Published by: BOY Machines, Inc. news

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1 news Published by: BOY Machines, Inc. January 2018 Spritzgiessautomaten Editorial 25 Years Fakuma Friedrichshafen, Germany The Fakuma is the largest Exhibition worldwide dedicated nearly exclusively in injection molding and corresponding auxiliary equipment. This show is held in the picturesque scenery of the banks of the Lake of Constance close to the Alps in the town of Friedrichshafen. Ever since the beginning, this show in the triangle of three countries Germany, Austria and Switzerland - attracts more and more visitors not only from Europe but also from all over the world. With view to the importance of this show, BOY had thirteen of their injection molding machines on display. Seven machines were shown on the BOY booth and six machines on their partner booths. One highlight of the many applications was the tabletop machine BOY XXS which was first presented at the K This machine with a clamping force of seven US tons, has specifically been designed for micromolding part production. Another application is the production of Todd St. Pierre, President After a successful year, I would like to express sincere thanks to our customers for their continued support and trust in Boy Machines. prototype molding and small batches. This was shown with a 3D-printed metal mold insert. In a very small space you can have a complete production cell: the injection molding machine, an integrated material feeder and temperature device as well With many new changes this year, we at Boy Machines are positioned well to support and provide effective solutions for your requirements. Boy Machines will continue to provide excellent support and service to our customers with the addition of our new demo and training facilities. As our customer s requirements grow, Boy Machines is here to provide turnkey solutions and be your partner to success. Finally, Boy Machines is looking forward to a successful partnership with our customers in this new year. We look forward to seeing you at NPE 2018 and at our open house in the fall of Seven high-interested applications were in the focus of the visitors on the BOY booth 1

2 Fakuma 2017 Simultaneous movements made possible by two servo pump drives mounted on a BOY 100 E, helped to reduce the cycle time from 6.2 sec. to 5.5 seconds. The application as as good/bad part selector requiring a space of only 9.6 square feet. Another interesting application was shown on a BOY 35 E VV vertical injection molding machine. On this machine, a fully automatic production of a seven-fold cookie baking pan made of liquid silicone (LSR) was shown. Since demolding of LSR parts can be delicate, this application demonstrated the demolding together with a cost effective handling unit from IGUS. nent unit, BOY 2CS. This two component unit is available in different sizes for a wide range of shot weights. It can be used in conjunction with BOY injection molding machines as well as any other brand. two component machine. At the Fakuma, a pour spout for wine bottles made of NAS and TPE for the seal was produced. This interesting application will also be shown at the NPE next year. This definitely represents an interesting solution for two component molding since it provides flexibility for molders as it can be used on different sized machines and does not need an expensive investment of a shown at the Fakuma used the second servo pump drive to build up the nozzle pressure while at the same time the holding pressure was built up. Further time savings were realized with the part ejection being operated as on the fly. With a 48 cavity hot runner mold, Insulin-Pen-Caps made of PP were produced. This cycle time reduction generates a higher production output of approximately 12%, which means based on this application, seven million more parts can be produced per year, based on 2,000 hours of production time. Cycle time comparison using the example of a screw cap closure ( 5.7 s Two servo pumps + Servo-electric screw drive Servo pump 6.2 s DFE-pump BOY also exhibited a very impressive two component molding application on a BOY 60 E together with the two compo- + = ( 7.0 s Servo pump + Servo-electric screw drive 7.7 s Low Energy = High Efficiency Productivity 2

3 BOY Machines Opens New Demo & Training Facility As part of our ongoing improvements of our U.S. headquarters, BOY Machines, Inc. opened our brand-new, 900 ft2 demo and training facility, in late August. The new demo room has capacity for four machines. The equipment can be utilized for customer demonstrations, mold trials and training. We have already made good use of the room since it s opening and plan to conduct training classes in the future. The equipment in the lab ranges from BOY s largest to its smallest machine. The accompanying photo, shows a 110ton BOY 100 E servo-hydraulic press, our largest machine. We will also have our newest machine, the 7-ton BOY XXS tabletop micro molder. In the mid-size range, the lab has a 27.5-ton BOY 25 E servo-hydraulic machine with the latest Procan Alpha 4 control. There is also a 24ton BOY 22 A, with Procan Alpha 1 control. We have our vertical-injection / verticalclamp, an 11-ton BOY XSV as well. We have the capability to process thermoplastics, LSR and elastomers on various machines. We will continue to expand our capabilities in the demo room to better support our customer s requirements. We will have BOY integrated robots and pickers available at a later date for demonstration and training purposes. Improvements will continue to take place at BOY Machines, Inc. through the remainder of 2017 and into It is plan- ned to have an open house in the fall of 2018 to showcase BOY s capabilities, understand our customer s requirements and how we can best support them in the future. BOY XXS - the new table top machine The BOY XXS, the smallest machine in the BOY range, with 7 US tons of clamping force was developed especially for micro molding, proto type molding and for use in laboratories. This size of machine is often used in places where the water connection and drainage are not readily available. This machine was shown for the first time at the FAKUMA exhibition in Germany in self-contained configuration. A chiller, specifically designed for this machine model, is placed within the frame of the table, which is an available option for this machine. With this smaller chilling unit, no additional space is required. Depending on the material being processed, a small temperature control unit (TCU) can also be supplied. By utilizing these two self-contained pieces of equipment in conjunction with the BOY XXS, there are no external water connections required. This configuration is an ideal solution for the use with proto type molding and the use in laboratories where the machine is not in a continuous production process. As the photo shows, the table on which the BOY XXS is placed, is equipped with casters which enable the movement of the machine to another place when not in use. 3

