1. First, when designing a part, be mindful of the dimensions. Allow enough clearance to avoid damaging the substrate, while simultaneously shutting-off on the substrate to prevent overflow of material onto unwanted areas.  This can be something of a delicate balance and will likely be different, based on part geometry and material used.

2. Secondly, when over-molding onto electronics, be mindful of temperature restrictions.  For some electronic devices, there are components that have a lower operating temperature range than what is ideal for silicone over-molding (125°C – 175°C).  Typically, this is true of battery's capacitors.  The normal operating range for most capacitors is -30°C to 125°C with nominal voltage ratings for a working temperature to be no greater than 70°C for plastic capacitors.  If possible, it is best to avoid these components when over-molding electronics with LSR.

3. The last secret to over-molding electronics is surface compatibility to improve adhesion to the substrate.  When two materials are chemically dissimilar, certain options are available to improve bonding:

• It is always important to make sure that the substrate is clean prior to molding.
• Mechanical surface preparation; such as roughening via sanding and grit-blasting, can produce good adhesion.  For further improved bond strength creating undercuts or thru-holes in the substrate.
• Chemical surface preparation; such as primers or other adhesion promoters, can be purchased with the suppliers of the liquid silicone such as Shin-Etsu and Wacker Silicones. 
• Another type of surface modification process is applying plasma to change the surface tendencies of polymer.  Plasma is compressed energized gas that is applied onto the polymer molecules to break up some of the bonds.  When some of the molecules are broken apart, the surface of the material will create available binding sites.  Atoms from the silicone material are then allowed to come in and fill up these binding sites.
• Corona discharge works very similarly to plasma treatment, but differs in that it uses an electrical arc to free up the bonding sights instead of gas and flame.  Due to this corona treatment is also an effective means to improve adhesion with metallic substrates.

The post Three Secrets for Overmolding Silicone onto Electronics appeared first on Albright Technologies.

Albright is pleased to announce the addition of its Arburg 175V All Rounder for liquid silicone injection molding. Albright was recently published in a Plastic News magazine article regarding the addition of this Arburg 14 ton press. The new Arburg 175V All Rounder injection press is an excellent fit for the company as it allows for micro liquid injection molding and molding of other small silicone parts. Frank Antosiewicz, a correspondent for Plastics News wrote the article, which can be viewed below.

Albright adds 14-ton Arburg press

The post Albright adds 14-ton Arburg Press appeared first on Albright Technologies.

Albright Technologies recently developed a feature article for publication in Medical Design Briefs magazine. The article, titled “Silicone: Expanding the Horizon of Today’s Medical Devices” was published in the May 2015 issue of Medical Design Briefs magazine. This comprehensive article written by Ryan M. Taylor, Director of Sales & Marketing at Albright Technologies, covers many aspects of medical silicone materials and silicone molding for medical devices and pharmaceutical products. Topics covered in the article include the history of silicone materials, medical silicone materials selection including implantables, silicone molding processes, and silicone medical device applications. To read the article, please visit the link below.

Taylor, Ryan. “Silicone: Expanding the Horizon of Today’s Medical Devices” Medical Design Briefs, May 2015, Volume 5, Number 5, pages 10-14.

The post Silicone: Expanding the Horizon of Today’s Medical Devices appeared first on Albright Technologies.

Join Kevin and Ryan at the center of the universe this June at the MD&M East Trade Show in New York City! The show is located at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center at 655 West 34th Street in NYC. Albright will be located in Booth 2223.

The exhibition hall schedule is as follows:

Tuesday, June 9th, 2015             10 AM to 4 PM

Wednesday, June 10th, 2015        10 AM to 4 PM

Thursday, June 11th, 2015         10 AM to 3 PM

Albright will be exhibiting our latest silicone prototyping and silicone production molding solutions to attendees at Booth 2223, located near the Hall 3B entrance. We are currently offering free passes to our partners and visitors interested in rapid silicone prototyping and production molding services. Save $95.00 dollars on registration, visit MDMeast.com/invite and use the source code, invite.

We look forward to seeing you in the Big Apple next month. Stop by Booth 2223 for a visit and learn about the latest developments at Albright Technologies and the medical silicone molding industry!

MDMeast.com/invite

The post Get a Free Pass to MD&M East from Albright appeared first on Albright Technologies.

Albright Technologies has added silicone injection molding tooling and services to its product lineup. As a rapid silicone prototyper, Albright has always employed the latest technology to provide its customers with high quality silicone parts with short lead times. Liquid silicone injection molding became a suitable product offering as we expanded our offerings to better serve the silicone molding market.

While silicone prototypes are commonly manufactured with low volumes in mind; injection molded liquid silicone rubber parts are typically molded at higher volumes.

Therefore, silicone injection molding allows Albright to fill a gap where compression molding services are not well suited. While ramping up to higher volumes, production injection molding will offer continuous and repeatable results time and time again.

