Flow manifold offers “new dimension” in plastics processing precision
ICS Cool Energy, temperature control specialist, has introduced a new Flow Manifold that it says offers “a new dimension” in precision control.
The manifold is said to improve manufacturing and production economies in the plastics industry through the accurate distribution of high intensity cooling and temperature control across all circuits in injection moulding applications, providing highly accurate measurement, control and monitoring of fluid flow rates, from just 1l/min to temperatures up to 120° Celsius.
The Flow Manifold connects to the temperature control unit (TCU) and can split the flow across a maximum of eight circuits, helping to lower production costs as well as providing real time monitoring of process performance, with alerts if the pre-set tolerance bands are exceeded.
Dave Palmer, Sales Director - Heater Division UK & Europe, at ICS Cool Energy said: “Given the fine margins involved with the injection moulding process, the greater the level of precision when it comes to temperature control means better product quality. Unwanted temperature variances can lead to hotspots developing within the mould cavity which can in turn impact product quality, such as cracking, shrinking or warping.
“Investing in a high precision flow manifold, such as the i-Temp model from ICS Cool Energy, will give an unprecedented level of visibility into the details of a temperature control process. As well as improving energy efficiency, it means the operating temperatures can be fine-tuned in order to achieve the most consistent end product, every time.”
The Flow Manifold is corrosion-resistant and is usually ordered with the TCU but can also be retrofitted. It has a 3.5” touch screen to offer complete visibility of all flow rates, and the data is recorded and accessible via SD card for Excel analysis.
All circuits can be controlled either individually or uniformly from one interface while the operator is also able to set flow and temperature limit values for each circuit to suit the individual mould tool and material being processed.