What Are The 8 Types Of Plastic Process Equipment?

Extrusion molding is the plastic process equipment used to produce plastic bottles for the soft drink industry.

Types of Plastic Process Equipment

The plastics manufacturing industry encompasses a wide range of technologies and processes for manufacturing anything from plastic bottles to aviation parts. But what are the processes used, and how do they differ from one another? This post should help clarify this point and explain broadly what the eight types of plastic processing equipment are.

1. Injection Molding Equipment

An injection molding machine—or, as it is also known, an injection press—is a piece of plastic processing equipment that uses the injection molding to form plastic consumer goods such as bottles, containers, jars, and some automotive parts. It works by injecting molten plastics into a mold, then solidifying them by controlled cooling. This is a popular method for manufacturing complex items. There are four types of injection molding machines: hydraulic, mechanical, electrical, and hybrid.

2. Thermoforming Machines

Thermoforming machines heat a plastic sheet to a temperature where it is pliable, then force that sheet to a mold. The molded plastic is then cooled and trimmed to make the final product. Thermoforming is used for everything from blister packs and cups and containers (thin gauge) to automotive parts and plastic pallets (thick gauge).

3. Rotational Molding Equipment

Rotational plastic molding involves a hollow mold being filled with powdered material, then rotated as it enters an oven. The mold rotates and coats the walls of the mold with the molten plastic. The mold is then cooled, the rotation is stopped, and the product is removed from the mold. This method reduces the risk of defects and creates high strength products with thicker corners.

4. Blow Molding Equipment

Blow molding is a manufacturing process used to make hollow parts, and thanks to its low cost and high-volume capabilities, blow molding plastic processing equipment is the first choice for soft drink manufacturers. Plastic is softened inside the mold and then blown outwards with compressed air. Once the part has cooled, the mold ejects the part.

5. Extrusion Molding equipment

Similar to blow molding, extrusion molding involves the molten plastic being injected into the parison, where it is blown into the shape of the mold. The material is usually fed with a corkscrew-like accumulator. Extrusion molding is the plastic process equipment used to produce plastic bottles for the soft drink industry, as well as food and drink containers for hospitality and retail.

6. Size Reduction and Recycling

Plastic offcuts can create a lot of material for recycling. Use equipment that cuts, compresses, impacts, and crushes to reduce the size of the material to be recycled.

7. Robotics

Robotics can be used to automate many processes in the manufacturing of plastics, especially the handling of hot or molten materials or for repetitive finishing tasks such as welding.

8. Packaging

There are a wide range of automated packaging machines, from capping to shrink-wrapping. For more information on packaging, refer to PlastiWin’s website which features a comprehensive range of packaging equipment.

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