Once your part design is beyond the prototyping phase, then it is ready to go into low-volume production. At this point, a single cavity or multi-cavity injection tool should be manufactured and used. The injection tool will produce parts more rapidly with a lower cost per unit than a comparable compression tool.

Albright provides controlled environment room (ISO Class 7) injection molding services of your silicone parts. In addition, Albright is ISO 13485 registered to better serve its medical and pharmaceutical customers.

If you are ready to have your part design quoted for injection tooling and molding services, please contact Albright Technologies today at 978.466.5870 or via email at info@albright1.com. If you would like to send your models and prints to us, please fill out our RFQ page.

The post Albright Introduces Silicone Injection Molding Services & Prototypes appeared first on Albright Technologies.

Every part design poses the same initial question, “what is my design intent?” There are many decisions to be made when designing a silicone part. Have you considered the following questions before finalizing your part design or requesting a quote?

Material

• Is your material compatible with the part’s intended function? Different grades of silicone are processed in different level controlled environments; the higher the grade (more pure) the more stringent controlled environment is used. Some silicone producers will certify every batch of silicone that they manufacture. Medical device companies will require lot traceability, which at Albright goes back to the material supplier. There are many silicones available that are suitable for contact with the human body. There are also grades available for short and long term implants. Silicone is a key material to the medical industry with many applications.
• Will colorant or additives need to be mixed in to your material? Some silicone can be mixed with other materials; such as colorants. Other additives available include barium sulfate, tungsten and titanium dioxide, which are all used so that silicone parts can be detected in x-rays or other medical operations.
• What durometer material would you like? Silicones are available in multiple durometers depending on the strength your design will need. If your durometer is too soft the part will feel very sticky. If you want a very high durometer your part will feel glass like.
• Will you be overmolding a silicone part? Overmolding takes a bit of practice to find out which materials adhere best to one another. R&D hours are normally charged to cover the development of an overmolding process, which involves molding to a substrate.

Design

• What tolerance will allow your part to function correctly? Silicone is very deformable and generally tolerances are over specified. Tighter tolerances lead to more expensive molds and parts. To stay within a reasonable cost consider following RMA A3 tolerance guidelines.
• How many undercuts should you create? Undercuts create irregular parting lines and result in multiple plate tools. This will increase the cost of your mold and extend production times, increasing the cost per part.
• Where will your parting lines be? Whether your parting line can be visible or not, plays a factor. Parting lines are also affected by the amount of undercuts in your design. If you can avoid undercuts, your mold will be less expensive because it will reduce the amount of time machining and reduce production cycle times.  
• What modifications would be acceptable without affecting the part function? After getting back your engineering samples you may need to change your design. Shrinkage can occur during the molding process. Although we scale your part for shrinkage, each project is a little different, depending on your durometer, part size and undercuts.
• What is the thickest area of your part? The thickness of the silicone material plays a large part in molding cycles, particularly in the curing phase. Just remember, the thicker the part, the longer the cycle, the higher the cost. What is the volume of your part? We specialize in prototype and low-volume production molding. We are not suited for molding tens of millions of parts for pennies a piece.

Cost

• How fast do you need the parts? The longer the turn around time the lower the cost will be.
• Do you want an injection, compression or transfer mold tool? Depending on where your parting lines are, how many parts you need to produce and how long you have to produce these parts, can all factor in to which type of mold to build.
• How much money do you want to spend per part? Depending on the amount of parts required, you may want to consider a multi-cavity tool. This may be more expensive up front while purchasing a tool, but will quickly pay off through reduced production time, which means getting your parts FASTER!

Now for some questions regarding designing your parts in silicone materials. How many iterations did it take to get your design acceptable? Avoid multiple revisions by covering all aspects before designing your parts. This will save you time and money before having to go back to the drawing board. Did you know we mix your silicone in-house for control, but also mix and provide custom materials that meet your specifications? Are you curious if silicone adheres to specific plastic or metal materials? We can experiment in our lab with primers from the major silicone suppliers and provide different surface textures to create adhesion on your parts, whether they be plastic,metals or silicone.  

Looking to manufacture your design prototypes in silicone and want to know how much it will be? Send your models and information through our RFQ page. We will respond within 24 hours. If you “needed your quote yesterday,” please call Christi or Ryan at 978.466.5870. They can assist you with all of your silicone molding needs.

The post 13 Questions for Designing Parts in Silicone appeared first on Albright Technologies.

There are many benefits to designing molds made of aluminum including, cost, supply and physical properties. Here are a few reasons why aluminum is a viable material for mold tooling:

1. Processing Aluminum has become more efficient through the use of standardized blocks for mold tooling.

2. Aluminum allows for rapid cutting and finishing because it is highly machinable, polishable and holds micro details. Aluminum takes less finish cuts than harder metals, such as steel, further shortening CNC time. This means your parts will get to you sooner, as we can begin molding earlier.

3. Aluminum a very light weight metal, which makes handling and operating less burdensome.

4. Aluminum is chemical resistant, reducing corrosion as time passes.

5. Modern welding techniques allow us to make modifications and corrections to molds including repairing damaged tools rapidly and cost-efficiently.

