Aaron Johnson, VP marketing & customer strategy, Accumold, explains the importance of an experienced micro moulder in a design for micro moulding (DfMM) project.
At the very conception of a micro moulding project, the focus at the design stage needs to be on the scale of the proposed part itself and on its internal geometries. All too often a conceptional design will be impossible to produce, and because of this DfMM has to be a primary consideration, as the unique challenges can hugely influence the success or failure of a project.
The ultimate key to success is to work with an expert micro moulding partner early in the product development process, so that all the DfMM considerations can be aired and addressed as soon as possible. Typically, the less baked an idea is when the micro moulder is engaged the better, as the earlier the design of a micro product can be influenced and adjusted to optimise manufacturing outcomes, the better in terms of cost and timeliness of production.
Essentially, DfMM ensures that not only will the end product be fit-for-purpose but that it is also optimised for the production processes that will be used to manufacture it, in this case micro moulding and automated assembly. An expert micro moulder will be able to advise on issues such as material choice, draft angles and undercuts, part lines, ejector pin locations, gate locations, the likely flow of material in the mould, wall thicknesses, etc.
Critical to success in micro moulding is micro tooling. Tooling in any manufacturing scenario is always the most costly and time consuming part of the product development process, but when looking at micro moulding, the tolerances and complexity that is often required in micro moulds make it especially critical.
Micro tooling is an art in itself, and an expert micro moulder will be able to design, build, and maintain moulds in house, and also have the expertise and experience to optimise tool fabrication. One size does not fit all when looking at micro tooling, and micro moulders will work alongside customers to drill down into the specifics of a particular application, understand the effects of a certain material, cycle time expectations, part criteria, and expected volumes before beginning to cut steel.
In house tool fabrication — in fact vertical integration in general ensuring that design, moulding, metrology and validation, and automated micro assembly are all undertaken in the same facility with departments working collaboratively — is vital in a micro moulding scenario where tolerances are so tight. The probability for successful outcomes increases exponentially when the responsibility for project and production, timeline, and execution are controlled within a single entity.
Every stage of the product development process in a micro moulding product development project is driven by an obsession with the attainment of micron and sub-micron tolerances, and when it comes to micro moulding per se it is key that a micro moulder has the business acumen and experience necessary, an expert team of engineers, an understanding of the correct manufacturing methodologies, and the tooling and processing expertise to ensure optimised outcomes.
When dealing with miniaturised plastic parts and components, the assembly part of the product development process must be considered early in the design cycle, again demanding a collaborative and pragmatic relationship between customer and micro moulder. When dealing with micro scale parts and components, the cost of manual assembly is prohibitive, and often requires levels of preciseness when dealing with sub-micron tolerances that are impossible to achieve. Automated assembly is therefore a must in most scenarios, requiring that a micro moulder is able to understand the methodology of micro assembly, and achieve the extreme positional accuracy required.
Success in micro moulding is predicated on the forging of a truly collaborative and transparent relationship between micro moulder and client. DfMM and decisions made at the early design stage will have effects when it comes to micro tool fabrication, micro moulding, and micro assembly. Because of this — and the need to have an unswerving focus on the achievement of extremely tight tolerances and to validate design intent — all departments involved in the product development process must work together from the inception of a product design and have a keen eye on DfMM issues to ensure successful outcomes.
