Industry Trends Drive Electric Press Purchase

ARLINGTON, Vt. (Feb 8, 2011) – Mack Molding’s Southern Operations, known for its super-large part molding, has capitalized on the trend toward shrinking vendor lists by investing in four small electric presses for its Statesville, N.C., facility. “As OEMs move more and more toward vendor consolidation, we see an opportunity to take on entire molding packages, not just the super-large parts,” says Ray Burns, president, Southern Operations. “These new presses position us to do that.”The package includes a 72-ton, two 138-tonners, and a 198-ton press ranging in shot sizes from 1.95-10.5 ozs. All four electric presses are Milacron’s Fanuc Roboshot 2000i Series, which take advantage of another industry trend, energy conservation. According to Milacron, this series of presses reduces energy consumption by 50-80 percent with repeatable and precise cycles. They also carry zero cost for oil supply, filtration or disposal.”This is the Statesville plant’s first venture into all-electric technology,” says Joe Carinci, director of operations. “The electrics offer precise process control, low operating costs, advanced mold protection capability, and minimized cycle times via more responsive servo motor controls and automatic closed loop process optimizations.”

The machines, now fully operational, are installed in a work cell configuration that results in more efficient work flow and labor utilization across multiple presses. “The cell configuration can also be enclosed for cleanroom molding should that need arise,” says Carinci.

Powerful Press for Big Parts
Mack’s Northern Operations, with four plants in Vermont and Massachusetts, has added a 1,650-ton Engel Duo press to its East Arlington facility, further beefing up its large-part capacity. The new press includes an abrasion-resistant, high torque PVC package for molding large industrial battery cases, a specialty of that plant. The new press features a 470-oz shot size and a two-platen clamping unit with 120 inches of daylight for easier large part molding.

About Mack Molding
Mack Molding is a leading custom plastics molder and contract manufacturer specializing in plastics design, prototyping, molding, sheet metal fabrication, and medical device manufacturing. Founded in 1920, Mack is a privately owned business that operates 10 facilities throughout the world. Don Kendall is president and CEO.

For more news and information about the applications and services of Mack Molding Co., go to www.mack.com.