Injection molding is a capital-intensive venture, even when carried out effectively. When steps are not taken to ensure that an injection molding operation is at its most efficient, the costs could skyrocket to multiple times what an efficient operation should be. There are measures that can be taken to ensure that this does not happen and that your injection molding operation is successful at minimal cost.

Here are some great ways to help you save money on your next injection molding project:

Select the Right Material

When selecting a material for your injection molded part, it is a common mistake to assume that the best material is the one with best overall properties. There are, however, many other factors to consider when choosing a material for use. One’s aim is not to look for the best material overall but rather the best material for your specific project.

That is, any good qualities a material has become useless if those qualities aren’t pertinent to your project. Selecting the wrong material will incur extra costs, which will affect the product prices and profit margins. The best material is the one that best fits your requirements and is not simply the better material overall.

To save money – and time – there are experts that can help you find the perfect material for you.

Select the Right Molding Company

If you don’t want to tackle your injection molding project yourself and are contracting someone else to do it, it’s very important to choose the right company. Just like material selection, the best company for your job rarely the biggest company or the one with the biggest reputation. It’s not even the one that manufactures the best product. Chances are that your project doesn’t require all the expertise of a giant company and a relatively small company will suffice.

Cost comes into play here as well, as the bigger companies are typically more expensive due to higher overhead costs, a higher paid staff, and more advanced technology. Choosing the larger company might also cost you time, as larger companies are often busier.

In general, it’s best to choose a company that has experience molding your type of product, as it will save time during the research and development part of the project. Remember that bigger and more expensive do not equal better quality.

Consolidate Processes

There are a lot of secondary processes involved in producing a part from scratch. Such processes, like custom inserts, label printing, painting, etc. can prove to be time consuming, as they require extensive setup – and in injection molding, time is money. All those extra costs and the time that could have been saved with better production management add up and drive the part price up. The best practice is to try to combine all of these processes into one single robust process.

Check back later for part 2, where we’ll look at some more tips that can help you save money in your injection molding project.

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