Customer : Injection Technologies, based in Windsor, Canada.
Supplying full-service custom injection molding tryout services on-time and on-budget is nothing new for Injection Technologies, Inc (IT), a Windsor, Canada company with nearly two decades of service to the automotive and other industries.
However, thanks to a planned plant-wide upgrade to Eurotherm’s MACO™Compact Controllers, IT’s product meets higher production quality standards than ever before, in less time and with less waste.
IT’s success has come from many sources: a knowledgeable dedicated staff with an average tenure of more than ten years, a commitment to exceptional customer service, as well as an equipment mix that meets the needs of a diverse customer base. That variety means precise control and fast-turnaround is critical to IT, which runs 11 injection molding presses ranging from 130 to 3,500 tons in its nearly 50,000 square foot facility. This wide range of specialized machinery allows the company to efficiently set up and test a wide variety of parts while varying all critical injection molding parameters.
“All of our machines were custom-ordered to meet the wide range of needs,” says Ken Field, IT general manager. “We can put a 20” thick shutter mold in the 2200-ton machine and then can try out a garbage pail mold on the same press right after it. We really haven’t found a job that we couldn’t try out due to mold size or material type.”
Since fast turnaround is critical, IT’s reputation depends on meeting its customers’ parameters.
“When customers book a trial, they need it in two days—they can’t wait a third day,” Field says. “Customer schedules change, and everything is a lot tighter than what it used to be years ago. We’ve gone from scheduling of days to hours, and we do our best to work within these tight deadlines.”
Time equals money to a test facility. When Fields and Rick Stieler, IT plant manager, saw machine downtime due to control board problems, they knew it was time to improve that part of the operation.
Also, because IT has several presses with the same controller, interchangeability was a key factor.
“We realized that a control upgrade would allow us to continue making the required improvements needed to support our customers,” says Stieler. “Tighter processing windows, more process capabilities, excellent data collection, and improved response times would allow us to do that better than ever before.”
New Control Strategy Means Better Performance and Data Collection
The IMPACT II control also creates a theoretical model of the process after a few runs to automatically optimize the process to compensate for deviations in the process. Precise adaptive automatic tuning is included for temperature control. SPC calculations and charts can be viewed on Eurotherm’s new line of OPtima™ CE touch screen displays.
Stieler says a few added benefits have been especially useful:
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Core Pull Option: “We now can run our core pull using timers which we never had the capability to do before. With the new controller, we are able to have different sequences programmed when we need them, in a short period of time, and with very little expense incurred.
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An Additional Oversized Monitor: “The monitor is displayed for customers to be able to view real time changes across the table from the operator. They can discuss changes that should be made and the operator can make those changes without a crowd of customers around the machine controller.”
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Two Stage Knockout Control: “This control allows us to program a two-stage knockout in which we can move the knockout slowly at the beginning then speed it up when a part is free."
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Improved Accuracy: “We have noticed an increase in accuracy of all major functions, including platen control, knockout injection and screw reverse speeds. We are also finding that our settings are being matched repeatedly. The new controller accepts our entries and they come into effect immediately. Having the ability to easily get programs changed or added is a huge advantage, especially as we are constantly trying new processes and sequences for our customers’ experimental parts.”
The Need for a Quick Retrofit
The first machine’s retrofit timing was a tight one, adding to the overall challenge. The programming was completed in the Eurotherm home office, but the controls then required testing and debugging in the field.
Eurotherm Value Added Reseller Dave Hubble has helped the retrofit, planned over a 24-month period, go as smoothly as possible, says Field. “As a test case, we chose one of the three 700-tonners. And we’ve already ordered one for our 500-ton along with a planned install for new screw and barrel. We’re working any programming bugs out on these two machines. After that, they’ll come in on a Thursday afternoon, rip it out, put the new one in, the program will be set, and we’ll be up and running by Tuesday.”
Fields says that the retrofit gives IT increased confidence to do what customers need done with their molds…accuracy, uptime availability, and offering all of the bells and whistles in machine control.
“Our goal is to take our excellent existing molding machines and make them better,” states Stieler. “And that’s what we think the MACO Compact controls have done for us. We’re looking forward to making the smart investment in retrofitting all of our injection molding machines over the next two years.”
View the video "Injection Molding Control Retrofits" taken on location.
