Custom molding is a thrilling experience. Each and every time, you’re creating something that has literally never been seen before. With a stunning variety of shapes and colours, the only limit to your project is your imagination.
Here at SPI Plastics, we love helping our customers make their dreams a reality. We also get a lot of questions about our process, and about what a typical custom molding project looks like.
Today, we’re going to take a closer look at what goes into transforming a unique idea into custom plastic parts.
Every Great Product Starts With an Idea
You have a vision. You know what it’s going to be, and how it’s going to work (or at least, you have a general idea). Now, you’ll need to transform that vision into a detailed engineering diagram.
This will serve several purposes. The first is being able to clearly explain to investors and partners what each piece does, how it will work, and how it will look when the project is complete. The second is that a 3D model is very helpful to obtain before you progress to the action stage of custom molding. After all, the molding company you partner with will appreciate something to work from!
If you don’t have the engineering or programming background needed to make your design, SPI has a dedicated team of specialists for Technical Design Support. Our computer-aided design (CAD) process makes it easy to create a model with whatever specifications you’d like included. We can even add colour or produce line drawings.
Welcome to Your Product: Rotational Molding
SPI’s rotational molding process (also called rotomolding) is designed to create hollow, seamless, durable parts. This process combines high temperatures, low pressurization, and bi-axial rotation to create an almost endless array of parts. An additional bonus is that, due to the seamless nature of the design, the finished project will be free of stress and uniform in terms of wall thickness.
During the initial loading stage, a small portion of resin or polymer powder is placed inside the mold, which is securely sealed. The mold is then heated while simultaneously rotated about both axes, allowing the material inside to spread uniformly throughout. To cool the mold and harden the material inside, the mold is sprayed with cool water. Once the mold has completely cooled, the item inside can be safely removed.
Another benefit of rotational molding is that, in addition to producing almost any kind of custom plastic parts you can imagine, it’s significantly more cost-effective than injection or blow molds, as the initial mold costs much less to make. It also helps minimize waste during the production process.
Why Custom Plastic Parts are the Answer
- Plastic never rusts, so you’ll never have to worry about the integrity of your part.
- Want something that’s fire-resistant, weather-resistant, and able to safely handle different chemical components? You guessed it: plastic.
- Plastic helps save money in several places. It’s cheaper to produce than metal counterparts, which means you spend less on the initial investment. But once the parts are made, they’re a lightweight addition to your project, which means reduced stress (and fewer repairs) on your other parts.
Beginning Your Custom Molding Project
Taking that first step is always the hardest part. It’s committing to your project, and to yourself, and that’s no small decision to make. When you’re ready to make your vision a reality, the team at SPI Plastics is ready to help. We can’t wait to see what you create!
If you have any questions about our custom molding service, or if you’d like some examples of the custom plastic parts we’ve created in the past, give us a call at (519) 935-2211. You can also send us a message online with the details of your project and we’ll get back to you with a customized cost estimation.