In this section several current Multi Plastics products are featured in order to highlight the advantages of our rotationally molded products.
Highlighted here are solutions made possible by ROTOMOLDING of thermoplastic and thermosetting resins. Rotational molding is a plastics processing technique that is ideally suited to producing relatively large, hollow, seamless parts which are partially or totally enclosed.
The seed hopper shown on the right highlights the ability of ROTOMOLDING to produce parts with complex shapes, straight walls, and uniform wall thickness.
Because ROTOMOLDING is generally a low-pressure process, tooling costs are low. Tools are aluminum castings that are sand cast from wood patterns. The surface characteristics of the tool (and resulting parts) can be modified through various treatments such as sand blasting, shot peening, or machining. The low cost of tooling makes ROTOMOLDING ideal for parts requiring short production runs or for prototyping of parts prior to finalizing design for production through another process.
The aircraft galley waste container on the left showcases the advantages of Multi Plastics Co.'s integrated secondary finishing capability. These parts are delivered around the world to our customers, ready for service. Aluminum extrusions across the top of the container provide added stiffness. Aluminum handles ease handling in crowded aircraft galleys. Other waste containers manufactured by Multi Plastics include those molded with hardened steel wear buttons on the bottom corners for enhanced durability (Patent pending). These products also include molded in logos and other identifying information (they have been digitally removed from this picture to protect customer privacy).
ROTOMOLDED galley waste containers produced by Multi Plastics are inherently superior to riveted aluminum waste containers. They are less expensive, even with tooling costs amortized over the initial production run. They enhance aircraft safety and performance. They are inherently fluid tight and don't leak. They also weigh less. With lower cost and superior performance, they offer superior service economies. All Multi Plastics aviation related products meet all applicable FAA requirements.
The paint hopper shown on the right is another example of a Multi Plastics ROTOMOLDING solution. In this application, low cost, leak resistance, and washability are key performance factors.
The product at left demonstrates the ability of ROTOMOLDING to produce complex parts. Although not visible in this picture, this product is made with molded-in steel pins to enhance its stiffness and load carrying capacity. Unlike the products shown above, this product and those that follow are all consumer products. Over the last decade, the technology of ROTOMOLDING has greatly improved and is now capable, in the hands of experienced molders, of providing the high quality finish and color consistency required by consumer products.
The boat seat shown at right is another Multi Plastics consumer use product. The bottom view highlights another feature of the rotational molding process-- molded in inserts. Threaded inserts are molded into the base of this seat allowing it to be attached to the seat frame in the boat. When this part leaves Multi Plastics Co., it is finished and ready to be installed.
The same boat seat is shown from the front. From the two views of this product, you can see the ability of ROTOMOLDING to produce fully enclosed parts.
The seat at the right is another Multi Plastics Company product utilized in marine applications. Rotationally molded boat seats offer many advantages when compared to seats produced through other processes. An enclosed plastic product is inherently corrosion resistant. The only metal parts in the product (the threaded inserts) are not exposed to the atmosphere in normal use. Relatively low tooling costs allow for multiple seat designs to be used in a single boat while maintaining affordable unit costs. This allows designers to put the right seat in the right location at the right price.
Rotational molding provides the designing engineer with the unique capability to increase or decrease the wall thickness of a part after the mold has been built and sampled. The final wall thickness of the part can, therefore, be established after the actual in-use testing of the part. Few other plastics processing techniques offer the designer this advantage.
Advanced techniques have been developed for producing foamed parts with solid unfoamed skins on the outside or on both the inside and outside surfaces. Special molding procedures can produce composite parts that have two layers of the same material, different colors, or two layers of different materials. These additives and special molding techniques can be combined to produce very sophisticated parts.
Another recent innovation is the molder's ability to mold in single or multi color graphics during the molding process. These molded-in graphics are virtually indestructible and relatively inexpensive.
Copyright 1998, 1999, Multi Plastics Co.