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New tapered series date plugs and support pillars from Progressive Components are designed to meet the unique needs of medical tools for clean room molding. The date plugs, which are made from stainless steel, feature a tapered seal between the the date plug and date ring. Progressive said the tapered design is meant to deal with the low viscosity resins commonly used in medical applications, which can easily flash. Tapering the seal prevents that and can help eliminate potential non-conformances with the molded part.

The stainless steel support pillars, meanwhile, can eliminate the labor and cost medical mold builders would otherwise outlay to fabricate custom pillars in-house. Progressive notes that these items join more than a dozen products that the company has introduced with features especially designed for performance within clean room environments.

The company noted that whenever practical, it has made components from stainless steel or created black oxided items for corrosion resistance, with the new support pillars becoming a part of those offerings. In the cavity/core area, the tapered series date plugs are offered along side existing targeted products, including friction-free slide retainers, needle bearing locks and UltraPins treated for lubricity.