Questions to Ask an Injection Molding Company

Choosing an injection molding company that you trust can be difficult. But, it can be one of the most important decisions you make for your business. Asking the right questions is one of the best ways to determine if a potential company is a good fit.

More than likely, you don’t need to source an injection molding company very often. When you need one, you do the work to find the company you think is the best fit and then you’re done. If you are shopping to find a company, it’s helpful to know the critical questions to ask in order to find one that will fit your needs.

These Are Some Situations Where You Need an Injection Molder:

• Your company has designed a new product that requires injection molding
• Your company has redesigned an existing injection molded part
• You are unhappy with the current injection molder because it is no longer meeting your needs
• Your business wants to move its manufacturing from overseas to the U.S.

Important Questions To Ask When You Are Sourcing an Injection Mold Manufacturer

1. What Machines Do You Have, How Many, and What Are Their Capabilities?

The number of presses a company has contributes to their capability of meeting your deadlines. The more presses a molder has means they are able to accommodate more projects during a given period. This ultimately results in the speed that your parts are made. Fewer machines can mean slower manufacturing.

In addition to the number of machines, the molding company needs to also have a wide range of machine sizes. Larger machines can produce larger molds. Yet, not all parts run well on large machines and require smaller machines. The molding company can determine the best machine to use by the number and size of the part, as well as the type of material.

2. Will You Be Able To Meet My Current and My Future Needs?

Not only should the injection molder be able to meet your current needs but also your future ones. The right injection molding company should be able to grow with you as you develop more products in the future. This answer also ties into the question above regarding the number and type of machines they have.

3. Will Your Company Guarantee the Molds for the Life of My Project?

This question is one of the first to ask the potential molder. If your project isn’t guaranteed, you will be liable for any adjustments or repairs to the mold. Look for a company that stands behind their work completely. The molds should be guaranteed through the life of the project. And, the molding company should stand behind their work and make adjustments and/or repairs within the lifespan of the mold.

Mold life is dependent on the type of material that is used to construct the mold. For instance, molds that are built from aluminum are intended for prototype or low volume production, while molds constructed from steel are for higher volume production. Many molds are built with inserts in areas that can get worn. This provides the ability to replace just those areas instead of building an entirely new mold.

4. Does Your Company Have an Experienced Internal Tooling and Design Team?

Tooling is very important in ensuring that quality and cost objectives are met. Using an external tooling and design team can lead to confusion and miscommunications, which then leads to mistakes. An in-house tooling and design team that is on-site can keep a watch on your mold and make changes, repairs, and improvements straight away. Ultimately, this saves you time and money.

Some Advantages of Having In-House Capabilities To Take Your Project From Concept to Completion Include:

• Many times in the early development of a product, refinements in design need to be made. When you work with a manufacturer that can take a project from beginning to the end, any changes can be made, examined, and improved quickly.
• Design engineers are able to build the best possible design for the project. They have the knowledge, experience, and proficiency to build molds that produce the highest quality and quantity parts.

5. Who Will Lead the Project and Be My Primary Point of Contact?

It’s imperative that you have ongoing confidence that the project managers responsible for your project will communicate with you regularly regarding runs and project status. Only in this way can you keep your overall project on time and on budget. Find out who will be the primary point of contact for the project and others who have specialized areas that will communicate as their areas are being addressed.

6. What Quality Standards Do You Follow?

Find out if the injection molder is certified. Certification is performed by a recognized unbiased auditing company. ISO 9001:2015 requires an organization’s QMS to demonstrate its ability to provide products consistently that meet customer requirements.

Schedule a Free Quote for Injection Molding

When you need injection molding, contact Advanced Plastiform, Inc. We have experienced professionals on our team to design, develop, and manufacture your products, parts, and packaging. Regardless of whether your project requires top-quality thermoformed or injection molded products, or custom plastics manufactured, we strive to innovate new solutions for our customers and invest in the latest equipment and technology. Our company works with customers across the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic, including North Carolina, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Tennessee, Georgia, and Virginia.