6. Aluminum is a good conductor of heat, reducing the time it takes for the mold to heat up before molding. The rapid transfer of heat allows for fast cycling.

7. Some grades provide very high rigidity and wear resistance for excellent prototype tooling and fixtures.

Tell us a little bit about your molding experience. Do you use aluminum tooling? Do you agree with using aluminum for prototype and low volume tooling? Do you make tools in-house or do you outsource? What reasons would you not machine aluminum tooling for your silicone prototypes? Do you have a bias against aluminum tooling and why?

Albright Technologies will machine your molds in-house and modify them if needed in just a few days! We will turn your silicone designs from model to parts in 15 business days or less! Get a quote from Albright Today. Select the World’s Rapid Source for Silicone Molded Parts by visiting our RFQ page or calling our Sales Department at 978.466.5870.

The post 7 Reasons to Mold Silicone with Aluminum Tooling appeared first on Albright Technologies.

Check out our latest video and take a virtual tour of Albright, while learning about the company’s manufacturing offerings. The video covers many of Albright’s in-house capabilities, including:

• Full silicone material selection from major silicone suppliers: LSR, HCR, RTV, HTV
• Prototyping AND Production
• ISO 13485 certified
• ISO 7 Clean Room, hard-walled. High capacity, HEPA-filtered air-handlers
• Clean Room processes: Material prep, molding, post-processing and inspection
• Implantable parts, both long and short-term applications
• Complex over-molds, especially dissimilar substrates and electronics
• Very large and very small parts: We micromold to sub-mm features
• In-house tooling
• Liquid injection molding
• Compression molding
• Transfer molding

View the video below:

Contact the fastest source for silicone molded parts, by visiting Albright1.com. If you are in need of a quote for silicone parts, stop by our RFQ page.

The post Take A Virtual Tour of Albright Technologies appeared first on Albright Technologies.

Typically, the silicone material is loaded with a certain percentage of BaSO4. The loading percentage will depend on the level of contrast needed for the area of the body being viewed. Another common use of Barium loading has been in clinical trials and finished devices for failure detection and assessment since a part failure may be visible. Many of the major silicone suppliers provide Barium loaded materials today in the two implantable grades of silicone. While it is most common for the unrestricted silicone materials to be loaded, some of the restricted grades are as well.

Barium loading of silicone materials is common for the following applications:

1. Catheters

2. Shunts

3. Stents

4. Toe joints

5. Markers overmolded in silicone to detect and determine placement of devices

Now it is time for some questions for discussion on Barium loading. Have you ever manufactured BaSO4 loaded silicone parts? Did you load and mix the Barium at your company or did you purchase pre-mixed Barium silicone material? What Barium loaded silicone materials did you use?

Albright Technologies can mold your Barium loaded silicone medical devices in our ISO Class 7 hard walled controlled environment room. We can also source Barium loaded silicone material for you. If you need a custom mixed material with a certain percentage of BaSO4, Albright can mix it for you. If you are in need of a quotation for a Barium silicone related project, please visit our RFQ page here.

The post Barium Loading of Silicone Parts appeared first on Albright Technologies.

First and foremost, anticipated volume is always a true concern. If you only need to mold 1 to 20,000 pieces then a compression mold is more than suitable. Secondly, do your parts have multiple undercuts or is the geometry highly complex? If so, then a compression mold may be the most viable option.

During the prototyping phase, a compression tool allows for rapid turnaround time. At Albright Technologies, we will produce a compression mold manufactured out of aluminum, along with engineering samples in 15 business days or less. Now, let’s take a look at the pros and cons of compression molding.

Compression Molding

Pros:

1. Parts are dimensionally to specification and made with specified materials
2. Short set-up times, allowing materials and colors to be changed quickly
3. Flexibility in mold design
4. Tools with multiple cavities can be made with less concern of balancing
5. Welding allows for tool modification
6. Faster mold manufacturing turnaround time
7. Parts with multiple undercuts can be manufactured
8. Mold tool cost is lower than injection
9. Cost of compression molding machines is low
10. Reduced molding process development time (day(s) not weeks)

Cons:

1. Slower part production rates
2. Can be difficult to control flash

Due to the nature of our business as a silicone prototyper and low-volume production molder, compression molding is a great fit. It offers our customers a less expensive, yet rapid option (when compared to injection mold tooling) to turn their product designs into reality. We provide our customers with silicone parts that are molded from complex mold tools with many undercuts as required.

Now, it is time for some questions for discussion. Do you or your company utilize compression mold tools to manufacture silicone parts? How would you rate your overall experience with the compression molding process? How much of your molding business is processed utilizing compression molds?

When turning your design into a silicone prototype, select the World’s Premier Source for Silicone Molded Parts. Get your 3D Models quoted today, visit our RFQ page.

The post Compression Molding of Silicone Materials: Pros and Cons appeared first on Albright Technologies.