Friday, September 29, 2006

Software and hardware optimise moulding

Software and hardware solutions for optimizing the design and manufacture of plastic products will be shown at the UK's Plastics Design and Moulding exhibition.

Moldflow Corporation (NASDAQ:MFLO), the world leader in software and hardware solutions for optimizing the design and manufacture of plastic products, today announced its exhibition plans for Plastics Design and Moulding, April 12-14 in Telford, Shropshire, and Solid Modelling, April 27-28 in Birmingham. Plastics Design and Moulding, focuses on the design specification and manufacture of plastic moulding, while the Solid Modelling show provides an overview of new modelling tool developments, http://www.eda-expos.co.uk/SM/index.htm. New design analysis solutions featured: * Moldflow Plastics Advisers (MPA) is Moldflows easy-to-learn, 3D solids-based, plastics flow simulation product.

MPA 7.1 contains new features and enhancements that allow users to obtain greater analysis and results resolution, model and analyze annular hot runners and networked runner systems, visualize surface defects more easily.

* Moldflow Plastics Insight (MPI) is the industrys most widely used design analysis tool and is known for its speed and accuracy.

With MPI 5.0, Moldflow reinforces its lead in 3D simulation innovation with enhanced functionality for gas-assisted injection moulding, part insert overmoulding, 2-shot sequential overmoulding and reactive moulding.

Meshing enhancements in the latest release of MPI can result in faster and more accurate analysis results.

Moldflow manufacturing solutions - Moldflow delivers complete collaborative manufacturing management solutions for automated setup, optimization, control, and monitoring of the injection moulding process.

These solutions result in faster time-to-market, reduced part cost, maximized capacity utilization and improved production efficiency without compromising product quality.

* Moldflow Plastics Xpert (MPX) is an advanced control solution for the automatic setup, optimization and monitoring of the process window of an injection moulding machine.

Unlike other control solutions, MPX utilizes the advanced simulation capabilities of MPA and MPI to provide an initial process configuration.

MPX interfaces with current injection moulding machine control technology and provides on-line process correction with technology developed exclusively for the plastics injection moulding industry.

* Celltrack is a real-time Production Management system that can be attached to any type of cyclic equipment used for discrete manufacturing.

The system continuously tracks and reports machine efficiencies and provides capabilities for work order management, job scheduling, mould and machine tracking and labeling.

Celltrack v2.0 schedules, manages and monitors manual tasks as well as those operating on machinery and the ability to track machine related labor activities.

Available in English, French, Spanish, German and Italian, the product is ideal for multinational operations.

* Shotscope Process Monitoring provides a wealth of 'at a glance' information to improve productivity, minimize scrap and downtime, and optimize plant capacity.

Shotscope can acquire data from up to 36 input channels: 8 analog, 12 digital and 16 single-points (thermocouples).

It collects up to 10,000 data points per analog channel and stores up to 50 process parameters per shot.

Shotscope displays the real-time status of every job and can communicate with other plant-management systems.

When configured as such, Shotscope can activate alarms and part diverters when parts are out of spec and records statistical quality control (SQC) data such as part weight or dimension and associates it with specific process data for correlation with statistical process control (SPC) data.

The latest version of Shotscope also features a new hybrid display that shows velocity and pressure as a function of position with a switch over to a time-based display in mid-cycle.

* Altanium CX is an affordable, small footprint, hot runner process control solution that supports from two to 192 zones.

Its unique modular design is highly scalable and easily configured.

The self-contained controller units can be used freestanding, mounted on the mould or mounted alongside, behind, or inside the injection-moulding machine.The Altanium CX controller design enables standardization on a single system and offers a higher level of investment protection as multiple controller units can be linked together to support future larger configurations.

Altanium CX controllers also feature the new integrated Adapta-Tek Box that can make changing the mold interface wiring quick and cost effective.

* About Moldflow Corporation - Moldflow (NASDAQ: MFLO) is the leading global provider of automation and optimization software, hardware and hot runner process control solutions for the plastics injection moulding industry.

Companies use Moldflows complete suite of products to address plastic part design issues at the earliest possible stage as well as to maximize productivity and profitability on the manufacturing floor.

Moldflow Plastics Labs (MPL) offers state-of-the-art material testing and consulting services.

Its extensive materials database is also used in Moldflow software products.

Moldflows collaboration with academia, industry, and customers around the world has led to a reputation for constant innovation in the complete design-for-manufacture process.