#plastic injection mould processing design

[aroyaltailor-archived-dead]

Just a little something different:

Behold! A Scarab Occult Terminator, assembled by yours truly in his leisure time! This model here was built from thirteen separate pieces, and each of them had to be scraped and cleaned to look their best. There's this thing called mouldlines, made as an inevitable byproduct of the whole plastic injection molding process. It looks something like this.

It took a fair bit of work, fussing over a lot of details, but as you can see I think the result speaks for itself! I had to manually drill those barrels too, that took quite a bit of work. There's an option for one unit to carry a heavy weapon, which has the lovely title of Soulreaper Cannon. It's basically a gilded Gatling gun. For that piece, there's a little cap on the end of the gun that you attach. That cap has the barrels of the weapon already drilled in as part of the mould itself. Just to show what I'm talking about, here. So the question is... why don't they design something similar for all the models? I'm no design expert, but that seems like it'd be a good way of making things easier.

Maybe people like drilling the barrels? Dunno.

(example of how the official models look, painted by the pros)

Either way, it's something I'm going to be doing myself as I continue building these models. I've about four more left, and each of them is about thirteen pieces just like the first. The leader of the unit has a fancy cloak, so that'll require me to do subassemblies to have it painted right. I'll need to paint two parts of him separately: the torso, cloak, and arms; and the legs. Part of me is worrying that I'll mess up somehow with drilling the barrels, but so long as I take my time, I'm sure I'll be fine. Besides! Imperfections just give the model more character, though I'll be trying my best to avoid making any!

Mistakes are part of life, and therefore inevitably part of the process. So long as I do my best not to make them, and learn from any that I do? All will be well. I certainly hope so at least :3

I really do need to work on that tag list...

[the-bjd-community-confess]

Hello, Oldie Chinese Diaspora™️ Anon here. One of the commentators asked in my last post: “Is there a reason why PVC isn’t being used for dolls? it’s common in anime figures (including articulated ones) so at least one industry has figured out a way to mass produce detailed items in PVC. maybe it’s just a really large upfront investment?” After looking into some more material sciences information, perhaps I have something like an answer for you.

PVC, as a polymer plastic, is lightweight and durable. It also has an impressive linear mold shrinkage coefficient (meaning that it shrinks very little when curing – definitely a plus when you want to preserve all the details.) However, the reason why PVC is not used with strung dolls has something to do with its tensile strength, compression resistance and something called “elongation percentage” (more information here: https://www.matweb.com/search/DataSheet.aspx?MatGUID=bb6e739c553d4a34b199f0185e92f6f7&ckck=1 ). You see, when it comes to figure production, there are several different factors that come into play when deciding what kind of material to use. For the sake of argument, let’s say that a BJD has ball joints and are strung with an internal elastic system. The material being used will have to withstand significant tension and compression pressure from the elastic over a long period of time. A material with a low tensile strength will crack at the connecting ball joints. A low compression resistance will cause warping and cracking along the length of the limbs. And a large elongation percentage means warping will be significant before the material finally breaks. These are properties that are essential for a strung BJD to last, but they are not required for hinge-jointed dolls or anime figures without articulation. While I am not fully sure of the exact measurements for the type of resin that goes into making BJDs, comparing PVC to wood (the original material for articulated strung dolls), it’s definitely more flexible and this flexibility makes it unsuited for strung BJDs. It also explains why vinyl dolls aren’t strung – they have an internal skeleton instead.

Penny’s box dolls and UFdolls are PVC and internally strung with elastic. However, neither one of these companies have been out for very long and it’s difficult to say how long their dolls will last while still keeping their shape. They also tend to be on the smaller side, which means they have to deal with less internal stress. So the jury’s still out on their durability. It’s too early to tell.

While researching for this topic, I came across something that has been brought up by a recent poster as well. If you’d lend me your ears for a second, I think this might help to clear the air a little bit. Some folks believe that the artist is only involved as far as coming up with a prototype, by the time the doll gets produced and sold, the artist had already been paid and no longer has any involvement. It’s easy to think this way because that’s usually the case for anime figures. But that is not the case with garage kits (GK) and resin dolls.

In a figure factory, the R&D department hire the artists – with an hourly wage – to design the figures. When the prototype is assembled, it is shown in advertisements and the preorders are taken in. This money is used to develop the injection moulds. A set of moulds start off at about $30, 000 RMB (over $4000 USD) and they are shaped by hand by skilled artisans. A set of moulds can be used for about 1000 times before the heat starts to warp them and small imperfections show. (For more information, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3fsXgEuXHM – inside look into anime figure production from design to final product. Chinese only.)

