MFG 452 - Moldmaking

1. Explain safety procedures as it applies to molding
   1. Identify injection molding press controls and safety features
   2. Operate injection molding press with all guards in place
   3. Clear the frozen plastic from the mold sprue and nozzle in a safe manner
2. Identify molding processes and terminology
   1. Describe the purpose of a hot runner mold
   2. Outline the purpose of a compression mold
   3. State the purpose of a blow mold
   4. Describe the purpose of a transfer mold
3. Explain plastic resins and coloring agents
   1. Determine whether plastic is thermosetting or thermoplastic
   2. Identify types and categories of plastic materials
   3. Calculate piece part shrinkage for a mold
   4. List characteristics of each plastic resin studied
   5. Determine best plastic resin utilized for a given product
   6. Describe resin coloring processes
   7. Describe methods of drying plastic resins
   8. Evaluate plastic piece part for common flaws and defects, determine correction necessary
4. Identify types of molding presses and capacities
   1. Describe the function of the screw as it applies to an injection molding press.
   2. Identify molding press controls such as timers, counters, temperature, and pressure settings
   3. Describe the capacities that are measured on a injection molding press (platen daylight, clamp pressure, shot size).
   4. Prepare an injection molding press to trial run a new mold
   5. Adjust an infection molding press to trial run a new mold
5. Apply terminology to the injection mold and mold process
   1. Describe shrinkage
   2. Describe parting lines
   3. Distinguish between a M.U.D. base and a standard purchased mold base
   4. Detail the function of eject pins and ejection plate
   5. Explain the cooling process
   6. Discuss the function of coring material using core pins
   7. Describe the function of slides, over-locks, and cams incorporated into a mold
   8. Explain how a sprue is pulled from the mold
   9. Locate purchased components in vendor catalogs
6. Build an injection mold
   1. Create a piece part for a mold project
   2. Determine shrinkage for a piece part
   3. Determine parting line of the piece part
   4. Determine ejection method and ejection pin placement
   5. Determine finish requirements on molding surfaces as required by piece part applications, polish as needed
   6. Calculate cooling requirements
   7. Determine plastic resin utilized according to piece part characteristics
   8. Incorporate eject pins into the mold
   9. Machine runner system into the mold
   10. Determine draft angles on molding surfaces
   11. Determine core placement and sizes