Product Design Engineering: Manufacturing Techniques for Product Design - Mould Flow Simulation - Virtual Reality CNC milling (Vertical Router)

Machining (Including turning, boring, facing, drilling, reaming, milling and broaching):

Machining belongs to a branch of production that falls under the commonly used umbrella term 'chip-forming' (meaning any cutting technique that produces 'chips' of material as a result of the cut). Machining is also used as a post-forming method, as a finishing method and for adding secondary details such as threads.

Turning: generally refers to cutting the outside surface
Boring: Refers to cutting an internal cavity
Facing: uses the cutter to cut into the flat end of the rotating work piece. It is used to clean up the end face
Threading: is a process that uses a sharp, serrated tool to create screw threads in a pre-drilled hole
Drilling and reaming: are generally also lathe operations, but they require different cutters. In lathe operation, the work piece is clamped in the centre of a rotating chuck. Whereas drilling is a straightforward operation to create a hole, reaming involves enlarging an existing hole to a smooth finish
Milling: Involves a rotating cutter, similar to a drill, which is often used to cut into a metal surface
Broaching: is a process used to create holes, slots and other complex internal features

Computer Numerical Controlled (CNC) Cutting:

The way computer numerical controlled (CNC) machines effortlessly cut through solid materials as if they were butter is almost sublime. The cutting heads are mounted onto a head that rotates in up to six axes, to chisel different forms as if they were automated robotic sculptors.

Electron-Beam Machining (EBM):

Is a versatile process that is used to cut, weld, drill or anneal components. As a machining process, one of its many advantages is that ultra-fine cuts can be made with such high precision that they can be measured in microns. EBM involves a high-energy beam of electrons being focused by a lens and fired at extremely high speeds (between 50 and 80 per cent of the speed of light) onto a specific area of the component, causing the material to heat up, melt and vaporise.

Turning (with dynamic lathing):

The process of mounting a material on a spinning wheel and skimming off thin alices is thousands of years old. The commonly used material is wood, but 'green' ceramic is also highly popular for industrially producing the same types of round, symmetrical shape.

Dynamic lathe is for producing non-axissymmetric metal parts for engineering applications, without the need to remove and replace the component manually. Shapes are defined by a CAD program and fed directly to a lathe that allows the cutter to move up and down in the lateral axis.

Jiggering and Jollying:

Jiggering and Jollying are two profoundly silly words that describe similar methods for the mass-production of ceramic hollow shapes, such as bowls, or flatter shapes, such as plates. A profiled cutter, which scrapes the clay as it rotates on the wheel. In Jiggering, the mould determines the internal form of the shape while the cutter forms the outer shape, while in Jollying the cutter forms the inner shape.

Plasma-Arc Cutting:

Plasma-arc cutting lives in the land of heavy industry, and it is part of the non-chip-forming branch of production known as thermal cutting. It works by means of a stream of ionised gas, which becomes so hot that it will literally vaporise the metal that is being cut.

Chemical Milling (AKA Photo-Etching):
Chemical milling, also known as photo-etching, is a great method for producing intricate patterns on thin, flat metal sheets by using corrosive acids in a process similar to that used for developing photographs. Chemical milling involves a resist being printed onto the surface of the material to be treated.

Die Cutting:

The simplest analogy for this process is to think of a biscuit-cutter for making shapes from dough in the kitchen. Die cutting is a simple process that involves a sharp edge being brought down onto a thin material to cut a shape in a single step.

Water-Jet Cutting (AKA Hydrodynamic Machining):

From as early as the mid-nineteenth century, water jets have been used as a method of removing materials during mining. The modern-day process (also known as hydrodynamic machining) has been cranked up to produce an incredibly fine jet of water, typically 0.5 millimeters, which is forced out of a nozzle at a pressure of 20,000-55,000 psi at velocities of up to twice the speed of sound.

WJTA
TMC waterjet
Waterjets
HAY

Wire EDM (Electrical Discharge Machining) and Cutting:

Wire EDM is one of the latest processes to exploit electricity for cutting intricate patterns. Together with processes such as water-jet cutting and laser cutting, Wire EDM is a non-contact method of cutting materials.

Precision2000
Sodick
EDM

Laser Cutting:

Similar to water-jet cutting and electron-beam machining, laser cutting is a non-chip forming method of cutting and decorating materials. It is a highly accurate process based on input from a CAD file. Laser-beam machining is a form of laser cutting that uses a multi-axis head to cut three-dimensional objects. A CAD file maps complex paths for the powerful beam of light, resulting in fine, accurate designs.

MIWL
AILU
Precisionmicro

Oxyacetylene Cutting (AKA Oxygen Cutting, Gas Welding or Gas Cutting):

This is a process for cutting metal plate in which oxygen and acetylene are combined at the end of a nozzle and ignited, producing a high-temperature flame. The metal is preheated with this mixture of gasses, and then a stream of high-purity oxygen is injected into the centre of the flame, which rapidly oxidises the work piece.

AWS
TWI
IIW-IIS

Sheet-Metal Forming:

Making objects from sheet metal is one of the earliest methods of human production. It is a multi-stage process that is based on the conversion of a sheet material into a three-dimensional object by cutting, press forming and, finally, plating sheets of brass.

Acmewhistl

Slumping Glass:

To slump glass is to allow it to sink into shape. Most people know that if a sheet of glass is left alone enough, its shape will slowly distort. However, glass does need to be heated to a sufficiently high temperature for it to reach an elastic state that anables it to move at an economical rate or, at the very least, faster than the hundreds of years it would take without heat. When a sheet of stiff glass is placed over a refractory mould (a mould made from a heat-resistant material) in a kiln and heated to 630 C, the glass relaxes enough to allow it to sag into a shape that becomes permanent once cooled.