However, in a separate episode from this channel, they interviewed the lead designer of the Apex Toys factory (the same one they filmed). And the designer mentioned that GKs do not go through the steel mould process. While the company sometimes do take on GK production orders, the artist remains in control and there’s usually only a small run. The artist pays them for production but the company is not involved in anything else. Whereas with anime figures, they are in charge of design, production and assembly. Resin dolls resemble GKs a lot more, especially with the company V0lk being originally involved in GK production. Therefore, attributing the artist to the role of an employee “of a big company” is really quite a serious misunderstanding. While it might be true for an adjacent industry, it is not true for resin dolls.

~Anonymous

[andmaybegayer]

I think a lot about manufacturing processes because they're the most impressive things humanity has ever done and injection moulding wacks me out the most. I was looking at the toy keyboard I bought a while back and it got me thinking about how much of what we consider to be the look of The Modern Era is down to injection moulding.

I hold that injection moulding is one of the pillars of modern society and technology. Can you imagine a world where you couldn't use injection moulding. It'd look completely foreign. Like looking into an alien world. When you consider it you have to conclude that injection moulding has shaped our culture as much as the development of the camera or the invention of the piano or the creation of glassblowing. If archaeologists had to name our culture in the style of the Corded Ware culture or the Funnel Beaker culture, we’d be the Injection Moulded Plastic culture.

Injection moulding is how we get, oh, almost every plastic thing you’ve ever seen. The keys on your keyboard are injection moulded. Your phone case is injection moulded. Unless you’ve got a fancy milled metal laptop like a macbook then your laptop’s chassis is mostly injection moulded plastic. Your lightswitches are injection moulded. Plastic water bottles are injection moulded. Injection moulding is how we can produce extremely similar objects at breakneck pace for almost no money.

Now it’s important to rememeber that injection moulding isn’t cheap, or, well, injection moulding is only cheap for mass production. Every single unique piece of plastic needs a mould, and each mould will cost somewhere around thousands to tens of thousands of dollars EACH, depending on how tight the tolerances are and how complex the geometry is. Look at how many unique plastic pieces there are on that keyboard. Each one represents an investment of like $7000 into making this toy that gets sold for about $20, so there’s no way this would get made unless the company had plans to sell literally hundreds of thousands of these things.

(This mould can spit out one chair every 30 seconds and it probably cost twenty thousand dollars to make)

Once you learn to see injection moulding you can’t unsee it. It’s like learning about kerning, or musical intervals, or disability compliant designs, or the pantone colours, or about how many insulator disks are needed on different voltage power lines. You start to see it everywhere, you realise that everything in your life relies upon our ability to jam plastic through a heated screw and into a mould reliably, hundreds of times per day, all day, every day.

Unless you're wandering alone in the wilderness (and even then, maybe: check your clothing), look around and see if there's something injection moulded near you. I can tell you the answer, there definitely is. It's inescapable.

What would a world without injection moulded parts look like? It’d be weird. Everything we think of as cheap and easy to make is suddenly expensive. Complex curves and slopes like you’d find on a one dollar potato peeler now require hours of work to form. Every budget consumer item would be like those cheap sheet metal PC cases that have drawn blood from everyone who build a PC in them. Everything now has the aesthetics of a Sun 3/280 system:

Heck, even this sheet steel cube has a dozen injection moulded parts visible.

All the chunky plastic housing of the 90′s and 2000′s, all the sleek curves of the 2010′s, all the cheap plastic knick-knacks, the plastic toy horses, the snugly-fitting appliance chassis, the stacking plastic chairs. All these things now cost ten times as much and have to be formed from heavy steel, or milled out of chunks of cast plastic, or replaced with formed sheet metal.

Our culture, artistic sensibilities, and sense of value has been irrevocably shaped by our ability to squeeze liquid plastic into a metal die.

[workby]

Graphcore Hardware

Designer by Pentagram

Text by Dezeen + Natashah Hitti

Pentagram and Map create bold visual identity for Graphcore's computer hardware

Pentagram and Map have set out to prove that computer hardware doesn't have to be "cold, dark boxes", by designing colourful products for machine-learning technology startup Graphcore.

The two design agencies have collaborated on the industrial design of Graphcore's artificial-intelligence chip system, which helps speed up the process and resource-intensive deployment of AI.

This includes an intelligent processing unit (IPU) – the company's own version of a central processing unit – and the rackmount chassis that contains it.

