Injection molding equipment may be highly automated, but what happens to material before and after the molding process often isn't.

One example can be found right beside the machine.

Runners, sprues and other leftover material may be discharged into collection bins. As production increases, those bins can fill quickly, leaving employees responsible for continually removing, transporting and emptying them.

Multiply that process across several molding machines and something as simple as emptying bins can become an ongoing material-handling operation of its own.

It also raises a useful question:

If the molding process is automated, why does moving the leftover material still require so much manual labor?

A collection bin seems like a simple solution. Material drops into it, an employee removes it when it's full, and an empty bin takes its place.

But look at the complete process:

Every step after the molding machine requires space, handling and labor.

Depending on the operation, multiple bins can consume valuable production-floor space. Employees need access to remove them. Full containers need to travel through the facility. And someone has to make sure they are emptied before they overflow or interfere with production.

The better question may not be:

How do we empty the bins more efficiently?

It may be:

Do we need the bins at all?

Depending on the characteristics of the scrap material and the production process, a pneumatic conveying system may be able to transport material directly from the molding area to a centralized destination.

That changes the process to:

Removing individual collection bins from the process can potentially:

• Reduce manual material handling
• Reduce labor associated with moving and emptying bins
• Reclaim floor space around molding machines
• Reduce cart and forklift traffic
• Improve housekeeping
• Reduce the possibility of overflowing containers
• Centralize material for recycling, regrind or disposal
• Make it easier to accommodate additional production equipment

For a facility struggling to keep up with scrap from multiple machines, the value may extend well beyond housekeeping.

Removing the bins is the beginning to replacing the entire manual process.

Air Dynamics encountered a related challenge with an automotive mold manufacturer operating 10 industrial 3D printers.

The facility was using approximately 3,000 pounds of sand every day. Material had to be manually transferred, removed and managed throughout the operation.

The consequences went beyond labor.

Manual handling contributed to sand and dust accumulating around the facility. Material wasn't being removed and recycled efficiently, which could temporarily take printers out of production. Approximately 75% of the leftover sand was also being discarded rather than recovered.

Air Dynamics evaluated the entire process rather than simply treating the housekeeping problem.

The engineered system provided the capacity needed for the facility's 24-hour production schedule, improved material transport and waste removal, supported multiple users and helped the manufacturer improve its recycling process.

The material and manufacturing process were different from injection molding, but the underlying question was very similar:

Why continue moving large volumes of material manually if the process can be engineered to move it more efficiently?

Scrap removal is only one opportunity.

Material also has to reach the molding equipment in the first place.

Pellets, powders, additives and other raw materials may need to travel from storage areas to multiple molding machines. Pneumatic conveying can potentially automate portions of this process as well.

That means a facility assessment can look at both directions:

Where are employees currently carrying, dumping, emptying, transporting or cleaning up material?

Those activities can help identify opportunities for automation.

The same thinking applies to housekeeping.

If employees continually clean the same production areas, simply making cleanup faster may not address the underlying problem.

Ask why the material is getting there.

Is dust escaping during material transfer? Are scrap bins overflowing? Are pellets being spilled during manual handling? Is material accumulating because employees can't remove it as quickly as production generates it?

Sometimes the best housekeeping system is one that prevents the material from reaching the floor in the first place.

Where cleanup is still necessary, centralized industrial vacuum systems can provide strategically located cleaning points throughout the production area.

Material handling isn't the only system surrounding an injection molding machine.

Depending on the process and materials, manufacturers may also need to address dust, smoke, fumes, ventilation and excess process heat.

And some of the energy being generated or exhausted by a facility may potentially be recoverable.

Looking beyond individual pieces of equipment allows these issues to be considered as parts of the larger manufacturing process rather than unrelated plant problems.

Expansion is an especially good time to evaluate these systems.

Before adding another molding machine—or several—consider:

• How will additional raw material reach the machines?
• How much additional runner and scrap material will be generated?
• Who will remove it?
• Could pneumatic conveying eliminate individual scrap bins?
• How much floor space could eliminating bins reclaim?
• Will additional production increase housekeeping requirements?
• Will air quality or ventilation requirements change?
• Could additional process heat create an energy-recovery opportunity?

The molding machine may be the centerpiece of the investment, but the systems surrounding it can determine how efficiently the entire operation functions.

Automation shouldn't necessarily stop when the molded part leaves the machine.

Air Dynamics looks at the complete process to identify opportunities to automate material movement, improve housekeeping, control contaminants, recover resources and make better use of valuable production space.

Remove the bins. Reduce the handling. Reclaim the floor space.

If your employees are struggling to keep up with scrap bins, material movement or housekeeping around your molding machines, Air Dynamics can evaluate the process and determine whether there is a more efficient way to handle it.