Fiamitalia
Rayotek
Sunglass

Metal Spinning (including sheer and flow forming):

Spinning is a widely used technique for bending sheet metal. As the name suggests, the process involves a flat metal disc, known as the blank, being spun, pushed and consequently wrapped around a rotating mandrel to produce curved., thin-walled shapes.

Centurymetalspinning
Acmemetalspinning
Metalforming
Metal-spinners

Metal Cutting:

It including press forming, shearing, blanking, punching, bending, perforating, nibbling and stamping. In the metal industry the term 'cutting' is hardly ever used, because technically it is such a broad term it has almost no meaning. Cutting processes can be divided into two main categories: chip-forming and non-chip-forming. Press forming, shearing, blanking, punching, bending, perforating, nibbling and stamping are all terma that in one way or another describe non-chip-forming of metal sheet.

Punching and blanking are very similar in the sense that they both involve the removal of part of a sheet to form a hole.

Nibbling is used to cut a sheet in successive bites from a small punch that pulses up and down in a process similar to that of a sewing-machine.

Shearing involves a punch and a die with tight control over the gap between the two. The terms 'perforating' and 'bending' should be fairly self-explanatory.

Metal stamping is a cold forming process that is used to produce shallow components from metal sheet.

Pma
Nims-skills
Khake

Thermoforming (Including vacuum, pressure, drape and plug-assisted forming):

Thermoforming is one of the most common methods of producing plastic components and any art student who has been through the traditional foundation course will have used a vacuum-forming machine. The basic materials needed for this process are a thermoplastic sheet and a former.

Other forms of thermoforming include pressure forming, which works in the opposite way to vacuum forming by forcing the material into the mould.

Drape forming, as the name suggest, consists of draping a sheet of heated plastic over a male mould, where it is mechanically stretched allowing the sheet to remain close to its original thickness.

Plug-assisted forming uses plugs to pre-stretch the plastic before the vacuum is introduced.

Formech
Thermoformingdivision
BPF
rpc-group

Superforming Aluminium (Including cavity, bubble, back-pressure and diaphragm forming):

Superforming involves such an overlap, since it brings traditional vacuum forming with plastic to aluminium alloys. The process is achieved through four main methods: cavity forming, bubble forming, back-pressure forming and diaphragm forming.

Cavity forming: In the cavity method, air pressure forces the sheet up into the tool.

Bubble forming: Air pressure blows the sheet into a bubble. A mould is then pushed up into the bubble and air pressure is applied from the top, forcing the material to conform to the shape of the mould.

Back-pressure forming: Pressure is employed from both the top and bottom surfaces of the mould.

Diaphragm forming: Air pressure forces the heated superelastic aluminium onto a heated non-superelastic alloy which is then formed over the mould.

Superform-aluminium
===================================================

Explosive Forming (AKA High-Energy-Rate Forming):

Explosive forming is actually an established method of forming metal sheet or tube. Explosive forming exists in two forms 'standoff', where the explosive is positioned at a distance from the metal, either in the open air or submerged in water or oil, and 'contact forming', where the explosive is in direct contact with the metal.

Exploform

Inflating Metal:

The process literally involves inflating two sheets of metal that have been sandwiched together and sealed at the edges, without using moulds. Each inflated piece, therefore, responds in a different way, producing a unique piece.

Blownmetals

Bending Plywood:

The process starts from the point where the veneers have been sliced or rotary-cut from the logs, these large strips are cut into individual sheets, which are subsequently dried by being passed through a long chamber, at the end of which they are stacked according to quality. The veneers are fed into rollers that distribute an even layer of glue over each sheet, with the quantity of glue being determined by the porosity of the timber. The various sheets are then stacked, with the grain running in alternate directions, to form an odd number of layers. The assembled sheets are placed over the female part of a mould, with the male part clamped on top. The mould allows for an excess of veneers, which is trimmed to form neat edges once the glue has dried. Depending on the shape, a pressure of several tonnes is needed to compact the sandwich together. The vertical pressure is aided by horizontal pressure, forcing the moulds to come together from all sides, and a combination of heat and pressure cure the glue. The part stays in the mould for about 25 minutes, the exact time depending on the shape. In industrial production, a CNC cutter is then used to trim the uneven layers to form a clean edge.

Woodweb
Woodforgood
Artek
Vitra
Hermanmiller

Deep Three-Dimensional Forming in Plywood:

It is now possible to bend plywood into wavy shapes that were once unthinkable. It enables the plywood to be moulded into a deep, three-dimensioanl compound curve, which is capable of producing forms that resemble moulded plastic rather than a piece of wood. The process starts with the stack of prepared sheets of veneer assembled with the grain running in alternate direction. The stack of veneers are placed under the press machine and the male and female moulds are brought together. Then the seat forms. The seat is ready for the final shaping process, which involves the excess material around the seat being cut away.

Reholz

Pressing Plywood:

The products are formed from a flat sheet of wood into a three-dimensional shape in a way that gives results similar to shallow plastic vacuum thermoforming. The combination of heat, pressure and adhesive enables a range of laminated wood products to be produced, resulting in thin-section designs that can be extremely strong.

Nevilleuk

Calendering:

Calendering has traditionally been used as a finishing process applied to textiles and paper, using heat and pressure to give a smooth, shiny surface. Calendering is a process in which a ribbon of plastic being passed over polished steel rollers to form a continuous length of plastic sheet.

Vinyl
Ecvm
Ipaper
Coruba

Blown Film:

The best way to summarise the blown-film process is to think of blowing bubblegum, but on a giant industrial scale. Producing plastic that is on the physical scale of a building involves a massive tubular bubble of inflated plastic being blown upwards into a vertical scafoolding structure.

