Solution for Machining Plastic Parts

   High Quality Standards

Require Quality Tooling Solutions

The advantages of plastic materials in manufacturing include superior strength to weight ratios, broader insulating properties (electric, thermal, and vibration) and high resistance to corrosion and chemicals.

Most used plastics:

• Acrylic - formability, high tensile strength, and resistance to cracking and abrasion 
• Nylon - affordability, strength, durability, and corrosion and chemical resistance
• PEEK (polyether ether ketone) - chemical and wear resistance and ability to withstand high temperatures
• UHMW (Ultra-high molecular polyethylene) - high machinability

Typical Machining Concerns

Effective heat removal is important when machining plastic parts. Their low thermal conductivity and melting temperatures can lead to thermal expansion, overheating, or thermal damage. Plastic materials are susceptible to warping, cracking, and deforming during processing.  Chips tend to tangle up around the part requiring constant attention and machine down-time for chip clearing.  The tangled build-up of chips leads to part or tool damage. 

Chip control issues can be a constant battle for plastic parts manufacturers and heat build-up can affect the part

Manufacturers face ever increasing demands for part production which drives them to seek out efficiency and precision from the tooling they use to achieve part quality standards and higher productivity.

Tooling is Key to Success

A Y-axis - Coolant Through Holder + KM1 uncoated carbide

Realize stable machining:

Chip control issues are eliminated by applying a Y-axis toolholder to the operation. The chips drop down away from the cutting area with the help of gravity.  Utilize on all vertical gang stations. For: Front Turn | Back Turn | Cut-Off | Grooving 

Heat removal is accomplished with proper chip removal and cooling with air or a mild water-based coolant.  Push air through the OH / OH2 toolholder to evacuate chips, keep the cutting edge sharp by reducing cutting temperature, improve tool life, and maintain part tolerances. 

High quality part surface finish is obtained using KM1, an uncoated fine grain carbide grade. The inserts are manufactured with very sharp cutting edges for shearing the material and a polished mirror finish for excellent adhesion resistance. Insert selection includes 0.0 radius options.

Case Studies

PEEK - regarded as a high-performance thermoplastic material.  This polymer retains its mechanical properties at extreme temperatures. It is a cost-effective replacement for stainless steel, metal tubing, and even glass with the benefits of weight reduction, comparable strength to mass, chemical resistance, hardness, heat resistance, abrasion resistance, and low extractables to reduce contamination. Stainless steel or titanium tubing typically used for thin-walled parts are being replaced with PEEK to achieve better strength, more flexibility and kink resistance, and ease of cutting (using a razor blade.) 

• Aerospace industry: Strength - Lightweight - Chemical resistance
• Medical industry: for minimally invasive surgery, medical devices requiring repeated sterilization. Biocompatibility - Mechanical strength - Resistance to stress cracking
• High Performance Liquid Chromatography industry: Purity - High burst pressure - Chemical resistance
• Chemical processing industry: Material purity - Chemical resistance - High continuous service temperature

Teflon (PTFE) - polytetrafluoroethylene - is a thermoplastic with a low coefficient of friction, thermal and chemical resistance to solvents, acids, and bases. Proper machining techniques should be taken to eliminate dimensional changes during production runs. Burrs can be a problem because it is so soft.

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It is our commitment to partner with customers and forge a path with technological insight with superior products and performance. By working closely with manufacturers to understand the machining issues they face we deliver a true tooling solution.