Tooling

Shirlon’s In House Mold/Tool Manufacturing, Engineering & Design

Shirlon’s Engineering and Design Team specializes in creative and innovative part design, new product development, as well as redesign or conversion of existing products.

Optimally built molds require a seamless collaboration between engineering, programming and manufacturing. This ongoing need to improve quality and develop internal processes that further improve the final product never ends at Shirlon Plastics.

When our designers and engineers examine product concepts or drawings for rotational and vacuum formed moulds, they look for ways to reduce customer cost while designing a superior part and without jeopardizing the integrity of the product. We use the most recent solid works/e-drawings to create accurate 3-D visualizing drawings and offer a preliminary evaluation of your drawings or concept as a free service.

New products and unique designs require a mold maker that can translate rotational moulding and vacuum forming ideas into practical molding applications. Shirlon Plastics has a proven track record in tackling solution oriented projects; building molds that successfully perform in a production environment.

At Shirlon Plastics Company, compliance with our ISO-based quality system guarantees the unsurpassed quality and predictability of our proprietary mould making process. Our in-house machining, finishing, and framing capabilities are matched to meet your rotomolding and thermoforming manufacturing requirements, and ensure that you’ll produce high-quality parts from the first cycle through the life of your product.

Shirlon’s Vacuum Forming & Rotational Moulding Tool Manufacturing

Shirlon’s Tooling Department manufactures both fabricated steel and cast or machined aluminum. Since rotational moulding and vacuum forming tools are general unpressurized, tooling costs are extremely cost effective. Shirlon manufactures prototype, production and trim tooling. Since tooling is a “vertically integrated” Shirlon service, costs to customers are minimized.

Dimensional tolerance requirements, tooling costs, and production quantities are just a few of the numerous other considerations that play part in effective selection of manufacturing processes. Shirlon specializes in manufacturing tools for the vacuum forming and rotational molding processes. Injection moulding tools and blow moulding tools are also available through our world-renowned partners. In addition, Shirlon also specializes in the design and manufacturing of production jigs and fixtures.

Prototyping

Prototyping ensures product design adheres to the design criteria and serves its intended purpose. It is a critical means of product verification prior to final investment into tooling and manufacturing resources. Photorealistic renderings, appearance models and functional prototypes are just a few of the numerous other means Shirlon can accelerate your preliminary product verification efforts and aid in facilitating success of your product.

Pattern

The art of pattern making will always be critical to our industry, as the pattern or model allows you to review, modify, and approve the design prior to the aluminum casting phase.

The pattern is a representation of the rotomolded or vacformed plastic component, and will be manufactured to include shrink factors for both aluminum (1.0%) and plastic (generally 2.0 – 3.0%). Shirlon accounts for all shrink factors, determined by the type of plastic material and process used to mold the part.

Depending on the project, we will recommend a conventional (i.e. hand-built) pattern or a CNC machined pattern that best suits your needs and expedites the order-to-delivery process. Shirlon Plastics capability for manufacturing both conventional and CNC patterns, and has also developed strategic outsource partnerships to augment our in-house pattern-making capacity.

Mould/Tool Materials

Cast aluminum rotational and vacuum forming moulds are predominant in many applications since it is relatively easy to replicate products with complex shapes and intricate detail. Textures and finishes may be imparted to the finished component by shot blasting, peening or simply polishing the mould surface. Aluminum moulds are required in thermoforming especially if pre-heating for materials such as TPO or polycarbonate.

The vacuum forming and rotomolding processes do not introduce pressure to the mould thus allowing for enhanced tool longevity.

Steel fabricated rotomolds are usually used for less complicated or larger parts. The mold is fabricated by welding pre-formed sheet steel sections together and hand machining the welds to avoid visible seams on the molding. The combination of modern sheet steel punching, bending and forming equipment and traditional sheet steel hand working methods does allow surprisingly complex forms to be created.

Alternative mould materials for thermoforming include epoxy and polyester in both high temperature and conventional grades. At Shirlon we are always investigating the latest in vacuum forming mould technology.

Shirlon Tooling Advantage

Mould making is about working with each individual customer to solve specific design challenges. It's about listening to customers, offering input and then building tools for Vacuum Forming and Rotational Moulding that work.

By manufacturing rotational and vacuum forming tools in-house both costs and delivery are managed for optimum lead times and cost efficiencies.

Shirlon Plastics offers experienced talented and enthusiastic designers, engineers, customer service and support staff to take your vacuum forming project from concept to finished product in the shortest, most cost efficient method.

Phases in the Design & Construction of a Rotomolding or Vacuum Forming Mold:

Concept and design development of customer's product
Construction of CNC or hand-built pattern (for cast aluminum tooling)
Production of aluminum mold
Texturing, polishing, and Teflon® coating
Framing and mounting
On-site start-up consultation

Information Required for Proposal of a Vacuum Forming or Rotational Mould:

Fully-dimensioned 2-D or 3-D design or drawing -Shirlon can provide consultation
Plastic shrink rate
Selection of texture, polish, or surface finishes
Location and quantity of inserts, fill ports, and machined components
Location and size of nomenclature of graphics
Make, model and size of vacuum forming or rotational molding machine

Project Management

We have found a direct correlation between early involvement of Shirlon Plastics project managers and the success of our customers’ projects. This design consultation adds a valuable facet to our customers’ engineering and design process. Shirlon’s design and engineering consultation for rotational moulding, vacuum forming, injection moulding, blow moulding and extrusion provides synergy that creates a competitive advantage for our clients.

Benefit from exceptional project management skills and unmatched industry specific experience. Shirlon’s management process includes organizing projects through accurate documentation, timely updates and attention to design details that are realized in production. Providing our clients with the right mix of ingenuity, design and manufacturing allow our customers to focus on their core business.

Effective project management keeps costs under control while eliminating waste. Technical support is evident throughout the entire process. We apply the appropriate resources to accurately detail changes, update documents and communicate all of the information to the involved parties.

Customers rely on our experience to help identify part design challenges and solutions. At Shirlon Plastics, we’ve incorporated a high level of regulation where cost and customer product delivery are protected.

Shirlon’s In House Design, Engineering and Vacuum Forming Mould/Tool Manufacturing

Shirlon’s Design Team specializes in creative and innovative part design, new product development, as well as redesign or conversion of existing products.

When our designers and engineers examine product concepts or drawings for vacuum forming, they look for ways to reduce customer cost while designing a superior part conducive for thermoforming and without jeopardizing the integrity of the product. We offer a preliminary evaluation of your drawings or concept as a free service.

We use the most recent solid works/e-drawings to create accurate and 3-D visualizing drawings.

Shirlon Tool/Mold Manufacturing

Shirlon’s Tooling Department manufactures prototype, production and trim tooling. Materials vary from wood to epoxy to aluminum. Since tooling is an in-house or “vertically integrated” Shirlon service, costs to customers are minimized.

Cast or machined aluminum vacuum forming moulds are predominant in many applications. Aluminum is required especially if pre-heating of the mould is needed to vacuum form some materials such as TPO or polycarbonate.

The vacuum forming process does not introduce pressure to the mould thus making the mould last a lifetime if produced from aluminum tooling.

Alternative mould materials include epoxy and polyester in both high temperature and conventional grades. At Shirlon we are always investigating the latest in vacuum forming mould technology.

By manufacturing and designing vacuum forming moulds in-house both costs and delivery are managed for optimum lead times and cost efficiencies.