Plasticbag
Flexpack
Reifenhauser

Extrusion:

Extrusion occurs in a variety of forms, from the low-tech squeeze of a toothpaste tube and the making of foods such as long-stranded pasta, to aluminium window frames and the continuous lengths of hard-boiled egg that McDonald's slices into its salads.

Eastman
Tomdixon
AEC

Pultrusion:

Pultrusion is much less common as a plastic-processing method than its more familiar relative, extrusion. The processes are similar in that they allow continuous lengths of a aet and an unchanging profile to be formed, but one of the main differences between them is that extrusion can be used for aluminiums, wood-based composites and thermoplastics, while pultrusion is used in the forming of composites that use long strands of fibre as reinforcement. The process is based on pulling the blended materials of the composite through a heated die.

Fibreforce
Acmanet
Pultruders

Pulshaping:

It is one of the newest additions to the manufacturing world and the processing of composites. It addresses one of the biggest problems - the constant, unvarying cross-section along the whole length - in the pultrusion process. Pulshaping allows designers to modify a cross-sectional shape in three dimensions during continuous processing of components in fibre-reinforced plastics.

Pultrusiondynamics

Roll Forming:

Roll forming can be used to produce continuous lengths of anything from simple shapes in a single operation to quite complex profiles that require a number of passes through different rollers, from square sections to round shapes and from folded flanges to box sections. In simple terms, roll forming involves passing a continuous sheet of metal, plastic or even glass, over or through a series of at least two shaped rollers.

Graphicmetal
Crsauk
PMA
Britishmetalforming
Steelsections
Corusgroup

Rotary Swaging (AKA Radial Forming) with stationary-spindle and flat swaging:

Rotary swaging is used to alter the diameter of a range of metal tubing, rods and wires. The process involves the original material being fed through a series of rotating steel dies, which form the material to the required profile (which is always symmetrical and round). As they are rotating, the dies perform a hammering action at a rate of up to approximately 1000 hits per minute, basically battering the work piece into shape.

Torrington-machinery
Felss
Elmill

Pre-Crimp Weaving:

Pre-crimp weaving is a great case study in how unexpected materials can be woven and used decoratively. In the same way that soft fabrics are woven for decoration, rigid lengths of wire can be woven to dress and adorn our urban landscapes.

Wiremesh

Veneer Cutting (Including rotary cutting and slicing):

It is too obvious to say that trees are one of the richest sources of materials, food and shelter, but, for me, the production of veneers demonstrates the ingenuity and resourcefulness of humans in converting an object into a variety of usable forms. Peeling a tree in continuous strips to create veneers has to be one of the most economical uses for a tree and it unravels the life of the tree in the process, clearly displaying the evidence of its nutrition and lifespan.

There are two main methods for forming veneers: slicing (which involves slicing the tree - or, by now, more likely the log - along its length) and rotary cutting (which involves peeling the log in a continuous strip right into its centre until nothing is left).

TTF
HPVA
Nordictimber
Veneerselector

Glass Blowing by Hand:

It involves blowing air through a metal tube to inflate a ball of gathered glass at the end of the tube. A mass of molten glass is gathered onto the end of a steel tube, ready to be blown. Various hand tools are used to shape the hot glass, in this case a stack of wet fabric.

Nazeing-galss
Kostaboda
Glassblowers
cemr
Handmade-glass

Lampworking Glass Tube:

There are hundreds of ways of handworking glass, employing both hot and cold (cutting, for example) processes for making objects without the need for tooling. Lampworking involves the localised heating of a piece of glass to allow it to be pushed, pulled and generally shaped by a skilled craftsman. The process starts with a hollow tube of glass, which is set into a slowly rotating lathe. Heat from a blowlamp is applied to specific areas, which are then pushed with a wooden former.

Asgs-glas
BSSG

Glass Blow and Blow Moulding:

The industrial blow moulding of glass today consists of two main methods: blow and blow, and press and blow. The blow and blow method is used to make bottles with narrow necks, such as wine bottles. A mixture of sand, sodium carbonate and calcium carbonate is fed, via a conveyor belt, into a furnace at the top of factory. It is heated to make molten glass. This molten glass is released through a series of slides, and, through gravity, falls into a fat sausage shape, called a gob. The gob is blown down into the mould, the gob is the starting point for the bottle. Air is injected into the neck to make a partially formed blank, including the neck. The blank is rotated 180 degree and transferred to a second mould. More air is injected. Air is injected until the glass is blown to form the final shape, with the glass walls at the correct thickness. The glass bottle is lifted out of the mould.

vetreriebruni
Saint-gobain-emballage
Packaging-gateway
Glassassociation
Glasspac
Beatsonclark

Glass Press and Blow Moulding:

A form of industrial glass blow moulding, the technique known as 'press and blow' is used to make wide-mouthed containers such as jam jars, rather than the narrow-necked items, such as wine bottles, that are made with the blow and blow process. The main difference between the techniques occurs during the moulding process. Instead of being blown, to create wide-mouthed vessels the 'gob' of glass is pressed onto a male former inside the mould cavity.

Vetreriebruni
Britglass
saint-gobain-conditionnement
Beatsonclark

Plastic Blow Moulding:

Blow moulding is an umbrella term that describes one of the major industrial mass-production methods for producing a whole host of hollow products. It is a process that can be used for moulding plastic containers as well as glass bottles.

rpc-group
BPF

Injection Blow Moulding (with injection stretch moulding):

Injection blow moulding is most easily described as being a subdivision of plastic blow moulding, the process that works on the same principle as blowing up a ballon, but into a mould that forms the shape.

Rpc-group
BPF

Extrusion Blow Moulding (with co-extrusion blow moulding):

Extrusion blow moulding is part of the plastic blow moulding group of processes. In this particular method, the plastic is extruded into a sausage shape known as a 'lug' and pinched into short lengths as it drops into the mould cavity.It is blown with air, forcing the plastic against the mould cavity to form the final shape.