London-based Pentagram partners Luke Powell and Jody Hudson-Powell had already developed a visual identity for the brand, which includes a pixelated typeface and a bespoke software tool called Quadtree that is used to generate unique geometric patterns.

They enlisted London studio Map to help transform this into a physical design, able to represent individuality and "the potential for change".

Their aim was to create an alternative to "anonymous" computer systems, which typically "live in cold, dark boxes in even colder, darkened rooms".

Pentagram's design consisted of a series of colourful modular tiles that can be assembled in various ways.

Map translated these elements into a customisable panel system made up of over 50 distinctive injection-moulded plastic tiles, using the Quadtree system to generate patterns, layouts and colours for new tiles.

The design agency applied nine of these tiles to each Graphcore IPU, allowing for more than 1,000 unique combinations, in turn granting each unit with its own distinct identity.

Each tile is coloured in Graphcore's characteristic palette of navy, light blue, pink and pale yellow.The front face design of the rackmount chassis uses patterns from Graphcore's visual identity as openings for ventilation

"Affording this much time and care on the aesthetic of a product that largely goes unnoticed inside larger computer systems is unusual," said the design team.

"However, Graphcore's IPU is a unique breakthrough technology, and it is important that the launch products reflects this."

The front face design of the rackmount chassis, which is designed to connect eight IPUs together in a system, uses patterns from Graphcore's visual identity as openings for ventilation, and clip-on branded details can also be attached onto the airflow grid to add extra personalisation.

The aim was to create an alternative to "anonymous" computer systems, which typically "live in cold dark boxes in even colder darkened rooms"

This is not the first time Pentagram has created a new branding for a tech company – the firm gave insurance tech company Cytora an animated visual identity that aims to demystify how the business works.

To reflect the ever-changing quality of Cytora's artificial-intelligence-powered risk engine, Pentagram used visualisations based on these algorithms to make the company a brand identity, which feature constantly shifting blocks layered with pastel and bright colours.https://www.dezeen.com/tag/branding/)

[mithfics]

Shop ‘Til You Drop (TG)

In a not so far off future...

I couldn’t believe the score I was about to wrack up; Nano Hills, the newly opened mall in town was top of the line, luxury personified, stores packed to the gills not only with high-end goodies but also high-tech gadgets, kiosks, security, and effects that drove home the Silicon Valley money that had been invested in the place. The fact that the guys and I had managed to figure out how to sneak in, avoid detection, and rob this place blind after closing time had been no small feat, and I was going to take full advantage of the situation by hitting up the pricey tech stores, first.

The place did give me the creeps, though; I was prepared for the place to be quiet and dark, but the various fiber optic lights, holographic effects, and ambient sound made the place feel too, I dunno, active for a nighttime robbery, like it was happening in broad daylight.

“Hi there! How may I assist you?”

I nearly leapt out of my skin! Jesus, why were the shopping assistant screens still on at four in the morning?! Ugh, it didn’t matter, we had already accounted for anything that could seriously catch us: we had sensors in our pockets to detect the arrival of any security guards, we had a mini-virus uploaded into the cameras to short them out, plus transparent facemasks that would obscure our features on the off-chance that we did get recorded. Y’know, baby stuff, but the sheer size of the mall just made it a bit more of a slog than it otherwise would’ve been. Hitting up PearSoft’s physical store meant I could grab a bunch of prototype builds that’d be worth a fortune. Yep, every contingency was-

“EXCUSE ME, THIS STORE IS NOT IN NORMAL OPERATING BUSINESS HOURS.”

What the-?!

I felt hard metal coils wrap about my ankles, then reach up to my wrists, as I was pulled back-first onto a sleek plastic slab that instantly wrapped a cinch around my waist, trapping me! The hell kind of new security system was this? There was nothing in our recon about this, and we had checked everything twice over!  

“YOU ARE IN POSSESSION OF THIRTY THOUSAND DOLLARS OF STOLEN PROPERTY, THE AUTHORITIES WILL BE- <:SKRITCH:> Welcome, and congratulations, you are Nano Hills’ one millionth visitor! Your lucky prize is an all expense paid shopping spree on us! Our scanners will determine your measurements for clothing, but tell us, what is your age, what are your interests, and what gender do you identify as?”

What the hell was this? Whatever the new security system was had already glitched out! It must have crossed streams with some pre-recorded contest routine another kiosk in the mall was meant to operate. I struggled and tried to free myself, knowing this thing would hold me until security or the cops got here to pick me up; I thought for a second that a ‘shopping spree’ could be an easy way to score free loot, but I couldn’t trust this hunk of junk if it was already malfunc-

“Thank you! Your selections have been processed and your spree may begin! <:SKRITCH> WARNING, SUBJECT’S PHYSICAL COMPOSITION DOES NOT MATCH INPUTS, INITIATING CORRECTIVE SEQUENCE.”

