Expansion for Surface Generation after successful injection moulding trials

Surface Generation, a provider of advanced materials processing technologies, has expanded in the UK and Asia following successful trials of its technology.

The company has opened demonstration facilities in in Rutland, UK, and Taipei, Taiwan, after trials showed significant quality improvements in parts created using its novel injection moulding techniques.

The new demonstration centres will be used to demonstrate its patented Production to Functional Specifications (PtFS) technology, which provides injection moulding manufacturers with multi-zonal temperature control in the mould, allowing molten materials to be channelled and cooled more precisely throughout the process.

“We [are] delighted to open our new demonstration facilities in the UK and Taiwan,” commented Ben Halford, Chief Executive at Surface Generation.

“Our recent trials have proven that PtFS makes high quality injection moulding much simpler and these new facilities reflect growing interest from advanced manufacturers around the world who need to produce ever more complex parts.”

Surface Generation recently completed trials for large consumer electronics and automotive manufacturers using PtFS with an Engel injection moulding machine. These thin and thick section tests demonstrated significant process improvements, says the company.

These include the reduction of injection pressures by 75 percent, making it possible to encapsulate a greater range of sensitive electronics within reinforced casings.

In addition, the trials achieved enhanced, resin-rich ‘A’ surfaces with high fibre reinforcement, doubled reinforcement levels that could be incorporated into thermoplastic structures, eliminated sink marks and warping through highly localised cooling and reduced residual stress through directional solidification.

Graeme Herlihy, Managing Director at ENGEL UK, commented: “Surface Generation’s technology turned a standard mould into an intelligent moulding environment and achieved significant process improvements during the trials. They were able to inject materials at significantly lower pressures and yielded exciting strength and quality improvements in the components produced.”