Smart Molding International 4-2021

machinery 18 smart_molding international 4/2021 A ll the five days of Fakuma trade event, an e-speed 420/90 in - jection moulding machine with integrated in-mould labelling (IML) was used to produce ready-to-use margarine tubs from polypropylene in a fully automated injection compres - sion process. The containers, which had a wall thickness of 0.4 mm (includ - ing the label), were removed from the 4+4-cavity stack mould via high-speed, side-entry automation and stacked on a discharge conveyor following camera-based quality control. Corpo - rate partners at the trade show were MCC Verstraete, Plastisud, Campetella, Mevisco and Borealis. The continuing trend for reduc - ing wall thickness is leading to ever more extreme flow path/wall thick - ness ratios that are often in the range of 1:400. From a ratio of 1:300 and above, consistently high component quality in many applications can only be achieved by means of injection compression moulding. Other ad - vantages of injection compression moulding technology include the lower clamping forces and injection pressures required in comparison with conventional compact injection moulding, plus the fact that even high- viscosity materials can be processed in a repeatable manner. Overall, this means reduced energy consumption and competitive unit costs. Despite this, injection compression moulding tends to be seen as ruling out the use of a stack mould; this is because for many injection moulding machines, the speed of the platen movements is insufficient for a stack mould. For the ENGEL e-speed injec - tion moulding machine – designed to handle the long-term, high-perfor - mance output required by the packag - ing industry – things are different. The electrically driven clamping unit and the toggle lever design facilitate very fast, short compression strokes – 4 mm in the case of the margarine tubs. The parallel movements can be controlled very exactly – the prerequisite for co - ordinating the compression stroke and injection profile to the necessary de - gree of precision. High-performance e-speed machine available in new size With the new e-speed size 420, which offers 4,200 kN of clamping force, ENGEL continues to diversify its product range, aiming to tailor its injec - ENGEL’s stand at Fakuma 2021 put the spotlight on sustainability. The production of decorated monomaterial food packaging and the processing of regrind from labelling waste is supporting circular economy by creating a process chain. At the same time, the company was celebrating the world première of the 4,200 kN version of the ENGEL e-speed injection moulding machine. The sophisticated packaging application combines extreme thin-wall injection compression moulding with stack mould technology. Thin-wall injection compression moulding for stack mould technology ENGEL e-speed injection moulding machines with hybrid injection unit and electric clamping unit promise very short cycle times, maximum precision and very high injection speeds for extreme energy efficiency