The North American unit of injection molding machine and automation supplier Engel has announced a medical symposium to be held October 2-4 at its Technical Center in Corona, CA. The three-day symposium will focus specifically on new developments in both thermoplastic and liquid silicone molding for the medical industry via three separate programs:
- Day one: Thermoplastic medical molding process focus
- Day two: Liquid silicone rubber medical molding process focus
- Day three: In-depth, hands-on training in liquid silicone rubber
Engel noted that attendees are welcome to attend one day, or all three, based on their interests. Planned technical sessions include:
- Preplan and Verify – Injection Molding Machine Concepts for the Medical Industry
- Injection Mold Strategies for Profitability
- Two Component Injection Molding – Soft to Hard
- New Processing Potential Unleashed
- Maximize Your Molding Efficiency and Improve Part Quality at the Same Time
- Healthcare Materials Designed With Your Needs In Mind
- LSR Applications in the Medical Industry & LSR Specific Machine Requirements
- LSR Dosing System Requirements and Solutions
- Understanding Silicone Viscosity Variation
- Silicone Molding in the Medical Industry
Hands-on machine training on day three will include:
- Dosing system maintenance and assembly: Cleaning, assembly and installation of various dosing system elements, as well as dosing system operation and trouble shooting.
- Injection unit maintenance and assembly: Cleaning, assembly and installation of LSR plasticizing unit, including the screw, barrel, non- return valve and pneumatic shut off nozzle.
- Process start up: Systematic approach to developing a stable LSR process, including start-up procedures, trouble shooting and setting up process monitoring systems.
Throughout the event, multiple injection molding cells will be running medical applications. Planned demonstrations include:
- A 200-tonne (55-ton) e-victory hybrid tie-bar-less running a 4-cavity LSR mold, producing a nasal prong, with automatic part removal via an Engel viper 6 linear servo robot. The system also features the Engel’s new flomo, technology, which it calls a compact temperature controlling water distribution system with electronic monitoring.
- An all-electric Engel e-motion 310-tonne (110-ton) machine will run a 16-cavity thermoplastic syringe mold, with extremely long and thin mold cores, requiring precision process control of high-speed injection. The tool, provided by Tech Mold, provides a side-gated/close-pitch design and runs a 5.5-second cycle.
- Engel 200-tonne (60-ton) e-motion with a viper 6 robot, utilizing the company’s x-melt process to mold a thin-walled device cover. Engel says the 0.3-mm thick wall showcases x-melt’s ability to produce thinwall or micro parts accumulator free.
