best practices

best practices

Spec’ing a Robot? Match It To Your Press Size & Project

Where is your ´óÏó´«Ã½ today? What might tomorrow’s molding projects look like? These are among the questions you need to answer when deciding what style of robot is best for you.

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Multiscrew

To Improve Feeder Performance, Start by Understanding Three Key Components

These are the screw trough, agitator, and the screw itself. It’s crucial to understand the different types and the advantages/disadvantages of each.

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EXTRUSION: Pellet Geometry Can Impact Output

A simple angle-of-repose experiment can help you determine how your pellets will feed.

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processing tips

INJECTION MOLDING: Why Pellet Size and Shape Are Important

Uniformity is needed to help ensure melt quality.

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Testing

MATERIALS: Impact Testing: The Problems With Single-Point Data

Knowledge of test conditions and graphical data showing the course of the impact event can help provide engineers and designers with the information they need to make informed choices about material toughness.

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EXTRUSION: Barrier Screws and Mixers

For some reason, there are a lot of barrier screws in operation with high-shear mixers, when a distributive mixer is usually a better choice.

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processing tips

Understanding Machine vs. Plastic Variables

Why setup sheets, DOEs, validations, etc. may not yield the results they should.

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Materials

MATERIALS: The Problems with Single-Point Data

In plastics, notched Izod and Charpy test results have been complicated by the way they are reported.

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best practices

Overcome the Challenges in Winding Flexible Packaging Film

Not all film webs are created equal. This creates challenges for both winder and operator. Here’s how to handle them.

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industry 4.0

Mold Maintenance Hand Skills: It’s All about Connectivity

It takes a blend of brawn and brains for any tradesman or repair technician to become a craftsman or journeyman. And these skills can be learned.

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Plastics Size Reduction