Are you looking to get a product made in plastic? Or for a new injection moulding partner? In this blog, WSM Plastics highlights the key things to consider when selecting a moulding supplier.
WSM Plastics is an experienced injection mould tooling manufacturer and plastic injection moulder with a strong reputation for stability whilst maintaining a dynamic, supportive and flexible ethos.
With over 25 years of experience in mould tool making and injection moulding, the WSM team knows a thing or two about injection moulding projects. This blog highlights the key considerations that must be made when selecting an injection moulding supplier.
Polymer Selection
Polymer selection is an essential part of injection moulding, so when looking at suppliers, it is vital to identify whether they can assist with polymer selection. There are different types of synthetic plastics that include:
- Standard polymers
- Engineering polymers
- High-performance polymers
There are different benefits of each polymer type, each with its own distinctive advantages, disadvantages and applications. Therefore, suppliers need to be able to inform and advise on what is the most suitable material for the job requirements.
Design Capabilities & In-house Tool Making
When selecting an injection moulding supplier, it can be beneficial to choose one with design capabilities and in-house tool making facilities. This means that the process of injection moulding, including the design stage and tool making, is done under one roof. This makes it easier for teams to communicate at each step of the process, and it eliminates possible supply chain delays and encourages an efficient project workflow.
Certified Quality Management System
Quality Management Systems (QMS) were designed to help organisations meet the needs of customers and key stakeholders. A QMS is a formal system that documents the processes, procedures and responsibilities in order to successfully achieve the aims of a project, whether this is tool making or injection moulding. A recognised international QMS system is ISO 9001, which is based on seven quality management principles, including having a strong customer focus, the involvement of top management, and a drive for continual improvement.
WSM Plastics has long been a certificate holder for ISO 9001:2015, quality management systems. To view this certification, and other quality certificates, visit the WSM Plastics website.
Post Moulding Services
Services don’t stop once your parts are manufactured. Ultrasonic welding is a technique commonly used in the plastic injection moulding industry to join two components together with high-frequency ultrasonic vibrations. The finished product consists of glue-less joints free from connective bolts, screws or fastenings.
One of the most significant benefits of ultrasonic welding is that it is a cost-effective way to join parts and helps designers overcome design constraints sometimes experienced with other joining methods. Our ultrasonic welding facilities can weld a variety of thermoplastic components. The equipment provides a high degree of reliability and repeatability and can be used for other functions, including riveting, swaging and inserting.
Pad printing is a process that can add detail to your product to increase usability, add a personal touch and is a valuable way of emphasising certain parts of the product. For example, you can pad print safety features onto a device to illustrate the correct operation to users, or print serial numbers or traceability info onto a product, if required.
At WSM Plastics, we have two colour pad printing in-house and have an established supply chain for Painting, RFI Coating and other special finishing operations. The flexibility of pad printing allows us to print high-resolution, defined designs onto almost any product regardless of size or shape. The variety of inks available means that we can match the colours to suit your company’s corporate colours and branding guidelines.
The Benefits of Project Management
Project management aims to increase customer satisfaction with an efficiently run, transparent and successful project plan. Having a designated project manager in charge helps deliver the desired results of a project, whilst avoiding any unexpected costs. A successful project manager delivers updates and information to both internal and external personnel, bringing transparency and acting as a go-between for the client and the manufacturer.
WSM Plastics’ in-house tool designers, component designers and project engineers manage the entire project for our customer base. With our tool room and mould shop in the same building here in the UK, we have validated and commissioned tooling projects within days of the tools being completed to our high-quality standards.
A Range of Machinery Sizes Adds Flexibility
Injection moulding machines are referred to by their ‘clamp tonnage.’ The tonnage determines the force required to keep the injection mould tool closed during the moulding process, and this force is the main factor in deciding which moulding machine size is necessary for producing a part. A larger product, or a mould tool with multiple cavities (producing multiple components per machine cycle) would require a larger tonnage machine, as more force is required throughout the process.
It is important for the efficiency and flexibility of a moulding project that a supplier with the correctly sized machinery is considered. At WSM Plastics, we run a machine range from 20T up to 650T, allowing us to accommodate all projects, from small to large components.
To find out how WSM Plastics can support you through the injection moulding process, get in touch today, and we will be happy to support your needs.
