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Plastic Injection Mold

Maintenance Program
Published on August 22, 2018

Grace Zhang
Custom plastic injection molder, mold manufacturer in China. Saving the cost
from part design to final delivery. Contact Me Now!
20 articles Follow

Your plas�c mold is cri�cal to the success of the plas�c part...and it is a

major investment. Regular mold maintenance can help your mold to
last longer, to run with less scrap rates, and will save your �me, money
and frustra�on in the long run. The amount and frequency of
maintenance is determined by several factors: (Mold
Material) Aluminum or so� tools will suffer wear and tear in a shorter
period of �me than tools made of conven�onal tool steel. (Part
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material) Plas�c materials that have fillers are especially abrasive and
will tend to wash away the mold steel a�er thousands of cycles. Also
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plas�c with a high melt temperature causes more wear than those
with low melt temperatures. Higher melt temperatures expose the
mold to more heat and enhance material wear. Some materials give off
excessive of residue or even corrosive gasses requiring more regular
mold cleaning. (Mold Complexity) Molds with intricate mechanisms or
parts requiring unusually high tolerances will require more
maintenance than a simple open & shut mold, making a low tolerance
part. Slides, li�ers, moving cores, hydraulic and mechanical systems,
hot runners, complex ejector systems or mechanisms with delicate
components all add to the maintenance required. (Abuse) Lastly,
molds can be abused by excessive clamp pressures, high injec�on
pressures, over-packing/flashing the part, jerking the mold open and
closed, not lubrica�ng the appropriate components, mul�ple ejec�on,
crashing the mold closed or closing up on par�ally ejected parts are all
sure to cause excess wear and tear on your mold.

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The 1st kind of mold maintenance you can perform is to reduce in-
house tool abuse.

Have a clean opera�on using well maintained machines and have the
right tools

Do NOT use hard tools (screw drivers, hammers, punches, knives on

ANY molding surface, par�ng, or shutoff surface. (We recommend
having "so�" tooling like rubber mallets, punches and pliers made
from plas�c, copper, or brass on hand to avoid damaging the mold)

Use so� or treated water in cooling systems. Blow out or drain the tool
when it is pulled from the machine.

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Avoid excessive clamp pressures, high injec�on pressures, and over-
packing/flashing the mold.
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Don't operate the press in such a way that the mold is rapidly jerked
open and closed.

Lubricate the appropriate components

Take great care not to crash the mold closed or close up on par�ally
ejected parts.

Seal the work area and mold storage area from outside environment.

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We recommend several different levels of care/maintenance:

Preventa�ve: Every day, and every �me the mold is pulled from
produc�on or put back into produc�on

Inspec�on: Every 20,000 cycles (or every 10 days of produc�on)

Maintenance: Every 100,000 cycles (or every 10 produc�on runs)

Major Maintenance: Every 250,000 cycles (or half the an�cipated life
�me volume)

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Preventa�ve Measures

Simple Preven�ve Maintenance greatly improves the life of your

mold. At the end of every shi� while the mold is s�ll in the press:
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The par�ng surfaces, core, and cavity should be gently cleaned with a
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mild, clean solvent and so�, clean towels to remove My Network
any buildup from Jobs Messaging

vented gases, greases, and other resins that accumulate. Pay special
a�en�on to the par�ng surfaces. This clean and check procedure
should not take more that 10 minutes

Each �me the mold is removed from the press you should perform the
same type of cleaning plus some addi�onal procedures.

Before the mold is removed from the press the mold should be
returned to room temperature - you do not want condensa�on to
form on the mold and cause rust.

All water lines should be drained and blown free of all residual water
to avoid build up of rust due to standing water. It is cri�cal that no
water be trapped inside mold.

The par�ng surfaces, core, and cavity should be gently cleaned with a
mild, clean solvent and so�, clean towels to remove any residual dirt
and grime.

The ejector system should be moved fully forward, then spray both
mold halves with light rust preven�ve lubricant (like WD-40). Retract
ejector system and close the mold.

Check and assure all bolts, plates, etc. are in place and �ght.

Bag the last shot as an example of the typical quality of this run and
store these parts with the mold.

When the mold is being removed from storage and readied for a
produc�on run, open the mold and once again clean the par�ng
surfaces, core, and cavity with clean solvent and so�, clean towels.
This removes the mold preserva�ve and any remaining dust or
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par�cles. This is also a good �me to lightly grease the guide pins, the
ejec�on system, and any li�ers or slides.
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CAUTION: Highly polished mold surfaces should NOT be wiped with a

towel. Instead spray these surfaces with solvent and blow off with
clean, filtered, compressed air to remove the majority of dirt and
residue, then clean with mild, clean solvent and clean facial �ssue or
co�on balls. Be very careful with polished surfaces, dust or dirt on
your fingers, on your �ssues (or co�on balls), or in your air lines
could poten�ally damage the surfaces.

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Inspec�on

Remember, preventa�ve maintenance should be done every �me the

mold goes into the press to run AND every �me it comes out of the
press. Inspec�on is to note small problems and have them scheduled
for repairs. This kind of maintenance should be performed by a lead
operator or an experienced person in your tool room a�er about
20,000 cycles, a�er 10 produc�on days, or at the end of a produc�on
run, whichever comes first.

Inspect the tool and look for minor damage or if any "touchup" work is
required. Any missing components or blocked off cavi�es should be
noted and a�ended to. A few samples from the blocked cavity should
be retained for the mold maker to make repairs.

The mold should be washed all over with mild, clean solvent to remove
the varnish and build up from the molding process.

The vents should be checked for depth around the cavity face.