Weltonhurst

Dip Moulding:

Dipping a shape into a material that has been melted is possibly one of the oldest methods of forming shapes. It is also one of the simplest techniques to understand, and, in terms of tools and moulds, it is one of the cheapest methods of producing plastic products. In principle, the process of dip moulding is incredibly straightforward. As the name suggests, you simply dip a former into a liquid polymer bath, let it cure and peel it off.

WJC
Uptechnology
WADE
Qualatex

Rotational Moulding (AKA Roto Moulding and Rotational Casting):

Rotational moulding is all about making things that are hollow. If you have ever wanted to know how chocolate Easter eggs are made, then the answer lies in this method of production. Rotational moulding is based on a similar idea to ceramic slip casting. A liquid material is built up on the internal cavity of a mould, allowing the manufacture of hollow parts.

BPF
Rotomolding

Slip Casting:

In slip casting, ceramic particles are first suspended in water to form 'slip', which is something like the colour and consistency of melted chocolate. This slip is tipped into a plaster mould. Because the dry plaster mould is porous, the liquid is absorbed from the outer layers of the slip, leaving a coating of leathery and hard ceramic on the inner surface of the mould. The slip is allowed to sit in the mould until a sufficient thickness has built up. The mould is turned upside down and any remaining muddy liquid is poured out. The excess ceramic around the opening of the mould is trimmed to produce a clean edge before the product is released for firing.

Ceramfed
Cerameunie

Hydroforming Metal (AKA Fluid Forming):

It is a new process for forming steel and other metals. First, In tube forming, the metal tube is inserted into a two-part die and sealed at either end, with only one opening that allows the liquid to be fed in. A water and oil solution is used to fill the tube and a pressure of up to 15,000 psi is applied by inserting plugs at either end of the tube, forcing the water to 'fill-out' the tube until it conforms to the die cavity. The solution is emptied from the filled-out tube. The final, hollow part is removed.

Hydroforming
Salzgitter.westsachsen
=====================================================

Backward Impact Extrusion (AKA Indirect Extrusion):

Impact extrusion is a cold process for forming metals that marries forging with extrusion. There are in fact two types of impact extrusion, forward extrusion and backward extrusion. Backward (or indirect) extrusion is used to make hollow shapes.The forward (or direct) extrusion, can only produce solid sections.

MPMA
SIGG
Aluminium

Moulding Paper Pulp (including rough pulp moulding and thermoforming):

Paper is one of the most efficiently collected and recycled materials of the modern age. Much of what is collected is converted into pulp to make new products for a variety of inductries. However, it is the moulding of paper pulp using highly unsusal mass-production technology that makes it particularly noteworthy. The manufacture of moulded paper products is based on two methods: the conventional rough (or industrial) pulp process and a thermoforming process.

Huhtamaki
Mouldedpaper
Paperpulpsolutions
Vaccari
Vernacare

Contact Moulding (including hand lay-up and spray lay-up moulding, vacuum-bag and pressure-bag forming):

Contact moulding is a method of forming composites by taking plastic reinforcement fibres, layering them, then applying liquid resin over the top to create a hard shell. In its simplest form - the traditional hand lay-up method - the reinforcements are laid over a mould before the liquid resin is brushed or sprayed into it. In industry , it is a process for producing large-scale mouldings in composite materials, and it is one of the most frequent methods of combining various types of reinforcement fibre with thermoset resins.

Compositetek
Netcomposites
Compositesone
Composites-by-design
Fiberset

Vacuum Infusion Process (VIP):

It is a method of forming composites that achieves density and strength in the end product by sucking the resin and reinforcement fibres together into a dense, solid mass. It is an advanced form of contact moulding and, compared with similar techniques for forming composites, it is a clean and highly effective process through which the two main ingredients can be combined in a single step.

Resininfusion
Reichhold
Epoxi

Autoclave Moulding:

Advanced composites materials have applications across a range of industries, from premium branded sports products to engineering components. Autoclave moulding is a modified form of pressure-bag forming - the composite is formed in what is essentially a pressure cooker. As a result of the applied pressure, it is one of the methods of forming advanced composite components with particularly high density.

Netcomposites

Filament Winding:

Imagine impregnating the thread on a cotton reel with resin and then being able to pull the wound off its reel to form a rigid plastic cylindrical part: this is the essence of filament winding. In the process, Fibres are unwound from several reels at a time. The fibres are pulled through a polymer bath, where a drum coats them in resin. The impregnated threads, 'tows', are wound at an angle (this is helical winding) onto the preformed mandrel by a carriage that moves along the length of the part. The resin acts like glue to hold the threads in shape. Once the resin has cured, the part can be removed.

Ctgltd
Vetrotexeurope
Composites-proc-assoc
Acmanet

Centrifugal Casting (including true- and semi-centrifugal casting, and centrifuging):

It is a process that is based on a specific use of gravity. The same force that is at work when lettuce leaves are spun in a salad spinner, or when people are rotated in a waltzer at the funfair, is employed to thrust a heated liquid material horizontally against the inside of a mould. In the process molten metal is poured into a sealed mould. The mould is rotated around its axis at between 300 and 3000 rpm. The rotating action of the mould throws the metal against the inside walls of the mould. The quantity of metal determines the wall thickness of the final component. The finished component, removed from the mould.

SGVA
Acipco
Jtprice

Electroforming:

This process has changed very little since the early nineteenth century, when simple electroplating - a way of palating metals from their salts - was developed out of the initial work of British scientist Sir Humphry Davy on passing currents through electrolytes. Electroforming is based on the electro-depositing of metal onto moulds. The shape that would, in simple electroplating, be coated (the cathode), in electroforming becomes a mould onto which the metalising source (the anode) is grown, in a solution of electrolyte. An electrical current forces metal ions from the anode onto the cathode.

