GW Plastics/GW Silicones
From Concept to Market
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
GW Plastics Overview
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Founded in 1955
Financially strong, privately held company
Precision injection molding core competency
Thermoplastics and Liquid Silicone Rubber (LSR)
Internal U.S. and China tool building capability
Global Footprint – U.S., Mexico, China and Costa Rica
Highly standardized, fully automated facilities
Focus on healthcare contract manufacturing
Clean room molding and assembly
FDA registered, ISO 13485 certified
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GW Plastics Worldwide
GW Queretaro, Mexico
GW Dongguan, China
GW Bethel, VT
GW Tucson, AZ
GW Royalton, VT
GW San Antonio, TX
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OEM’s have a lot of thermoplastics technical expertise in
house
Not a lot of Silicone expertise in house at OEM level
OEM’s rely heavily on supplier for silicone expertise
It is a detriment to your program to prototype at 1 location
and expect your production molding partner to be able to
move directly into higher cavitation tooling
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What is important for an OEM?
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Timing
Quality
Timing
Cost
Timing
Technical Expertise
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What is important for Your Molding Partner?
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Understanding Exact Project Requirements
Collaboration on Design
Collaboration on Material Selection
Enough Time to Do the Job Right
Realistic Tolerances
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Prototyping
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The Prototype Phase
1.
Prototype For Early Samples
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Compression or Transfer Molded
Injection Molded With Hot Runner
Aluminum Tools or Soft Steel
Hand Loaded Cores
Low Dimensional Requirement
Low Visual Requirement
Low Quantity Requirement
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The Prototype Phase
1.
Prototype For Production
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Intended Production Method
Injection Molded With Hot Runner,
Valve Gate or Open Nozzle
P20 Inserts or Better
Automatic Production
High Dimensional Requirement
High Visual Requirement
High Quantity Requirement
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Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
The Prototype Phase
Why is Prototyping So Important To Your Molding Partner?
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Establish Proper Gate Location
Establish Shrink and Part Dimensions
Determine Demolding Method
Determine Venting Requirement
If you prototype using the exact intended production method,
you eliminate costly surprises and potential program
delays
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
1 or 2 Cavity Valve Gated Mold Base
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6 Axis Robot in Prototype Cell
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6 Axis Robot in Prototype Cell
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Molded Silicone Component
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Consider Mold Flow For Silicone
Images Compliments of:
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Silicone Tooling
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Hot Runner
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Easy to maintain
Cheapest mold to
manufacture
Not easily automated
High waste because of
runner
Allows sub gate or indirect
gate
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Open Nozzle Technology
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Easy to maintain
Less expensive cold runner
Allows automatic production
Silicone plug will inject into
the following part
Material properties will effect
the gate remnant
Direct gate
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Valve Gate Technology
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More moving parts vs Open
Nozzle
Cost more than Open Nozzle
Allows automatic production
Valve gate shuts off cleanly
at cavity surface
Processing is easier vs
Open Nozzle
Direct gate
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Valve Gate Technology
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Valve Gate Technology
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Valve Gate Servo Electric Technology
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Valve Gate Servo Electric Technology
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Valve Gate Servo Electric Technology
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Automatic Silicone Molding
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Silicone Material
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Silicone Properties
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Inert, Odorless, Tasteless, (Does Not Promote Bacteria Growth)
Extreme Temperature Flexibility -180°F to 600°F
Easy to Clean
Short/Long-term Implantable
Steam and Gamma Sterilizable
Fatigue and Compression Set Resistance
Superior Resistance to Many Chemicals
Easy to Color
Elongation 100 - 800%
Dielectric and Insulation Characteristics
Ability to Mold with Tight Tolerances
Bonds to a Wide Variety of Thermoplastic Materials
Liquid Silicone Rubber (LSR) vs High Consistency
Rubber (HCR)
Liquid Silicone Rubber
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Commercially available “off the shelf” materials
Transports in sealed pails or drums (Low contamination)
Requires A and B
Low viscosity and decent batch to batch consistency
Well suited for automatic and flashless molding
Not all LSR’s are suited for automatic production
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Liquid Silicone Rubber (LSR) vs High Consistency
Rubber (HCR)
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Liquid Silicone Rubber (LSR) vs High Consistency
Rubber (HCR)
High Consistency Rubber
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Mixed on a 2 roll open mill typically on site at molder
Custom mixes and molder specific material #’s
Typically peroxide cure (can be platinum cure system)
Less flexibility with shelf life as this is a 1 component
material
HCR is typically compression or transfer molded but can
be injection molded
Can achieve higher engineering properties than a LSR
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Liquid Silicone Rubber (LSR) vs High Consistency
Rubber (HCR)
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Liquid Silicone Rubber (LSR) vs Thermoplastic
Elastomers (TPE)
TPE
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Processes similar to standard thermoplastic (but not
exactly)
Specialty blends can cost similar to standard LSR
grades
Pricing is usually better using TPE for molds and piece
price
More options for mold makers and molders for TPE
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Liquid Silicone Rubber (LSR) vs Thermoplastic
Elastomers (TPE)
TPE
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Silicone has far superior engineering properties than
TPE
Silicone has superior high and low temperature flexibility
Silicone has superior clarity
Silicone can compete with TPE using efficient automatic
molding methods
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Multi Material
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Why Silicone 2 Shot?
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Because it is Possible
Efficiency
Quality
Cost
Engineering Properties
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Design Considerations For Multi Material
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Thermal resistance of plastic substrate
Chemical or Mechanical bond of silicone to substrate
Shrink and expansion of plastic substrate
Method of part transfer from plastic to silicone cavity
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.
Transfer Method
Transfer Method
Rotary Table Method
Rotary Table Method
Index platen method
Index Plate Method
Thank You
mark.hammond@gwplastics.com
802-234-9941
Proprietary and Confidential. Not to be shared with any other agency or firm. © 2007 New Breed Marketing.