So much happened in a matter of seconds: the slab I was on folded itself into a seat, which began to hover and maneuver me out of the store. The coils around my ankles and wrists snaked out like tentacles, seemingly working as the unit’s eyes and arms, and proceeded to tear away at my clothes. Finally, two helmet-shaped objects came out of the chair, one over my head, the other over my crotch. As they settled around me I felt a brief flash of pain, like pin pricks, near my junk, while a slight whirring sound began to emanate in my head...speaking to me.

“Hello, I am this unit’s AI. Our scanners have determined that your physical form does not match the inputs you have registered and will now remedy the situation.”

“I didn’t put any goddamned inputs in!” I couldn’t hide the panic in my voice. “Just let me go, I’ll leave, I’m sorry!”

“Of course you placed inputs; otherwise we would not have found the disparity. PearSoft tech is glitch-proof and only wishes to engage in what we know is best for you, our valued consumer. Nanite injection is complete. <:SKITCH:> And now that you’re all settled, let’s begin your fabulous MAKEOVER PRIZE!”

The machine had returned to the contest prize routine. Wait...nanites? Makeover? What was happening?

The chair hovered across the mall and down to the lower level; I could feel nervous sweat bead on my forehead as it brought me into a haircut place...no, wait, a beauty salon! In a flash I was placed in front of a mirror, and the various metallic tendrils went to work. I tried to make a fist as they reached for my hands, but added pressure made me extend my fingers, which the tendrils began to deftly work on with files and polish. Another placed a cap over my hair, eliciting a strange tingling sensation from the chemicals that were undoubtedly inside the cap, while another placed a mould over my face, which brought another jolt of pain from another set of pin pricks. When the mask pulled away, I nearly screamed: my face was moving. My cheeks puffed a bit and became softer, and stubble I had had a moment ago had vanished, my nose had spread outward a bit but had shrunk to a more button-like shape, and my eyes seemed to narrow and darken all at once.

“Why...why do I look like a chick?!”

“<:SKITCH:> Your inputs indicate that your are an adult southeast Asian woman. As our scans did not much your inputs, your appearance must be corrected.”

“I DIDN’T PLACE ANY INPUTS, YOU METAL PIECE OF SH-” I was cut off by a lump in my throat and a feeling of swelling in my lips, closely followed by the tendrils coming forward to apply lipstick, blush, eyeliner, eyelash thickener, even a piercing gun that jabbed at both of my earlobes...no nanites this time, just stud earrings. The cap came off my hair, and a cascade of soft, luscious hair fell past my shoulders. I was stunned at the final product: the machine had utterly transformed my face, and now my hair was a raven-black base with professionally done light brown highlights. I tried to speak, but in the next instant we were off again.

“Do not be alarmed if there is a small amount of discomfort, the nanites are simply arranging your body to match your inputs. <:SKITCH:> Now, let’s get you a whole new wardrobe! First stop, ladies’ intimates!”

Oh God!

We reached a lingerie store, and I could hear my heart pounding in my ears. The tendrils immediately tore away my male clothes, and began reaching around the store, bringing a host of bras, panties, corsets, garters, stockings, pantyhose, and more forward.

“Our automated shopping assistant has determined the best combination of outfits for you today, so tell us how you like them! <:SKITCH:> Nanites prepare to match body proportions with selected clothing.”

The metallic arms were skillful, freeing up one limb at a time to get me dressed without letting me free. I saw them bring forward a single piece of lingerie: a one-piece, dark in color, with a high cut behind, tight, stretchy fabric in the middle with flowery lace designs all across, and supported cups at the chest for...for…

“NO!” My voice rang out, now octaves higher than I had been earlier.

The piece worked its way up my body, but it did not fit at first. Then, the nanites kicked in. I groaned as my the muscles in my legs pulled and contracted, a feeling that traveled up my frame. I saw the world around me grow a bit as I shrank in size, but soon felt something else: a warm, tingly feeling that began in my arms and legs that felt oddly pleasurable. My arms lost the wiry muscle I had spent years working on, becoming hairless and tan like my new face. I felt my thighs reshape and plump up, becoming rounder, less athletic but still sleek; I gasped as my inner thighs touched, their smoothness and softness stunning me. My belly pushed forward just enough to slightly strain the spanx-like material of the one-piece; my visible abs were a thing of the past. My chest came to life, and I could look down and watch as my nipples darkened, widened, and puffed out, fatty mounds developing behind them, pushing them forward in an excruciatingly slow manner toward the waiting bra cups. My hips and ass popped outward, spreading out wider as my waist constricted a bit under the fabric, each cheek swelling until I felt the fabric of the underwear nestle snugly in between them.

