When the above summaries are applied to the acquisition of molds, it should be apparent that a hot runner system can significantly reduce initial cost, tool construction time, and operating expenses of trials, setup, cycle time, maintenance, scrap and secondary operations—and with an efficient valve gate system—no additional equipment is necessary.

The hot runner will provide the high consistency of part quality demanded by most applications.

Mold designs using hot runner thermal gated systems and valve gate systems are often specified to provide the utmost in high-performance molding. They will produce very consistent shot-to-shot repeatability, faster cycle times, good automatic mold operation and better part quality.

A well-designed system of hot runner valve gates will normally out-perform other systems—both thermal and valve gate alike. Such a system uses less mold height, less power, and no external control or auxiliary power systems. The bottom line is that a hot runner system will provide overall advantages that should be explored in nearly any injection mold acquisition.

Valve gate installations should be made to the specs issued by their manufacturer to obtain the advantages necessary for competitive production of injection molded parts in today’s marketplace. The valve gate advantages over the thermal gate systems stem from the very straightforward, sturdy construction of all components, which is derived from a basic design concept of the least number of parts to provide the best gate flow/control situation.