Injection Mold Design: Engineering Your Success
Injection Mold Design: Engineering
The transition from a great product idea to a manufacturable part requires specialized expertise. Injection mold design is more than just creating a tool—it’s the critical process of engineering a system that guarantees your part is produced reliably, consistently, and cost-effectively at high volumes.
At Polymach365, our experienced design team uses Design for Manufacturability (DFM) principles to optimize both your part and the tooling, ensuring peak performance for the life of the mold.
We turn complex part designs into robust, production-ready steel and aluminum tooling, built to deliver millions of perfect cycles.
💡 The Core of Our DFM Philosophy
We view mold design as a preventive discipline, addressing potential molding issues upfront to save you time and cost down the line. Our design process focuses on three pillars:
Part Geometry Optimization
We work with your existing CAD files to recommend crucial adjustments that enhance part strength and moldability.
- Uniform Wall Thickness: Promoting even cooling and preventing defects like warpage and sink marks.
- Draft Angle Inclusion: Adding the necessary taper to vertical walls to allow the part to eject smoothly, protecting both the part surface and the tool.
- Rib and Boss Design: Correctly sizing reinforcing ribs and mounting bosses to provide structural support without creating internal voids or sink marks.
- Gate Location: Strategically placing the point where plastic enters the cavity to ensure optimal material flow, consistent filling, and minimal cosmetic impact.
Mold Feature Engineering
The mold components determine the part’s final shape and features. Our design expertise ensures complex features function flawlessly for millions of cycles.
- Undercuts and Actions: Designing the internal mechanisms (slides, lifters, or core pulls) required to form features that are not in the main line of draw (like snaps, clips, or holes).
- Gating & Runner Systems (Hot vs. Cold): Choosing the most efficient system. Hot runners reduce waste and cycle time, while cold runners offer simplicity and low initial cost.
- Venting: Designing microscopic vents to allow trapped air and gases to escape the mold cavity, preventing defects like short shots or burn marks.
- Cooling Systems: Engineering efficient water lines to regulate mold temperature, which is crucial for achieving fast cycle times and dimensional stability.
Advanced Simulation & Validation
We leverage modern technology to test the mold virtually before fabrication begins.
- Mold Flow Analysis: Using sophisticated software to simulate how the molten plastic will fill the cavity under pressure. This predicts and helps us correct issues such as knit lines, pressure drops, and cooling imbalance.
- Tolerance Analysis: Ensuring all critical part dimensions and feature locations meet your engineering specifications and stack-up requirements.
🛠️ Design Stages and Deliverables
Our collaborative process ensures you are informed and confident at every step.
| Stage | Focus & Goal | Deliverables |
|---|---|---|
| Concept & Quote | Reviewing your design and determining feasibility, material, and required tooling type. | Preliminary DFM Report & Cost Estimate |
| Detailed Design | Full 3D modeling of the mold structure, runner, cooling, and ejection systems. | Comprehensive 3D Tool Design Files (CAD) |
| Final Review | Client approval of the final design, material choices, and predicted cycle time. | Tooling Fabrication Sign-off & Final Simulation Report |