Automotive
Injection Moulding for Automotive Applications
Our digital manufacturing capabilities help us develop a wide range of plastic automotive components quickly. The amount of plastic used in vehicles is rising every year due to its durability and lightweight. We are adjusting to the growing demands from both OEMs and tier one organisations as automotive manufacturing in the UK reaches new highs. Among the most common automotive applications are:
- Assembly line components
- Fixtures
- Enclosures and housings
- Plastic dash components
- Aftermarket parts
- Armatures
- Lenses and lighting features
- Support for on-board consumer electronics
Why use injection moulding in automotive?
Injection moulding is one of the most widely used plastics manufacturing techniques because it provides a cost-effective way to mass-produce high-quality, reliable parts from a variety of polymers. Automotive injection moulding has become a standard in the automotive industry, where accuracy, protection, and efficiency are all critical.
Our digital manufacturing capabilities help us produce a variety of plastic automotive components more quickly. Among the most popular automotive applications are:
Repeatability, or the ability to reliably manufacture similar components, is critical in the automotive industry. Since injection moulding uses heavy-duty metal moulds, the final plastic parts formed by the mould are nearly identical. Injection moulding has a number of variables, but if the mould is well-designed and constructed, it is a highly repeatable process.
Despite the fact that the injection mould-making process (as well as the cost of the mould) is costly, injection moulding is a highly scalable process with lower overall costs as more parts are produced. Injection moulding is therefore advantageous to the manufacturer in mass production applications.
The wide variety of rigid, flexible, and rubber plastics that can be used in injection moulding for automotive production is a major advantage. For various applications in the automotive industry, a variety of polymers are used, including ABS, polypropylene, acrylic, acetal, nylon, polycarbonate, and others.
Injection moulding is suitable for manufacturing plastic parts with clear geometries and produces parts with excellent surface finish. When manufacturing pieces, manufacturers may choose from a variety of surface textures, such as glossy, rough, or matte, which are applied directly to the mould rather than the moulded component.
When plastic injection moulding automotive parts, it's simple to change colors to match the vehicle's color scheme. Injection moulding, unlike other methods, requires you to combine dyes with raw material pellets before starting the manufacturing process. This eliminates the need for painting or tinting after the moulding is completed, resulting in a strong, clear coloration.
While injection moulding is commonly used for mass production of auto parts, it can also be used as a prototyping tool by an automotive plastic parts manufacturer. Manufacturers can turn around short runs of prototype moulded car components much faster than they can with conventional methods by creating cheap, low-cost aluminum moulds with rapid tooling — usually through additive manufacturing or CNC machining (steel)
Rapid Automotive Plastic Injection moulding Services
Stephens Plastic provides specialist injection moulding services to clients in the automotive and other sectors, supplying mass-produced components. Thermoplastic injection moulding, over moulding, insert moulding, and mould making are some of our facilities. In the latter case, our experts collaborate with clients to create high-quality moulds for prototyping or large-scale manufacturing.
We also offer a wide range of injection moulding materials, including thermoplastics that are solid, heat resistant, and rigid; thermoplastics that are flexible and quick curing; and high-temperature rubber plastics that are durable. Our skilled finishing services allow our automotive clients to achieve high-quality finishes that meet their needs.
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