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About Accumold:Accumold is a high-tech manufacturer of precision micro, small and lead-frame injection-molded plastic components. Utilizing processes based on its Micro-Mold® technology, the company designs, builds and produces unique molds and parts efficiently for markets that include micro-electronics, automotive, micro-optics, medical, and defense. Accumold is an ISO 9001:2000-certified company with a state-of-the-art, 38,000-sq.-ft. production plant built in 2001. The Accumold facilities are located near Des Moines, Iowa, in the heart of the Midwest. The building is climate-controlled and houses two Class 100,000 clean rooms for electronic and medical applications. The facility also includes space for MEMS packaging and lead-frame assembly, as well as space for subsystem assembly. Accumold |
Advancing plastic parts production
Accumold has spent the past 20 years advancing micromolding technology. Recently, the Midwest company adapted insert molding and 2-shot molding—two long-used industry processes—for the production of microscale plastic parts. The developments, according to Accumold, augment the high-tech capabilities it already offers customers.
Each process brings with it some familiar challenges, such as material bonding, ensuring clean shut-offs, and proper insert placement and alignment. In the micro world, these are compounded by the fact that there is very little area to work with because the part sizes are often so small. According to Accumold Technology Manager Greg Peterson, “Careful planning and creative thinking are required to meet the demands. Each new program presents new challenges in part or material handling. Innovation is required at every step.”
Added Accumold Vice President of Sales and Marketing Jim Conkey, “It’s always been our goal to bring the most relevant and up-to-date capabilities to the micromanufacturing realm. We’ve been over-molding and producing multimaterial parts for many, many years. We’re excited about what the latest advancements bring to our customers.”
With 2-shot micromolding, two different plastic materials are shot in sync, making the process a single-step operation. Customers often look to this type of process in micromolding to remove intense labor, create a more robust part configuration or as a cost-savings measure.
Insert molding is a process that allows various materials—from metals to glass—to be combined with plastic parts. Each of the parts shown encapsulate a fragile insert material. The job required the mold to be built in such a way that the insert material wasn’t damaged during the molding process while maintaining tight part tolerances.
