If you’re considering injection molding services, you’re already aware that this process allows design teams to achieve greater specificity at higher volumes. What you might not realize are the advantages of choosing to work with a service provider versus producing injection molded parts in-house. Here’s what you need to know.
The Benefits of Injection Molding
Injection molding streamlines the manufacturing process and allows the mass production of electronic parts. More importantly, it enables the manufacturer to reduce material waste, enhance product quality and durability and lower the time and cost required to fill orders.
Ultimately, these benefits create a greater threshold for innovation for product teams.
In our technology-driven world, a product team’s ability to innovate is their most important competitive advantage. Through innovation, product teams can leverage unique opportunities in growing markets. Consider the medical field, for example.
Historically, parts were large and clunky to produce, especially those involving electronic components. Because advances in injection molding capabilities now enable highly-detailed product design, product teams harness this technology to dramatically reduce the size of connectors and cable assemblies, driving significant advances in microscopic medical technology, such as implantable medical devices with sophisticated sensory capabilities.
Along the same lines, injection molding allows product teams to create more aesthetically-appealing solutions. In one case, iCONN Systems helped an LED lighting company design a power distribution system that could be installed and concealed in various cabinet sizes. The lighting system they developed involved numerous intricate parts that would have required months of manufacturing time and significant costs, were it not for advances in injection molding capabilities.
Partnering with a Provider for Injection Molding Services
Injection molding supports high volume production for less time and money. The ROI of bringing injection molding services in-house may seem to make sense at first. However, the upfront cost is significant and, without the proper expertise, design teams can encounter numerous quality issues, such as flow lines, sink marks, warping and more.
New product teams may not know how to get the most value out of their investment, such as building texture right into the mold to avoid the time and cost associated with a second process. In addition to initial costs, product teams should also consider the cost of tooling, which tends to be high, and the price for repairs and downtime should mechanical issues arise.
Getting The Most ROI
Partnering with a provider for injection molding services lowers overhead cost and ensures access to a dedicated team of engineers with specialized expertise in injection molding processes. Additionally, their vast experience working with other product teams in similar industries can help your organization enhance products, avoid common injection molding problems and take innovation to market faster than trying to adopt capabilities in-house. That said, not all injection molding service providers offer the same level of quality.
How to Find The Right Provider
As a pivotal part of the manufacturing process, we encourage product teams do due diligence when searching for an injection molding provider. Look for the following ‘trust signals’ when qualifying a potential provider:
- Case studies illustrating the provider’s engineering expertise and success in specific applications.
- Certifications proven to improve efficiency and effectiveness, such as ISO 9001 for Quality Management Systems (QMS).
- Value-added services, such as rapid prototyping, CNC machining and cellular manufacturing.
- Vertical integration, which ensures cost and time efficiency and, more importantly, service continuity.
- US-based operations that uphold higher quality control standards and support the American economy.
Above all else, your provider should have a proven track record for lean, highly- coordinated production. If your organization is considering injection molding services, we can help. Contact us to learn more