“Stop...stop…” my voice was weak, my terror still high. “Please, don’t, I’m not a woman!”

“INITIATING MENTAL CONDITIONING. Of course you are, Minh; you told us yourself with your inputs.”

“That’s not my name! I didn’t-”

“Now, please, our files are right here and our tech is glitch-proof. PearSoft only does what’s best for its customers like you, Minh, and we would never risk anything to threaten that mission. Besides, some men might wear lingerie like that, but they don’t have your measurements, do they?”

“I...I guess not…”

“They also don’t have female genitalia.”

“But I don’t eit-EEK!” I felt a bombardment of sensation from below, and felt every inch of my manhood fold in on itself and recede back into my body. I felt each new lip form as the fabric nestled cozily along my now perfectly smooth mound, and moaned in unwanted pleasure as my penis shrank and tightened into a new bud at the top.

“You clearly do have female genitalia, Minh. You are, after all, a woman.”

“I...I have a pussy…”

“<:SKRITCH:> Now let’s get you fully dressed and accessorized! Your beauty and intimates purchases are on us, and will be waiting for you when you exit the mall today along with any other items you may select today!”

I was pulled back against the seat, my now C, likely D cup breasts jiggling at the motion and my ass and thighs now acting as soft pillows. I shook my head: I wasn’t a girl! Or...at least I hadn’t been. But here I was, covered in makeup, my hair styled, wearing lingerie...I had breasts! I had big hips! I had a pussy! I wasn’t before but...but I was now...what did it all mean?

The department store was one of the super trendy, fashionable ones. The tendrils brought forward all types of blouses, tight pants, skirts, dresses, swimsuits, and tons and tons of shoes. I was prepared for them to dress me again, but for the first time since this all began, I was let loose! The seat had brought me before a set of mirrors that allowed me to see myself from all angles; before me was a black cocktail dress and a pair of heels with platforms in the front and heels that had to be at least five, maybe six inches high.

“<:SKRITCH:> Now, Minh, your inputs indicate a woman like you enjoys looking beautiful and socializing in high society. An outfit like this would certainly fit in such a scene.”

“I...I’d look beautiful?”

“Of course, Minh. Your feet are already shaped for and used to heels. And your makeup certainly implies a woman who wishes to look good in public. Don’t you remember telling us in your inputs?” “I...I think...maybe…”

“Of course you do. Go ahead, Mihn: a woman with your appearance can be strong, bold, and confident. You would certainly attract all kinds of attention, just as you told us you wanted in your inputs.”

“I...I did, didn’t I?” I felt the dress material between my fingers; it was black, silky soft, sleeveless on the right, with a long ruffle that wrapped around the top hem and ran down diagonally to the bottom. Why was I so intrigued by this? Hadn’t I been a man an hour ago? I had, I knew that...but I wasn’t any longer. I was a woman: my body made that indisputable. Had I told them that when the machine had strapped me down? Had it maybe picked up on something in my head? Had I wanted this all along, and just didn’t know it? Maybe the PearSoft tech knew me better than I knew myself…but I had to make the decision for myself, now.

I brought the dress down over my soft form, and felt it come to rest in place before I smoothed it against my alluring curves. I slipped my feet into the heels, bringing their straps around my ankles. I turned my head and caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror.

Oh...oh my.

I saw every inch, every angle, in all of those mirrors. I was a vision. I was soft, yet confident. Curvy and elegant. My behind thrust out like a luscious half moon; my chest thrust forward proudly; the dress accentuated all of my most lovely curves, coming up to where my waist cinched in most before flaring dramatically outward to my fertile hips. I...I was beautiful.

I was a beautiful woman.

“Are you satisfied, Minh?”    

I ran my hands through my hair, placed a hand on my hip, struck a pose, and smile radiantly.

“Yes. Yes, thank you. Thank you so much.”

“Of course, dear, it’s what I’m programmed for. Now, let’s continue along, there are still a few stops to make.”