AESF
DRC
Ajtuckco
Finishing
Precisionmicro

Sintering (including pressure-less, pressure and spark sintering, die-pressing and sintering):

Sintering (a derivative of the word 'cinder') was traditionally associated with the manufacture of ceramic objects. The term is now, however, also widely used in the much larger manufacturing area of powder metallurgy. Essentially, sintering involves heating a particular material to just below its melting point until the particles fuse together. Various forms of sintering exist in the metals, plastics, glass and ceramics industries. Pressure-less sintering involves a powder being placed in a mould that is heated and vibrated, and then sintered. Pressure sintering involves powder being placed ina mould, vibrated and then heated, with pressure applied either mechanically or hydraulically. In spark sintering, a pulsed current passes through the mould into the powder, generating heat internally. Die-pressing and sintering is used predominantly for ceramic or metal powders. Sintering is used to achieve high density in parts made from materials with high melting points, such as tungsten and Teflon where low porosity is needed.

MPIF
CISP

Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP):

It is one of the main processes for forming materials that fall under the umbrella term 'powder metallurgy' (a term that now also refers to other particulate materials, including ceramics and plastics). Heat and pressure, typically in the form of argon or nitrogen gas, are applied to powder resulting in parts with no porosity and high density, without the need for sintering. The word 'isostatic' indicates that pressure is applied equally from all sides. The process involves powdered materials being placed inside a container which is subjected to high temperature and vacuum pressure to remove air and moisture from the powder.

MPIF
ceramics
aiphip
bodycote
hip.bodycote

Cold Isostatic Pressing (CIP):

The best way to sum up this process is to think of squeezing wet sand between your hands so that most of the water is forced out, leaving a fairly hard lump that resembles the inside of your hand. It is a method of forming ceramics or metal components at ambient temperatures from powders, and it involves the powder being placed in a flexible rubber bag, which squeezes around the mould when equal pressure is applied from all directions, compressing and compacting the powders into a uniform density. A particulate material is placed in a rubber bag. Pressure is then applied, compressing and compacting the powder into a uniform density.

Dynacer
Designcenter

Compression Moulding:

This process can be pressed into service for forming several different materials. On the one hand, it is used for producing ceramics, and on the other, it can be used to mould thermoset plastics (it was the original method for forming Bakelite), as well as fibre-based plastic composites.

BPF
Corkmasters
Amorimsolutions

Transfer Moulding:

An alternative to compression moulding and with some of the benefits of injection moulding, transfer moulding is typically used to make large mouldings with varying wall thicknesses and fine surface detail. The process invoves a polymer resin being heated and loaded into a charger, where a plunger compresses the material. The heated material is then 'transfered' to a closed mould cavity.

Hexcel
Raytheonaircraft

Foam Moulding:

Unlike many other plastic-processing methods, the production of expanded plastic foam requires the material expanded polypropylene (EPP) - to go through a pre-expansion process before it can be manufactured. It's a bit like preparing the ingredients before you embark on a recipe. The raw material of tiny spherical plastic beads is expanded to about 40 times its original size by the combined use of steam and pentane. Once cooled, a partial vacuum is formed inside the beads, which are then left for approximately 12 hours to allow the pressure to equalise with the external environment. The final stage involves the beads being reheated with steam, inside an aluminium mould. Once cooled, the formed part is removed.

Magismetoo
Tuscarora
Epsmolders
Besto

Foam Moulding into Plywood Shell:

The frame for a table is formed from a two part male and female press. The formed components ready for assembly. The structure of the table is made by gluing the formed components together. Presses form the plywood around the table frame.

Aliasdesign

Inflating Wood:

The eventual product is a composite structure, with plywood skins sandwiching a foam core. Areas of the plywood surfaces are clamped in a retaining jig. Expanding liguid foam is introduced, and the unretained surfaces move freely to form compound curves. The sizes of these wavy forms and the technique are not restricted to linear and parallel boards, but are based solely on the predetermined plywood stock sheet sizes.

Curvycomposites

Forging (with open- and closed-die (drop), press and upset forging):

Forging is a major process in metal forming, sometimes utilising architectural-scale machines for pounding netals into shape. It is not only a method of forming metal, it also produces a change in its physical properties, resulting in enhanced strength and ductility. In its simplest manual form - open-die forging - it involves a chunk of metal being heated to just above its recrystallisation temperature and then being formed into shape by repeated blows with a hammer, as performed by a traditional blacksmith. In closed-die (or drop) forging the shaped hammer is held in a machine and repeatedly dropped onto the metal, which sits in a shaped die. The shape of the two parts determines the formed shape.

Forging
IIFTEC
Key-to-steel
Kingdicktools
Britishmetalforming

Powder Forging (AKA Sinter Forging):

Powder metal forging is a process that sits within the realm of powder metallurgy. It combines sintering and forging to produce finished parts. As in other forms of powder metallurgy, the process begins with the forming of the metal powder into a 'green' state in a die. At this stage, the component is known as a 'pre-form', and is slightly different in shape from the final component. The pre-form is sintered to obtain a solid component, which is removed from the furnace, coated with a lubricant such as graphite, and transferred to a forging press. Here, the final component is formed in a closed-die forge, which forces the metal particles to interlock and become a solid, dense mass. The extra compaction provided by this process gives a highly dense, non-porous component.

mpif.org/DesignCenter/powder_forge
Gknsintermetals
Ascosintering

Precise-Cast Prototyping (pcPRO):

Precise-cast prototyping (or pcPRO) is a method for rapid prototyping that combines casting and milling operations in a single machine. It is a two-stage process, with the first stage involving a milling machine cutting a mould machine cutting a mould into an aluminium block using information from a CAD file. This mould is filled with a polymer resin. Once the resin has hardened, the same milling machine cuts it to a precise final shape.

