Contents
How to Choose the Right Mold Steel for Ensuring Quality and Longevity of Injection Molds
What Happens During Injection Molding
Aluminum Molds vs Steel Molds: Which to Choose?
How to Choose the Right Mold Steel for Ensuring Quality and Longevity of Injection Molds
The Types of Plastics Used in Your Project
The Production Volume
The Complexity of the Parts
Costs
Manufacturers who are looking for a top solution in mass-producing high-quality parts will definitely find injection molding a godsend. This production method involves injecting molten materials, often thermoplastics or resins, into a mold. The materials will then cool down, and the finished products will take on the shape of the mold itself.
Throughout the entire process, the mold is the most important piece of the puzzle, as the finished products will share the same sizes and dimensions as the mold. Plastic molds are getting more and more popular among manufacturers, but steel molds are also good choices, if you can find the right ones that ensure high quality and longevity.
What Happens During Injection Molding
To help you visualize the importance of the steel mold, let’s first take a look at the injection molding process as a whole as well as its benefits.
The first step in this process is choosing the materials for the stock. Materials can either be thermoplastics, resins, or even metals. Then, engineers will heat the materials until they are melted and then injected into the steel mold. Afterward, engineers will run coolants underneath the mold to quickly cool down the molten materials. Once the materials have cooled down and solidified, the stock will take on the shape of the mold itself, thus creating the finished products.
Injection molding is a big business in the US. It features a compound annual growth rate of 4.74% from 2024 to 2031. This massive growth is driven by high demands for complex parts with different shapes and sizes, so manufacturers are looking towards injection molding as the prime solution for this issue. Injection molding projects can be scaled with ease thanks to the fact that it is a highly automated process with little manual labor involved.
Aluminum Molds vs Steel Molds: Which to Choose?
Both aluminum molds and steel molds are very popular choices in the industry, and it’s also a good idea to establish which material you will choose for your molds before you start the process.
Aluminum molds cost less than your average steel molds, as aluminum is cheaper to source than steel. These molds also offer better warpage protection as well as modification repair costs. However, aluminum molds do not last long. For high-volume production lines, aluminum molds will show signs of wear and tear very soon after production runs.
Conversely, steel molds offer amazing durability in the long run as well as in high-volume production lines. They are a great choice if you want to go for a long-term solution. However, do keep in mind that modifications as well as repair for steel molds will not be as easy as with aluminum molds, so the startup costs might be a bit higher.
How to Choose the Right Mold Steel for Ensuring Quality and Longevity of Injection Molds
If you choose steel molds over aluminum molds, you also have to understand that the kind of steel that is used to make your steel molds will also be important as well. Here are some factors you have to take into account when choosing your mold steel.
The Types of Plastics Used in Your Project
First, you have to take into consideration the types of plastic materials you will be working with throughout your project, as it will have a direct impact on the steel mold itself. Some plastic materials such as PVC have corrosive characteristics that can cause damage to the steel molds, which will reduce their longevity. If you are going to work with these types of materials for a long time, it is best to avoid using steel molds altogether.
The Production Volume
The expected production volume of the production line will also play a crucial role as well, as some types of steel will not be able to handle high production intensity well. For example, in low-volume scenarios, manufacturers can easily make do with P20 or 420 steels, as they are easy to work with. However, if the volume and intensity of the production line increase, you might have to go for more durable options such as D2 or H13 steel.
The Complexity of the Parts
The molds will also have a certain effect on the surface state of the finished parts, so the mold steel will have effects on the aesthetic look and design of the parts as well. For parts that have strict requirements as well as high complexity, you will need premium steels such as 1.2738 or S136. They will make sure that the finished products look polished with a great surface finish, making sure they will pass any QA check.
Costs
The final factor to consider is the cost to source the mold steel. Some mold steels cost much more than others, and you have to find distant suppliers to source them. If the cost of these mold steels becomes a major concern to you, it might be a good idea to stick with cost-effective steels such as P20 or 420.
With over 20 years of experience in the injection molding industry, KuiXing Shanghai offers the best injection molds for your production line! We have worked with industry leaders to create the most cost-effective solutions that help you get your project started right away, and we offer a vast range of molds for various industries, including aircraft, automotive, medical devices, and much more. Contact us now for more details!
When choosing mold steel for your injection molding project, pay attention to the types of plastic materials you are going to use, the production volume, the parts’ complexity, and finally, the costs to source mold steel. All of these factors will contribute to the quality as well as the longevity of your injection molds, so it is important that you take them into account when acquiring an injection mold for your injection molding project!
Reference:
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/injection-molding-market-worth-us-43962539-million-6q5df
