N. K. Balgi
President & Director,
Ferromatik Milacron India
Plastics Technology Group,
Milacron Inc., USA
The progress of human race has
come through the actions taken
for meeting a need or responding
to an adversity – imminent or anticipated.
Plastics are one such man-invented
material that has become an
integral part of human life. Starting off
as a substitute, it has now become a
primary material of construction in
range of forms and structures. Basic
needs to comforts of life are all provided
by plastics. The story of evolution
continues.
Challenges Lead to
Innovations
The competitive pressures pervade
through all business activity in
globalised economy. Price is decided
by the market. The rising polymer
prices and escalating energy costs
have put margins under threat. In this
scenario, processor’s focus on cost
control i.e. controlling per piece cost
of production through eliminating the
waste – product rejects and equipment
down time, and achieving optimum
productivity i.e. more components
from per unit material processed,
more component produced per unit
time.
Polymer producers together with
plastics processing machinery and
auxiliary manufacturers have ably responded
to the processors’ need described
above.
Advances in the material sciences
of polymers and compounding techniques
have delivered polymers of
higher strength and improved flow
properties. Technology available for
tool design and tool construction have
helped reducing the material content
in the moulded
components without
sacrificing the
strength and rigidity.
Hot-runner
systems for
moulds do help
saving in material,
also help increase
productivity.
Advances in
construction materials
(alloy
steels for screwbarrel,
bearing
materials), hydraulic
/ pneumatic
control elements,
seal technology,
electronic
controls have enabled machinery
manufacturers to build machines capable
of increased throughput (reduced
cycle time), high quality consistency,
high reliability of equipment
and high energy efficiency.
....contd.
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