume, 24/7 production environment, structured spare parts management and predictive maintenance were essential. Using a risk-based approach, we identified all wear-prone components—including hot runners, thin cores, and valve gate needles—to ensure zero-downtime readiness.

The result speaks for itself: By scaling our high-performance tool from 8 to 32 cavities, we were able to increase the guaranteed output for the customer fourfold.