4 BOY a long history in LSR molding When Liquid Silicone Rubber (LSR) was first introduced in 1979 for processing with injection molding machines, BOY saw the vast potential. When heated molds are required as they are with rubber molding, a precise and robust clamping system is required. Due to the advantages of a fully hydraulic clamping system and BOY s unmatched experience in this area, the BOY machine was a perfect solution for this type of application. Therefore, it was only logical that BOY looked more intensely into this new processing application. Shortly after the LSR material for molding became available, the first machines were supplied to customers for this application. Since this new material, due to the peroxide vulcanization which generates hardly any toxic split products and at this stage due to the high price for this material, about $ / Kg, the parts were exclusively manufactured for the medical industry. Baby bottle nipples were most popular parts produced in the beginning. Meanwhile the use for industrial applications became more prevalent. For instance, there are up to 2,000 different LSR parts in every new car today. the Processing of Liquid Silicone is quite different to thermoplastic processing. There are several critical points which have to be considered: Material Cost Avoidance of Waste In the beginning, which means about 40 years ago, the LSR material as mentioned was quite expensive. Since LSR like elastomer material cannot be recycled, it is imperative to avoid waste whenever possible. Especially the sprue and runners in multi cavity molds created many problems with a view to the production cost. BOY was the first at that stage to develop a 6-fold cold runner shut off nozzle for direct gating on the parts for the production of baby bottle nipples together with a mold maker. Later, cold runner systems were developed by several mold makers specializing in injection molds for LSR. However, still today for some applications the proven 6-fold shut off nozzle system is still used. Avoidance of flash When the LSR material is injected into the mold, it becomes very liquid and has the tendency to move into any little gap or space in the mold and specially into the parting line. To avoid this, a rigid clamping system which also absorbs material elongations when molds are heated up is required and a very precisely machined parting line of the mold halves. Further, a precisely controlled and sensitive injection process together with a high grade of reproducibility is a further requirement to avoid flash especially in an automatic production process. Avoiding Air Traps With the necessity of a precisely machined parting line, means air cannot escape from the cavities during the injection process, remaining air will either lead to air traps in the molded parts or parts not completely molded. In such cases where the configuration of the mold does not allow for air vents because of the precisely machined parting line, vacuum has to be used during the in jection process. Demolding Since the molded parts are very flexible and have a relatively low tearing strength, special considerations are necessary for the demolding process. Depending on the parts configuration, the demolding is supported or done by air, brushing units, robotic units or combination of these. Mix-Metering and Material Feeding As widely known, the LSR grade for injection molding consists of two components A and B component. These two components have to be precisely mixed to ensure a continuous part quality. The two components are mixed by a special mix-metering unit in a ratio of 1:1. The variation in the mixing ratio should not exceed 3%. With the specially designed LSR screw, further mixing of the material takes place. Over the years, many different grades of LSR material with different properties to meet different requirements have entered the market. This has the effect that different materials are used for different parts and as a result the production quantities have become less whereas at the same time the number of applications have increased. Since also many of 4

5 LSR Technology these special grades have become quite expensive this tendency makes it necessary for the manufacturer of silicone parts to avoid any waste like runners and sprue but also to reduce the time and cost for material changes. Reduced number of cavities together with a smaller injection molding machine with a smaller plasticizing unit are the solution. Also, the mix metering unit should comply with actual material throughput since a large mix metering unit will mean substantial material lost in case of material changes. Material feed Static mixer Valve Pressure controller Mixing chamber Feeding line A Metering B With its 40 years of experience in LSR molding BOY has the possibility to offer the right size of machine from their range together with appropriately sizing an LSR mix-metering unit. Large material volume in the process. High cleaning effort. Conveyance As an example, BOY offers their smallest model, BOY XXS, with an 8 mm LSR screw and a corresponding mix-metering unit with two, 2 liter containers for this size of machine and small shot volumes. The photos on the right show a BOY XS with a small mix metering unit mounted on the machine frame. 5

6 BOY Machines, Inc. 199 Philips Road Exton, PA Phone: (610) Fax: (610) With nearly 40 years of experience in LSR molding BOY has the possibility to offer the right size of machine from their range together with appropriately sizing an LSR mix-metering unit. As an example, BOY offers their smallest model, BOY XXS, with an 8 mm LSR screw and a corresponding mix-metering unit with two, 2 liter containers for this size of machine and small shot volumes. 6 Innovative into the Future BOY Injectioneering sales@boymachines.com Phone: (610) Fax: (610) Boy Machines, Inc. 199 Philips Road Exton, PA Spritzgiessautomaten PRESORTED STANDARD MAIL U.S. POSTAGE PAID WEST CHESTER, PA PERMIT #292