I now sat comfortably, restraint-free, on the seat and sighed contentedly, bringing one leg up to cross over the other, as I was brought like a queen to stores for more accessories. I finished my spree with a selection of purses and handbags, of stylish sweaters, coats, and jackets, business suits that were just the right level of provocative, and dazzling jewelry to spare. I giggled when the tendrils passed the food court and brought me a drink to sip on, full regal treatment. All told, I had to imagine I was leaving this place with more valuable loot than I could have stolen on my own before; much more than that, though, I was leaving this place with so many fabulous new things about myself that I could never, ever put a price on.

By the time I was finished it was around 8am; mall workers were only just arriving, and nobody seemed to mind my presence; many, in fact, seemed thrilled, judging by their inability to take their eyes off my softly rolling hips and feminine gait. As promised, a seemingly endless mound of bags and packages waited for me at the exit. To cap it all off, a sleek new black sports car pulled forward; turns out I had won that, as well. I attempted to begin the enormous task of piling my new wardrobe, my new life, into the car, when I heard a voice speak up behind me.

“Pardon me, miss.”

I turned slowly and regarded the figure in front of me. He was tall, strong-looking, and cut a refined, fashionable figure. I smirked a bit toward him as he continued.

“I couldn’t help but notice you might need a bit of help with all of that. If you’d like a hand I’d be glad to help, but I’m also a manager here, and I could hold onto some of those things and have them delivered to you later.”

I brought a hand toward my chest. “Oh, my, thank you very much, that’d be lovely, mister-?” He held out a hand. “Please, just call me Jeremy.”

I held out my own and placed it delicately in his palm. “Charmed; I’m Minh.”

“Same here. Sorry if this is a bit forward, Mihn, but did you have plans tonight? I was going to meet some friends at Sapphire Club later, but guests are always welcomed.”

Sapphire Club? Hmm, this guy must be making a lot as a manager. I felt a quick adrenaline rush; I hadn’t exactly gotten the type of score I was looking for last night, but now, as Mihn, I could, well, ‘score’ in so many other ways.

“I’d love to. Here’s my number, I’m free any time.”

No need to be a thief anymore; now I would be wined and dined by all types of people with money. Perhaps I could marry one and make a fortune; whether it’d be this one, I wasn’t so sure. Still, it had taken a few hours to get me into this dress, and I smiled as I knew full well it’d only take seconds for him to get me out of it tonight.

Hmm, so much simpler than having to plan a robbery, isn’t it? I pulled my phone out and started texting my heist partners.

“Sorry, was stuck awhile last night and couldn’t rendezvous, but am fine, not caught. Go back tonight and hit PearSoft. You won’t regret it.”

[jmj973]

Learn more about the Rotational Molding Process.

Rotational Molding and Its Advantages 

Rotational Moulding is a technique used in the manufacturing industry to create highly durable and customizable hollow plastic products. The process allows for double wall construction. It ensures uniform wall fitness throughout the construction. 

Rotomoulding process is ideal for making large products such as tanks and bins that have to be hollow, and can be made in one piece. It is also utilized to make complex medical products, toys, recreational craft, and extremely artistic point-of-sale products. 

In comparison with other methods of plastic molding, rotational molding has many advantages in terms of relatively low levels of residual stresses in the process and relatively inexpensive molds. 

Rotational molding is also called roto-molding or roto-casting. Many manufacturers of hollow-type plastics usually prefer this method in making their products. Another process used in liquid-vinyl is slush molding, which is also a similar process. 

Rotomoulding process offers many advantages as compared to other methods of plastic molding such as injection molding, blow molding, and thermo-forming. 

Benefits of Using Plastic

ü  Plastic is corrosion resistant, it cannot rust. Stainless steel products are subject to rust in welded parts.

     ü  Plastic is chemical resistant. It’s a material that can withstand various chemical components, which makes it perfect for tanks, intermediate bulk containers, and other containers.

     ü  Plastic is a durable material. It is extremely impact resistant and it does not dent. Plastic parts can incorporate metal inserts in high-stress areas as well.

    ü  It is economical. Plastic is lighter weight than metal, therefore it takes less fuel to operate equipment with plastic parts. The material is less expensive than metal. Because rotational moulding allows for one-piece construction, this reduces assembly costs. 

ü  Plastic is a safe material to use. It eliminates sharp corners and burrs, resulting in a smooth, seamless product. This reduces the risk for injuries for operators.

 Advantages of Rotational Molding Process

 Size Options

 Rotomoulding can produce any size from the smallest part to larger sizes, which means the process is flexible compared to other systems. The process can be used on a small ping-pong ball sized plastic part to 21,000-gallon tanks. Many manufacturers are able to produce a large capacity tank between 0 to 1000 pounds, and as tall as 17 feet.

