Micro Parts Bring New Development Opportunities To Mold Manufacturers

Micro parts bring new development opportunities to mold manufacturers

Nowadays, things are getting smaller and smaller, but the requirements are getting higher and higher. This is a very embarrassing contradiction for the manufacturing industry. Nowadays, micro-parts have spread from aerospace and automotive fields to industries such as biomedicine and telecommunications. The difficulty of processing is rising exponentially, and the entire industry chain is under pressure.

The demand for miniaturization in multiple industries explodes

By 2026, microsystem technology has become an industry with very fast growth on a global scale. Now, whether it is in the optical field, the microelectronics industry, or mobile communications and computer components, these aspects require the use of parts and objects with dimensions in the millimeter or even sub-millimeter range.

Therefore, the number of orders continues to rise, and the corresponding market demand has obviously not yet reached a state of complete saturation.

The accuracy requirements of parts need to be 5mm or less. The quality of the curved surface must be controlled within 0.2mm. In addition, the hardness must reach above 45HRC. When these indicators are superimposed together, the result is that the traditional milling process and the small EDM electrode manufacturing process are almost stretched.

Micro-milling technology breaks through the bottleneck

Mold expert Luo Baihui pointed out that micro-milling technology will use tools with a diameter less than 0.1mm. This operation method can achieve extremely small surface tolerances and high-precision surface quality. However, general-purpose NC software is absolutely unable to meet this level of precision requirements, so it must be replaced with a dedicated solution.

Manufacturers now have to deal with part deformation, dramatic increases in complexity, and the processing of micron-level features. The entire system requires small-size tools to meet certain standards. High-speed cutting tools with a length-to-diameter ratio ranging from ten units to a hundred units must also appear. These tools need to maintain minimal processing errors, and their numerical accuracy must be controlled within a fine range of 0.1 mm to achieve a good matching effect.

Tool speed and surface quality limits

The diameter value of the micro tool is set to 100 microns, and the situation will be further reduced below this value. As for the rotation speed indicator, the goal is to break through the limit of 150,000 rpm and to develop in a higher direction. The surface quality parameter Ra must be controlled within the range of 0.2 microns. At the same time, any subsequent polishing process is clearly not allowed. This situation must be met.

For very small parts and extremely small details, it is no longer practical to perform physical operations through polishing. Therefore, we must use the micro-milling method and achieve mirror-level accuracy in just one pass. This also places extreme requirements on the spindle speed stability and the ability to correct the geometry.

Cost control and material innovation

In order to continue to keep production costs to a minimum, most micro parts choose to use molds for mass manufacturing. This situation forces mold factories to introduce new space-grade materials and special mold coatings. By using tools with a diameter of φ0.1mm for milling processing, they can ultimately achieve sub-micron level processing accuracy.

Cost pressure has not been released, but has been further amplified with the improvement of accuracy. Every penny saved requires repeated thinking and weighing between material selection and process parameters. As long as there is a trial and error situation, the comprehensive cost of this trial and error far exceeds the cost of an ordinary mold project.

The gap left by simple mold relocation

Simple and medium-complexity mold manufacturing has been largely transferred to markets where labor costs are lower. Therefore, mold factories in the United States and Europe are forced to make some transformations so that they can survive in this living environment. These transformations are mainly in the direction of high-end technologies, such as the field of micro molds and micro milling technology.

Luo Baihui feels that this is a period of opportunity. Those manufacturers that have mastered micro-milling technology and micro-mold core technology can rely on their technical advantages to stabilize their positions and no longer be involved in the chaotic situation of low-price competition.

The industry upgrade signal has been clear

The development momentum of plastic rubber molds and stamping molds is getting faster and faster, and the proportion of their contribution to mold exports has always been maintained at a very high position. Especially those large, precise, and long-lasting mid-range molds, their growth rate has always exceeded the growth rate of ordinary products.

Now, the number of professional mold factories is increasing. Foreign-funded enterprises and private enterprises are expanding rapidly. At the same time, the shareholding reform project of state-owned enterprises is also accelerating. As a result, the entire industry has shifted from the past situation of relying on quantity to compete. It has now shifted to a new stage of competing for processing accuracy and service life, and the field of micro-machining is the most strategically important key link and highland in the future.

What is the specific upper or lower size limit that your factory can now stably process very small parts? You can invite everyone to communicate and share your most real production and operating situations in the comment area. If you think the content I provide contains very useful knowledge and experience, then I hope you can help and like it. At the same time, please also forward this information to your friends who are engaged in the mold industry.