Bent, worn or broken ejector pins should be noted and the mold
should be removed from produc�on and the pins replaced.
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Note ANY concerns that you may want have looked into further at the
next scheduled Level 3 maintenance. Home My Network Jobs Messaging

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Maintenance

This level of maintenance should only be performed by skilled

Moldmakers.

All plates are separated and their faces cleaned. CAUTION: Highly
polished mold surfaces should NOT be wiped with a towel. Instead
spray these surfaces with solvent and blow off with clean, filtered,
compressed air to remove the majority of dirt and residue, then
clean with mild, clean solvent and clean facial �ssue or co�on
balls. Be very careful with polished surfaces, dust or dirt on your
fingers, on your �ssues (or co�on balls), or in your air lines could
poten�ally damage the surface.

ALL components are checked for wear. Any excessive wear is noted
and a determina�on is made to repair, replace or con�nue to use.

Any cavity detail area with dings, dents or other signs of wear or abuse
should be considered cri�cal and should be carefully analyzed before
any other replacements or repairs proceed.

All moving parts are to be lubricated. Use lubricant sparingly on all

moving parts which make contact with plas�c parts.

Vents should be checked for depth, width and land and a

determina�on made if repair is needed. Maintaining good ven�ng
prevents fill problems, excessive fill pressures, material "burning",
etc. They should also be checked for corrosion and vent burns to see if
addi�onal ven�ng may be required.
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"O" rings, seals and gaskets should be checked for integrity. A list of
the required seals as well as one complete replacement
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Myshould
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kept on hand.

All water lines are to be pressure tested for leaks and for flow
capacity. Water lines that have built up scale and are restricted should
be pressure cleaned with a descaling agent and if necessary redrilled

The ejector system should be examined for proper alignment. If the

ejector pin holes seem "sloppy" or have become egg shaped it must be
determined if they could simply be replaced with oversize pins or if
they should be drilled and reamed to the next larger size and the
exis�ng pins replaced with the next larger size pins.

Guided Ejec�on bushing should be checked for wear and any broken
return springs should be replaced

Determine if Re-pla�ng or Resurfacing (as a result of the material

eroding the mold surface) is necessary

Determine if Replacement/Re-sizing of gates or gate inserts, new

runner blocks etc. are necessary.

Replace all springs a�er 50,000 cycles.

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Major Maintenance

Major maintenance should only be performed by skilled Moldmakers

and it should be done when triggered either by the mold fulfilling the
required number of cycles for maintenance, or by excessive wear or
damage to the tool. Before maintenance begins, there should be at
least 2 of the most recent, complete shots (Parts, sprues and runners)
from each cavity delivered with the tooling for examina�on. It is also
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very helpful if an earlier shot, that represents "good" parts, is available
for study. Home My Network Jobs Messaging

All components determined and authorized to be replaced should be

removed and new components constructed and installed in
accordance to the original designs if previously cer�fied spare
components are not available.

Worn leader pins, bushings and all bearing moving surfaces (gibs, wear
plates, wedge blocks, etc.) should be checked for wear and
replaced/repaired as required.

All return springs in the ejector plate should be replaced with new
springs to avoid fa�gue.

All water lines should be flushed with descaling agent to remove scale
build up.

All "O" rings, internal plugs, seals and gaskets should be replaced.

Plates and mold cavity surfaces should be checked for parallel and
ground flat if required.

Mold cavity surfaces should be cleaned and polished as required to the

original surface requirements.

Any dings, dents, or scratches should be worked out un�l the surface is
fully in compliance to the original print specifica�ons.

The cavity surface is to be inspected for wear or erosion of pla�ng or

texturing. When determined necessary, the cavity surfaces are to be
stripped and re-plated, or the texture is to be polished off and then
new texture applied.

All components not mee�ng the part print's original specifica�ons (to
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be noted by the molders QC department) should be repaired/replaced
as required Home My Network Jobs Messaging

All components that have been plated should be stripped and re-
plated where required. All components that have had special surface
treatments for corrosion resistance, lubricity, hardness and the like
should be retreated to insure the original intent of the tool.

All moving components should be checked for ease of movement

(ejector box, slides, li�ers, etc.). Adjustments should be made as
required.

For tools requiring high produc�on, the cavi�es should be removed

and stress relieved to remove work hardening and material
embri�lement. The en�re mold/cavity set must be re-inspected and
made as "like-new" as possible.

The mold base is to be inspected for cracks, work hardening, corrosion,

etc. If the mold base was plated or painted for corrosion resistance,
the coa�ng is to be stripped, the base cleaned and the coa�ng
reapplied. The tool should be re-stamped indica�ng when the tool was
rebuilt.

Although we recommend ALL of the above maintenance, at the very

least, eliminate mold abuse and perform preventa�ve maintenance
and you will no�ceably improve mold life!

This ar�cle is from Fehrman Tool & Die, Inc.

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Grace Zhang 20 Follow
Custom plastic injection molder, mold manufacturer in China. Saving
the cost from part design to final delivery. Contact Me Now!
articles
Published • 3y

#PlasticInjectionMold #Maintenance; #PlasticTooling

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2 Comments

Add a comment…

Mohammad Firoz Haider • 3rd+ 3y

Asst. Manager Product Development at Arnon Plastic Industries Co. Ltd.

Remarkable approach for mould maintenance. Appreciated.

Like Reply

Ruben Vallesx • 3rd+ 3y

Tool and Die supervisor

Excellent

Like · 1 Reply

Grace Zhang
Custom plastic injection molder, mold manufacturer in China. Saving the cost from part
design to final delivery. Contact Me Now!

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