“Our work cells are running in VW plants.” That’s Chris Gassel, Advanced Engineering, Polymer Technology, pgam advanced technologies, North American Operations (Auburn Hills, MI). He’s talking about cells that are being used to plastic mold interior parts for vehicles including the Golf. As everyone–inside and outside Detroit, vehicle manufacturers and consumers alike–knows, VW interiors are the touchstone. So when he talks about molding cells that pgam has engineered being used for VW interiors, it is of more than moderate interest. Especially since what he’s talking about he has a version of right on the floor of the pgam facilities. The cells in Germany are in production. They’re injection molding cells. They are injection molding A-, B- and C-pillars. But if this was just about VW injection molding A-, B- and C-pillars, it wouldn’t be much of a story. After all, that’s not a big deal.
What is a big(ger) deal is the fact that VW is using an in-mold laminate process. Or, in other words, they’re injection molding the trim pieces for the pillars right onto the back of fabrics. Which explains, in part, why the interiors of VWs are so nice.
One more thing: “A lot of the 2007 products that we are quoting right now have full intent to go to in-mold lamination,” Gassel adds. He’s talking about North American producers. According to Larry Doyle, North American and International Marketing product manager for Demag Plastics Group Corp. (Strongsville, OH), the supplier of the horizontal injection-molding machine on the floor at pmag, the process was actually introduced at the K Show in Germany–in 1986. It is taking what was initially called “low-pressure processing” a bit of time to cross the Atlantic.
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