What is moldflow analysis? Mold flow analysis (or MFA) uses software to create a simulation of plastic flow, allowing manufacturers to enhance the design of their mold through a flow analysis of injection molds and create a better product.
By conducting mold flow analysis, manufacturers can get a glimpse into how the material they are using will fill the cavity of a mold, and spot possible problems. Creating a virtual version with mold flow analysis software of the mold before the physical cutting begins allows you to make changes and save on production costs.
When should manufacturers use mold flow analysis?
These factors will help determine whether MFA is necessary for an application:
Tolerance requirements – Products with tighter tolerances can benefit from MFA before tooling to make sure you can meet the specifications for tooling design and materials.
Product geometry – A mold with a more complex shape will likely benefit from mold flow analysis because the flow is less predictable than with a simpler shape.
The scope of the project – There’s a cost associated with conducting mold flow analysis. The scope of the project should be wide enough to justify spending the money and manpower connected to an MFA.
The benefits of using mold flow analysis include:
It allows you to resolve wall thickness issues.
MFA lets you fill cavities in molds with consistency.
You can unearth faults in design geometry, and avoid expensive tooling errors. It also gives you more support if you need to make a case for design changes to your client.
You’ll improve manufacturability, improve quality and efficiency and reduce time to market.
Mold flow analysis lets you uncover visual defects such as air traps, weld lines, and sink marks, and allows you to optimize gate location.
Another key benefit is using the program to predict generalized molding parameters allowing for efficient set-up during the trial phase
With a mold flow analysis tool or software, manufacturers can therefore get a better sense of where the runners should be placed within the mold. Various situations can take place simply depending on runner positioning. For example, the runners can lead to uneven resins flows, especially in a multi-cavity or a high-cavitation mold. However, when the behavior of the runners is viewed through an flow analysis software, adjustments can be made in order to make the runners more geometrically balanced throughout the mold system. This will ultimately lead to reduced internal stresses and consistent flow lengths to each cavity present in the mold.
Before undertaking any injection-molding or prototyping-related project, it’s important not to overlook one of the most crucial phases — mold flow analysis. Many injection molding companies or businesses that provided prototyping services in China, for example, have understood the benefits of mold flow analysis. By undertaking this, manufacturers can predict product outcomes regarding quality and functionality. As injection molding depends on the quality of the mold, tool, runner, gate system, resin, injection speed, and temperature, mold flow analysis is an important primary stage.
Without any tooling or molding necessary, you can answer all the what-if questions ahead of time. Mold flow analysis can point out many concerns or production factors, including:
Material selection issues
Thickness/thinness problems
Structural concerns
Weld line controls
Residual or structural stress issues
Filling concerns
Product function requirements
Sink or appearance problems, and more
You have all the information and answers to make the most optimal choices in injection molds and tooling to create the perfect product. Mold flow analysis can show you everything you need:
The optimal gate locations
Balanced filling and packing
Cavity layout
Mitigation of short-shot molding issues
Optimal injection mold materials
Prototype and production tooling
The best cooling layouts
Structural and thermal analyses for tool life
Core pull/deflection issues
Reasons for tool failures
Engineering calculations of pressure or force necessary for each part
Etc…
You’re now able to test out different materials and designs without building any prototype parts or tools. You can get virtual parts with a simulation as well, so you can have full process simulation with minimal upfront investment.
With mold flow analyses, you can make immediate, informed decisions. These decisions can impact multiple areas of the process including:
Product design
Material and process selection
Tooling
And everything else that is central to your production process
There’s no trial and error involved; there are just proven scientific engineering answers from art to part.
Plastic parts can be optimized for exact machine specification, cycle time, cooling, DOE, and more, without reducing production time or putting any tools on molding machines; this can help improve your bottom-line profit.
You can select the right source with expertise and practical experience for simulation, design, tooling, and molding. Otherwise, you would be spending money on analysis costs, as well as all tooling and molding issues, without obtaining any of the savings from upfront process simulation.
The predictive process of mold flow analysis can uncover design issues, save resources, provide for preemptive correction, and speed up overall cycle time and present your business with an abundance of benefits.
Mold flow analyses can optimize your overall cycle time by up to 10-30%. That reduction percentage on just one part can cancel out the cost of a complete flow analysis of multiple molded parts!