Fraunhofer

Injection Moulding (with water injection technology (WIT)):

It is through this process that we are able to transform plastic into a mass of packaging, toys and casings for electronics. The process employs plastic pellets, which are fed from a hopper into a heated cylinder, which contains a screw. The screw carries the hot plastic, slowly melting it, and finally injecting it at high pressure into a series of gates and runners, which feed the polymer into a water-cooled steel mould.. Once the part has solidified under pressure, pins eject the finished part from the mould.

BPF
Injection-molding-resource

Reaction Injection Moulding (RIM) (With R-RIM and S-RIM):

It is a process that is used for producing structural foam components. RIM involves feeding two reactive thermosetting liquid resins into a mixing chamber. They are then injected through a nozzle into the mould, where an exothermic chemical reaction produces a self-forming, smooth skin over a foam core. The cured part is removed from the mould.

Pmahome
Rimmolding
Plasticparts

Gas-Assisted Injection Moulding:

In standard injection moulding, thermoplastics are heated and injected into a mould. Channels in the mould act to cool the plastic part begore it is released from the mould. During cooling, the part shrinks and moves away from the walls of the mould and, to compensate for this, more material is injected into the mould. An alternative to this widely used method is to inject gas, usually nitrogen, into the mould cavity while the plastic is still in its molten state. This internal force counteracts the shrinkage by inflating the component, forcing it to remain in contact with the surface of the mould until it solidifies, resulting in parts with hollow sections or cavities. There are two types of gas-assisted injection moulding: internal and external moulding.

Magisdesign
Gasinjection

Insert Moulding:

It is a branch of multicomponent moulding, which is a method of combining different plastics in the course of only a single manufacturing process. In the process, plastic in injected over a performed component, for example, the metal shaft of a screwdriver. The moulded plastic part (together with the shaft) is removed by robotic arms and transferred into a separate die. At this point, a second plastic is injected over the original moulding. This process can be repeated as many times as necessary to build up the required number of materials. The finished component is removed from the mould.

Engel
BPF
Mckechnie
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In-Mould Decoration:

As the name implies, this is not a method of production as such, but, rather, in-mould decoration was developed as an economical way of adding decorative surfaces to injection-moulded plastic parts. It offers a way of eliminating the ne cecessity of having to print directly onto a part in a separate, post-forming process.

Autotype
Filminsertmoulding

Over-Mould Decoration:

It is not really a method of production in its own right, but rather an extension of standard injection moulding, as part of a two-step process. What is particularly noteworthy about it is that it can give plastic components an almost craft like quality by the way it cleverly allows a different material to cover the plastic in the mould.

DOW
Filminsertmoulding

Metal Injection Moulding (HIM):

A variation on standard injection moulding (which uses plastics), metal injection moulding is a relatively new way of producing complex shapes in large numbers from metals that have a high melting point, such as tool steel and stainless steel that would not be suitable for high-pressure die-casting. In the process, binders are mixed with metal powders to produce the moulding compound. This is fed into the injection-moulding machine to form a 'green' component. After the shape has been moulded, the binder is removed from the metal particles and discarded. This step is achieved in a number of ways depending on the specific manufacturer. What is left is sintered to weld the metal particles together. This shrinks the component by about 20 percent.

Mimparts
Pi-castings
mpif

High-Pressure Die-Casting:

It is one of the most economical methods of producing metal components with complex shapes. It is the process to use if you want to produce high volumes of intricate components. In this sense, it is similar to metal injection moulding, but its main advantage over MIM is that it is suitable for metals with low melting-points where no sintering is required. In the process, molten metal is poured into a reservoir. A plunger forces the liquid under high pressure into a die cavity. The pressure is maintained until the metal solidifies, at which time small ejector pins push the components out of the die.

Castmetalsfederation
Diecasting

Investment Casting (AKA Lost-Wax Casting):

The name 'investment casting' is taken from the idea that the process involves 'invetsment' in a sacrificial material, and it is characterized by its ability to produce highly complex shapes. In this process, wax patterns are made using an aluminium die, which is reused to obtain the required number. The individual wax patterns are assembled onto a wax runner. The assembled runner is dipped into ceramic slurry and dried to form the hard ceramic skin. The process is repeated until sufficient layers have built up. The runner is placed in an oven to melt the wax so that it can be poured out before the ceramic is fired. Molten metal is poured into the fired ceramic shells. After colling, the ceramic is broken away and each metal part can be removed from the tree inside.

Polycast
Castmetalfederation
Castingstechnology
Pi-castings
TMS
Maybrey

Sand Casting (including CO2 silicate and shell casting):

Of the many attributes of sand, one that stands out is the fact that it is a refractoy material. This means that it can withstand extremely high temperatures, and thus easily accommodate molten metals for casting. In the process, first, the original pattern (which includes the runners and risers) is embedded in each of the two halves of the sand box. Once the sand has been compacted, the pattern is removed. The two halves of the sand box are brought together and secured with aligning pins. Molten metal is poured into the runners, filling the mould cavity. Once the casting has cooled, the part is pulled from the sand.

icme
Castingsdev
Castingstechnology
Engineersedge
Engineersedge

Pressing Glass:

Described as the closest thing to 'injection moulding for glass', the pressed glass process makes it possible to mass-produce intricate glass products with detailing on the inside, as well as the outside, of the shapes. The male and female moulds are preheated and maintained at a steady temperature to ensure that the hot glass will not stick to the moulds. The gob of gummy, molten glass is squashed between the two moulds. The thickness of the final component is determined by the amount of space left between the male and female moulds.

nazeing-glass
glasspac
britglass

Pressure-Assisted Slip Casting (with pressure-assisted drain casting):

