Albright Technologies » compression molding http://albright1.com Next Day Medical Silicone Molded Parts! Tue, 25 Aug 2015 20:02:26 +0000 en-US hourly 1 Compression Molding of Silicone Materials: Pros and Cons http://albright1.com/compression-molding-of-silicone-materials-pros-and-cons/ http://albright1.com/compression-molding-of-silicone-materials-pros-and-cons/#comments Tue, 24 Feb 2015 17:01:09 +0000 http://albright1.com/?p=1904 Many Inventors, Engineers and Project Managers believe that injection molding is the best solution for their molded silicone products. However, this is not always the case due to the many variables and constraints of manufacturing silicone parts. First and foremost, anticipated volume is always a true concern. If you only need to mold 1 to […]

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]]> Many Inventors, Engineers and Project Managers believe that injection molding is the best solution for their molded silicone products. However, this is not always the case due to the many variables and constraints of manufacturing silicone parts.

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.

Compression Molding

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.

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