 Different Designs

 With rotational molding, it is very easy to design different shapes. This is because when the hot plastic compounds are placed into a mold, they take the shape of the mold as they melt and then harden. The process makes it ideal for creativity since manufacturers can make any shape using the process. While other types of molding processes are inelastic in nature with few options, rotational moulding can provide different varieties of design in the manufacturing phase.

 Inserts

Rotomoulding can easily accept metal inserts while producing the part. It also allows the possibility for additional threading inserts. Other methods are cumbersome, while with rotational molding can be processed at very low costs. Assembly techniques can be changed in the rotomoulding process easily. Other manufacturing methods do not readily take inserts and this can make it more costly than rotational molding. 

Color Sectioning 

Color sectioning is much easier with the rotational moulding process. Color blending can be done in-house to a variety of shades. Color matching is done easily on the process without extreme volumes.  A number of colors can be achieved at a lower cost. 

Quality Surface Finishing 

Rotomoulding process offers high quality surface finishing capabilities by taking the exact shape of the particular mold as well as the texture. This allows very high gloss quality finishes on the product surface. It can also produce smoothness and quality artistic design, and can take on a high oriental texture finish on its surface. 

Decorations in Mold 

The process takes any originally designed decorations made in the mold and will feature it on the plastic in a vibrant way. This amazing technique of in-mold graphics is used to decorate and design graphics are a by-product of rotational molding. The unique designs will stick permanently in the final plastic product. This method allows easy molding for items such as serial numbers, bar codes, and colorful logos. The designs often appear in better quality compared to the traditional ones. 

Quick Tooling 

The molding process uses low-pressure without any need of ejection or in-mold cooling, thus reducing the costs of a mold for rotomolding. Especially given the extreme heating and cooling cycles, aluminum manufactured molds tend to perform better. The process is cheaper when aluminum is involved. Depending on the design and complexity involved, a new tooling process can only take about four to twelve weeks. 

Top Quality Durability

 Parts and cases that are roto molded are stress-free and can withstand impact force, chemicals, and environmental factors. This is the reason why the process is ideal for making cases designed for both military and commercial use.

 Quick and Easy to Make and Customize

 Rotational molding can significantly reduce lead times. Molds can be made in a matter of weeks when possible.  The process allows for tooling to be produced which would mold multiple cavities of a product to be integrated into one mold, thus reducing the part price. Rotational Molding also allows further customization since the molding process is capable of using a wide range of materials. 

Cost-Effective

 Rotational Moulding is a very inexpensive method to produce high quality products because of its speed and unique integration process. Larger products are to be molded at a lower cost than products made with other molding plastics processes. The cost of the equipment needed for rotational molding is also less expensive compared to other processes. With rotational molding, you get high quality products with superior durability at lower prices than plastics fabrication or even metal fabrications. 

Consistent Wall Thickness

 Usually, metal components are weakest at the corners. These are the exact areas where the parts endure the most stress. With other processes of molding, it is difficult to achieve total consistency in wall thickness. With rotational moulding of plastics on the other hand, the constant rotation allows the polyethylene to coat every surface evenly.

 Rotomolding Summary  

 While not as widely utilized as injection molding or blow molding, the rotomoulding process has its place in each of our daily lives.  The durability of a rotationally molded product in comparison to an injection molded or blow molded product is second to none.  The low production requirements, inexpensive tooling costs and durability of the products help ensure that rotational molding is a polymer based manufacturing process that will be around for generations to come.  

Plastics Rotomolding

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Learn more about the Rotational Moulding Process.

Rotational Molding and Its Advantages 

Rotomolding is a technique used in the manufacturing industry to create highly durable and customizable hollow plastic products. The process allows for double wall construction. It ensures uniform wall fitness throughout the construction. 

Rotomolding process is ideal for making large products such as tanks and bins that have to be hollow, and can be made in one piece. It is also utilized to make complex medical products, toys, recreational craft, and extremely artistic point-of-sale products. 

In comparison with other methods of plastic molding, rotomolding has many advantages in terms of relatively low levels of residual stresses in the process and relatively inexpensive molds. 

Rotational molding is also called roto-molding or roto-casting. Many manufacturers of hollow-type plastics usually prefer this method in making their products. Another process used in liquid-vinyl is slush molding, which is also a similar process. 

Rotomolding process offers many advantages as compared to other methods of plastic molding such as injection molding, blow molding, and thermo-forming. 

Benefits of Using Plastic

ü  Plastic is corrosion resistant, it cannot rust. Stainless steel products are subject to rust in welded parts.

