Machines from the K-TEC series will demonstrate two different multi-component technologies. A K-TEC 200 MSW with a clamping force of 2,000 kN and an international size 1,000 injection unit will feature a second vertical Monosandwich unit with an international size 265. This machine will produce flower pots on a single-cavity mold from Emsa with a cycle time of 35 seconds.
The Monosandwich process allows manufacturers to reduce materials costs by using recycled materials for the core and only using new material for the exterior of the part. For the Open House demonstration, a transparent material will be used for the skin so that the Monosandwich structure will remain visible. The finished flower pots will be removed by a Ferromatik Milacron FMR 8-5 High Speed Robot. Controls for the robot are fully integrated with the machine controls.
Another machine in the K-TEC series, a 2,500 kN K-TEC 250 DETW with a twin cube mold from Foboha with four sides on each cube and 48 cavities, will manufacture two-component closures in a cycle time of 11.5 seconds. In the first step the main injection unit – international size 1,650 – will produce the body of the closure. Simultaneously, a traversing size 265 injection unit mounted on the moving platen will produce the closure lid. Following a 90-degree counter-rotation of both cubes, the outsides of the mold face the operator side of the machine, are used for cooling.
At the same time, the material for the next parts is injected into the outer parting lines. In the third step, after the next 90-degree rotation, the parts on the facing sides of the two molds are joined using In-Mold-Assembly. After the fourth mold rotations, the parts are removed from the non-operator side of the machine. “For the right applications, one twin-cube machine can replace two machines, two molds, as well as downstream assembly equipment,” explained Simon Rieder, Project Manager for Stack-Turning Mold Technology at Ferromatik Milacron.
The all-electric Elektra 75 is a 750 kN machine. At the Open House, it will be presented with an international size 300 injection unit and a single-cavity mold by Polar-Form. This machine will produce magnetic clamps with a polycarbonate foil using an In-Mold-Foiling process and a cycle time of 20 seconds. The foils are punched out, printed from behind, and formed before being placed in the mold. This process prevents the ink from streaking.
The all-electric machine from Milacron – the Elektron, based on the Elektra platform – will be presented as a 1,100 kN machine with an international size 300 injection unit. The Elektra will be used to produce lockable storage boxes on a 1+1-cavity mold from SSI Schäfer with a 15 second cycle.
