Minimised cycle time: MeKuMed research project - injection mould with handling

Turning five into three: Until now, there used to be five different individual manufacturing steps necessary for the production of medical crimp claps. As part of the state-funded “MeKuMed” research project, Hofmann has worked with project partners to develop a more efficient production in three steps only.

Decisive for this: The mould developed by Hofmann, including a handling system for time-saving and automated production.

From pilot mould to automated series mould

- In the first stage of tool development, Hofmann created a new forming punch with different polishes and coatings for an existing test injection mould of the Institute for Plastics Development.
- Following, a pilot tool with a single mould cavity was then designed, manufactured and further optimized to develop the combined process.
- Using the resulting findings on the process and mould design, we then constructed and manufactured the final 4-cavity mould.

New production chain

With the new production chain, the time and equipment requirements can be significantly reduced thanks to our injection moulding tool. This results in a more efficient production with higher quality and which is less prone to errors.

New manufacturing process

1. Microstructuring, pre-damaging and cutting out the blanks using a laser by project partner Fraunhofer ILT: circular pre-damaging allows the aluminium to be precisely removed. The rubber stopper can then be pierced with a needle.
2. Forming the metal blank into a crimped cap, followed by injection moulding the plastic component within the combined mould from Hofmann.

Discover more at https://www.hofmann-impulsgeber.de/en/company/research-innovations/research-projekt-mekumed/