     ü  Plastic is chemical resistant. It’s a material that can withstand various chemical components, which makes it perfect for tanks, intermediate bulk containers, and other containers.

     ü  Plastic is a durable material. It is extremely impact resistant and it does not dent. Plastic parts can incorporate metal inserts in high-stress areas as well.

    ü  It is economical. Plastic is lighter weight than metal, therefore it takes less fuel to operate equipment with plastic parts. The material is less expensive than metal. Because rotational moulding allows for one-piece construction, this reduces assembly costs. 

ü  Plastic is a safe material to use. It eliminates sharp corners and burrs, resulting in a smooth, seamless product. This reduces the risk for injuries for operators.

 Advantages of Rotational Molding Process

 Size Options

 Rotomolding can produce any size from the smallest part to larger sizes, which means the process is flexible compared to other systems. The process can be used on a small ping-pong ball sized plastic part to 21,000-gallon tanks. Many manufacturers are able to produce a large capacity tank between 0 to 1000 pounds, and as tall as 17 feet.

 Different Designs

 With rotomoulding, it is very easy to design different shapes. This is because when the hot plastic compounds are placed into a mold, they take the shape of the mold as they melt and then harden. The process makes it ideal for creativity since manufacturers can make any shape using the process. While other types of molding processes are inelastic in nature with few options, rotomolding can provide different varieties of design in the manufacturing phase.

 Inserts

Rotational molding can easily accept metal inserts while producing the part. It also allows the possibility for additional threading inserts. Other methods are cumbersome, while with rotational molding can be processed at very low costs. Assembly techniques can be changed in the rotomoulding process easily. Other manufacturing methods do not readily take inserts and this can make it more costly than rotational molding. 

Color Sectioning 

Color sectioning is much easier with the rotomoulding process. Color blending can be done in-house to a variety of shades. Color matching is done easily on the process without extreme volumes.  A number of colors can be achieved at a lower cost. 

Quality Surface Finishing 

Rotational molding process offers high quality surface finishing capabilities by taking the exact shape of the particular mold as well as the texture. This allows very high gloss quality finishes on the product surface. It can also produce smoothness and quality artistic design, and can take on a high oriental texture finish on its surface. 

Decorations in Mold 

The process takes any originally designed decorations made in the mold and will feature it on the plastic in a vibrant way. This amazing technique of in-mold graphics is used to decorate and design graphics are a by-product of rotational molding. The unique designs will stick permanently in the final plastic product. This method allows easy molding for items such as serial numbers, bar codes, and colorful logos. The designs often appear in better quality compared to the traditional ones. 

Quick Tooling 

The molding process uses low-pressure without any need of ejection or in-mold cooling, thus reducing the costs of a mold for rotational molding. Especially given the extreme heating and cooling cycles, aluminum manufactured molds tend to perform better. The process is cheaper when aluminum is involved. Depending on the design and complexity involved, a new tooling process can only take about four to twelve weeks. 

Top Quality Durability

 Parts and cases that are rotomolded are stress-free and can withstand impact force, chemicals, and environmental factors. This is the reason why the process is ideal for making cases designed for both military and commercial use.

 Quick and Easy to Make and Customize

 Rotomolding can significantly reduce lead times. Molds can be made in a matter of weeks when possible.  The process allows for tooling to be produced which would mold multiple cavities of a product to be integrated into one mold, thus reducing the part price. Rotomolding also allows further customization since the molding process is capable of using a wide range of materials. 

Cost-Effective

 Rotational molding is a very inexpensive method to produce high quality products because of its speed and unique integration process. Larger products are to be molded at a lower cost than products made with other molding plastics processes. The cost of the equipment needed for rotational molding is also less expensive compared to other processes. With rotational molding, you get high quality products with superior durability at lower prices than plastics fabrication or even metal fabrications. 

Consistent Wall Thickness

 Usually, metal components are weakest at the corners. These are the exact areas where the parts endure the most stress. With other processes of molding, it is difficult to achieve total consistency in wall thickness. With rotational moulding on the other hand, the constant rotation allows the polyethylene to coat every surface evenly.

 Rotomolding Summary  

 While not as widely utilized as injection molding or blow molding, the rotational molding process has its place in each of our daily lives.  The durability of a rotationally molded product in comparison to an injection molded or blow molded product is second to none.  The low production requirements, inexpensive tooling costs and durability of the products help ensure that rotomolding is a polymer based manufacturing process that will be around for generations to come.  

Plastics Rotomoulding