It is a development of conventional ceramic slip casting. It offers several manufacturing advantages that affect the speed and complexity of the final component. In pressure-assisted slip casting, a more resilient material, with larger holes, is used for the mould. The size of the holes means that the capillary action is reduced and replaced by the use of pressure. This involves pumping the slip into the porous plastic mould. Under this pressure, the water seeps out through naturally occuring capillary tubes in the mould. Once dried, the form is taken out of the mould and any imperfections are cleaned off. The product is then dried in fast dryers and sprayed with a glaze before firing.

ceramfed
cerameunie
ceram
Ideal-standard

Viscous Plastic Processing (VPP):

Plastics make up the group that is the most versatile in terms of production techniques available. However, other materials, such as metals and ceramics, are all being explored to find new ways of mass-producing components using plastic-state forming techniques. This allows materials that have traditionally limited means of forming, including ceramics, to be formed using methods such as injection moulding. Viscous plastic processing, or VPP, is a method of enhancing the properties of ceramic materials that eliminate the microstructural defects in ceramic materials, resulting in a way of processing ceramics that is much more flexible and, to use the technical term, 'plastic' in its nature. The process involves ceramic powders being mixed with a viscous polymer under high pressure. This mixture can then be used to form components through a range of fabrication techniques, including extrusion and injection moulding.

ceram

Inkjet Printing:

Desktop printers have allowed anyone with a computer to turn a desk into a place where all sorts of things can happen. The seemingly humble pronter may well be the hub of a revolution that will change the way we make objects. The day will soon come when we will be able to download plans for a product (a door handle, for example) and make it from our own desktop three-dimensional printer, which has been loaded with the appropriate raw materials, in the same way that you load up your bread-maker last thing at night so that you can enjoy a fresh loaf in the morning. Already, Homaro Cantu, a chef based at Moto's restaurant in Chicago, has turned a Canon i560 inkjet printer into a machine for making food.

Motorestaurant

Contour Crafting:

This is a process that has the potential to revolutionise the construction industry. Dr Behrokh Khoshnevis, of the University of Southern California, has invented a machine that 'prints' houses. It is an advanced form of spraying concrete. The machines that are at the heart of this technology use a method of depositing concrete that is similar to that used in inkjet printers and extrusion. The technology is on a much larger scale, and it includes the ability of the 'printing' head to move in six axes and build up material in layers, based on CAD drawings rather than on two-dimensional graphics.

Contourcrafting
Freeformconstruction

Stereolithography (SLA):

It is one of the best known methods of rapid prototyping. Driven by a CAD file, components are produced by a laser, which scans a bath of photosensitive resin, building the components layer by layer. The ultraviolet laser beam is focused onto the surface of the liquid, tracing the cross-section of the part and turning successive thin layer of the liquid into solid.

crdm
Materialise
Freedomofcreation

Electroforming for Micro-Moulds:

Swiss company Mimotec, has developed the process of electroforming to the extent that it can be used to make micro-moulds. Micro-moulding is closer to the seriously minuscule nano-end of the scale, rather than small-scale moulding, with parts being produced that can weigh as little as a few thousandths of a gram with details that measure only a few microns thick. Micro-moulds can be made by a number of different methods, including a micro-milling technique (where material is cut away). Mimotec, however, has harnessed the fine detailing achievable with electroforming to produce the most minute of moulds. This process is just one of many new methods of forming nano-scale components, and it is an excellent demonstration of the ever-advancing research that is going on in this field of production engineering.

Mimotec

Selective Laser Sintering (SLS):

Innovation in production techniques has recently been dominated by advances in rapid prototyping. Designers are increasingly able to exploit the potential to make unique objects directly from a CAD file on a computer and selective laser sintering (SLS) is just one of the significant developments, opening up a world of rapid prototyping. Sintering is a significant part of the field of powder metallurgy and it can be used in a number of different production methods. Selective laser sintering is an adapted form of sintering in which a laser is used to solidify precise areas in a powder block in order to produce lightweight components. As in any sintering process, a powdered material acts as the strating point. A laser, driven by a CAD file, is fired repeatedly into the powder, fusing the particles together layer by layer until the specific component is built up.

mcp-group
Blogs.zdnet

Smart Mandrels for Filament Winding:

Shape-memory alloys and polymers are big news in the world of materials. Characterised by their ability to be 'programmed' to a particular shape, once heated and softened they can be bent out of this shape and re-formed into a new shape, which is retained once the material has cooled. The clever part is that when reheated, the part will return to its original 'programmed' shape. Filament winding using Smart Mandrels means that the filament can be wound around the material, which is subsequently heated, softened and returned to its 'programmed' straight tube shape. This allows the completed filament winding to be easily removed.

crgrp

Incremental Sheet-Metal Forming:

One of the major research areas in manufacturing at the moment is in the arena of 'industrial craft', a term that embraces a range of technologies that allow for a very flexible approach to mass-production by eliminating the need for specialised tooling. Incremental sheet-metal forming has the potential to revolutionise sheet-metal forming, making it available for low volumes of production for customised parts. Incremental sheet-metal forming is a type of rapid prototyping for sheet metal using a mobile indentor, so that almost any three-dimensional shell-shape can be made, without the need for specialised tooling. In the process the shape of the component is drawn as a CAD file. The metal sheet is fixed into a clamp and a single-point tool presses the sheet into shape. Then the final component is removed.

ifm.eng.cam

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Other Links:

Rimex Metals
Chemical Milling (Tech-Etch)
Chemical Milling (Micro)
Chemical Milling (Photofabrication)
CNC (DEMAKERSVAN)
CNC (CNC MOTION)
CNC (TARUS)
Die Cutting (AMBRO)
Die Cutting
Die Cutting (BPF)
EBM (ARCAM)
EBM (SODICK)
Jiggering & Jollying
Machining (PMA)
Machining (NIMS)
Machining Resources (Khake)
Plasma-Arc Cutting (AWS)
Plasma-Arc Cutting (TWI)
Plasma-Arc Cutting (IIW)
Plasma-Arc Cutting (Hypertherm)
Plasma-Arc Cutting (Centricut)
Turning (WADE)
Turning (Fraunhofer)
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Mould flow simulation is carried out through MoldflowXpress in SolidWorks. It is a wizard–based design validation tool unique to SolidWorks. MoldflowXpress can be used as a first step to quickly and easily test the manufacturability of plastic injection-molded parts.

MoldflowXpress reduces development cost and time-to-market by analyzing how to:

· Minimize part wall thickness

· Determine the best injection point location

· Optimize plastics part designs for manufacturability

In this post I want to Start Moldflow Xpress procedures on a 3D CAD model (Telephone Base):

Step 1: In SolidWorks, from menu select Tools and then from tools menu select Moldflow Xpress... (Figure Below).

Step 2: MoldflowXpress welcome window will appear.

Step 3: I will Specify an Injection Location somewhere on flat surface of the telephone base.

Step 4: In next step I will assign a plastic material. Click on the Material tab, and select PC – Polycarbonate.

Step 5: The next step to setting up a design validation analysis within MoldflowXpress is to specify the process conditions, melt and mold temperature and plus the option to calculate or specify the injection time.

Step 6: Final Step is to run a MoldflowXpress Design Validation Analysis.

In this step by clicking on Analyze tab the injection moulding process will commence.

The following pictures illustrates the process of injection moulding:

Upon analysis completion:

· A Fill Time plot is shown in the graphics area. The scale indicates the time required for the plastic melt to flow from the injection point through the mold.
· A result summary appears in the dialog box. For this analysis, the part may be difficult to fill and part quality may be unacceptable.

By clicking Advice on the Results tab for results-specific advice. In this case, suggestions include increasing part thickness, moving the injection location, and so on.

Other suggestions include the addition of mold features such as sprues, runners, and gates. These mold features are available by upgrading to Moldflow Plastics Advisers for SolidWorks products.

Final results and advice summary:
Message:

The part may be difficult to fill and part quality may be unacceptable (Amber light shown in above picture).

Resolution:

To improve filling, you can try to increase part wall thickness, move the injection location, select a different material or change process conditions.
Also, it is strongly recommended that the analysis be run with grade-specific material data to determine actual injection pressure requirements and the resulting pressure and temperature distributions.
Additionally, mold features such as sprues, runners and gates should be analyzed to determine their effect on the manufacturability and quality of the part.

Solution:To solve the problem the thickness of the wall has been increased.
This time the result is satisfactory. The amber light turns into green light which says “The part can be easily filled with acceptable quality using the current injection location”. The following picture shows the final result.

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Virtual Reality CNC milling (Vertical Router):

After loading the file with extension of STL in Quickcam Pro and setting up billet size and surface finishing option the following procedure need to be followed:

Click on "Select real machine" button. If it didn't appear try to open the CNC machine door and close it again and make sure it is completely closed and secured.
Click on "Home" button. Then click on "Jog" button. By using the arrow keys and page up and down find a suitable point on the board (Billet) which is screwed to the machine. Then find the coordinate (X=a, Y=b, Z=c).
Create a new name in "Tool and offset editor window" which is the same name as the STL file and activate it.
Copy the coordinate (X=a, Y=b, Z=c) found in step 2 into the "Tool and offset editor". When entering the coordinate round up the numbers and in Z axis add -10 to the coordinate of the Z which is found in step 2 in order to check the virtual operation (X=a, Y=b, Z=c -10).
Click on "Home" button. The drill bit will move to the home coordinate (X=0, Y=0, Z=0).
Click on "Auto" button.
Click on "Turbo mode".
Click on "Stop".
Click on "Rewind".
Click on "Play".
The machine will start to operate.

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I have tried to explain some important expressions used in CAM software, which is important to understand those terms when setting up the CAM software for simulation such as Powermill DELCAM. In future more expressions will be added to the post.

1. Spindle Speed: The angular speed of the CNC machine spindle. Measured in rev/min, rpm units.

2. Cutting Feed Rate: The rate at which the cutting tool and the workpiece move in relation to one another. Cutting Feed rate is the velocity at which the cutter is fed, that is, advanced against the workpiece. it is often expressed in units of distance per time for milling (typically inches per minute [ipm] or millimeters per minute [mm/min]).

3. Thickness: It is the amount of extra material specified to remain on the work-piece after machining.

4. Stepover: The size of the cutter's diameter that is engaged in a cut. The step-over should be 75% to 80% of the cutter's diameter.

5. Tolerance: It controls the accuracy to which the cutter path follows the shape of the work-piece. For roughing a Coarse tolerance can be used but for finishing a Fine tolerance must be used.
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The instruction of setting a laser cutting machine in Corel Draw is explained as following:

Open Corel Draw 12 > Open "New Drawing" > Set page size to 900mm (W) x 600mm (H).
Using the rulers at the side of the white page, pull out guides to mark out your material size, i.e. 300mm x 300mm.
Insert and scale a JPEG/TEXT and place into the material area. to do this goto File>Insert>Picture.
For Print Preview: Go to File>Print>Preview, to check image and layout. Press the X in the top right corner to close preview screen.
Go to Print>in the print dialogue box select "Epilog Engraver Win32".
Click Properties box>Set resolution to 600 dpi>Set piece size to 90 x 60 (cm).
Alter Raster and vector setting: (Speed = approx. 76% and Power = approx. 73%).
Job type = "Combined".
Turn on the laser PLUS the Vaccum (Switches are on wall behind and to the right of laser cutter).
Place your piece of material onto laser bed, lined up with top left corner (as above picture).
Press OK in print menu on Screen>Print.
Press Green start button on front of laser.