A few final thoughts on selecting an injection moulding supplier 

In our last two posts, we’ve covered most of the key factors that we believe you should consider when choosing a plastic moulder.  Our final post provides a few further thoughts to think about if you want to find the best plastic moulding partner. 

Do they take an innovative approach to help me get better results? 

Innovation is not always a term that is applied to plastic injection moulders.  Yet, for the team at OGM, it’s one of our unique selling points. 

We firmly believe that we should constantly challenge ourselves and our customers, with fresh ideas and approaches to the established way of working.   

A recent example is our decision to invest in advanced technology that reduces the lead times for engineering plastic mould tools to just a few weeks, with mould tool inserts being produced far faster.  The same technology also offers the option to create specialised plastic mould tool inserts that eliminate the problems of differential heating and cooling, reducing reject rates and giving a significant improvement in plastic part quality. 

Do they offer services to add extra value to the partnership? 

Although plastic moulding is our core business, we also offer a range of value-added services, designed to help customers improve productivity and quality, or reduce unit cost and lead times. 

Services include design and prototyping, component assembly and finishing and comprehensive project management. 

Who will manage my project? 

Regardless of the scale of your plastic moulding project, we provide the services of a highly skilled and experienced team of designers, plastic moulding engineers and technical support experts. 

Their goal is to give you the best possible service by helping you bring your plastic injection moulding project to fruition as quickly and cost-effectively as possible. 

Factors to consider when selecting an injection moulding supplier 

Choosing a new plastic moulding partner can be a difficult decision.  We covered some of the key factors, such as reputation, trust and quality in our previous post. 

Plastic injection moulding is, however, a technically demanding process; one that requires the skills and knowledge of experts to get it right.  Here are five further things that you should consider when looking for a plastic moulder. 

Are they experienced in my market? 

In our 50-plus years as plastic moulders, we’ve worked across almost every sector of the industry, from electronics and white goods to medical, automotive and industrial controls. 

Regardless of the application, we provide a consistent standard of advice, support and precision plastic injection moulding, to help customers achieve the optimum balance of quality, performance and value. 

Do they have in-house toolmaking? 

This can be an important aspect for both quality control and reducing lead times.  We have an extensive toolroom for engineering plastic injection mould tools, building these from the ground-up, or carrying out tool modifications and repairs. 

We also use advanced metal additive manufacturing technology for developing plastic injection mould tool inserts in-house.  This helps to reduce lead times and allows us to incorporate advanced features, such as conformal cooling to eliminate problems of plastic part distortion or burning. 

Can they help me improve plastic part quality? 

Quality is key to our team.  With many years of experience, we understand how to engineer plastic mould tools and produce plastic mouldings to exceptionally high standards. 

As an example, we use advanced additive metal manufacturing systems to build conformal cooled inserts, which can eliminate many of the plastic part quality problems caused by differential heating and cooling of plastic mould tools. 

Similarly, we work with customers to design plastic mould tools to ensure consistent quality for the entire life of the tool and duration of the plastic injection moulding project, regardless if this is measured in weeks, months or years. 

Can they help me reduce lead times? 

In today’s ever more competitive environment there’s increasing pressure to bring products to market faster and more efficiently than ever before. 

We’ve invested heavily in advanced technologies, to both improve plastic part quality and reduce plastic mould lead times. For example, our latest hybrid additive manufacturing system is helping customers to bring lead times for plastic mould tooling down from several months to under 4 weeks. 

Similarly, we can often help customers modify the design of their plastic moulded parts in a way that makes them quicker and less costly to produce, without affecting quality or functionality. 

How competitive are their prices? 

Let’s be completely up-front.  We do not process to be the cheapest plastic moulder. Our reputation is built on quality, reliability and innovation, all delivered at a competitive cost that meets the technical and commercial demands of our customers. 

We’ll always do our best to engineer cost out of each plastic injection moulding project, through the use of advanced technology or recommendations on design changes to reduce plastic part production cost.  But we will not sacrifice quality on the altar of cost. 

Ultimately, our goal is to deliver outstanding value for every plastic moulding project and every customer – something we do time after time. 

5 factors to think about if you need an injection moulding supplier 

Choosing a plastic moulding company should be no different from selecting any other supplier that is crucial to your business. 

Here are some of the questions you should ask. 

Do they have a good reputation? 

Fundamentally, you need to be confident that your chosen plastic moulding partner will be able to meet your expectations, in both the short and long term.  This decision will be based on a range of factors, of which reputation is perhaps the starting point. 

At OGM, we have been a specialised plastic injection moulder for over fifty years.  In that time, we have worked with many of the world’s leading companies, building a wealth of knowledge and experience in all aspects of plastic moulding techniques, materials and processes. 

Talk to any of our customers, many of which have worked for us for years, and they’ll tell you that we have an outstanding reputation. 

Can I trust them? 

Our reputation as one of the UK’s leading plastic moulding companies is built on the lengths to which we go to develop a strong and lasting partnership with every customer, no matter how simple or complex their requirements. 

We work hard to solve each customer’s plastic injection moulding, design and production challenges, developing solutions that help them improve part quality, reduce unit costs and increase productivity. 

Creating a position of trust takes time and commitment.  But becoming a trusted plastic moulding partner allows us to truly understand our customers’ businesses and to exceed their expectations time after time. 

Do they have the right plastic injection moulding capability? 

A solid reputation counts for little if you don’t have the plastic moulding facilities and services to be able to deliver what customers require. 

Visit our sites in plastic moulding centres in Yarton in Oxfordshire and Hengoed, South Wales and you’ll find two of the most advanced plastic injection moulding production facilities anywhere in Europe. 

We’ve over 50 precision plastic injection moulding machines, from the world’s leading manufacturers, with capacities between 80 and 1,000 tonnes.  Our production systems are highly automated, supported by Class 7 cleanrooms, dedicated CNC toolmaking, component assembly and full design and prototyping services. 

See our full plastic moulding capability here.

Can they deliver the plastic moulding quality I require? 

Plastic moulding quality is an overriding passion and commitment at OGM.  We work to the highest standards and maintain a comprehensive in-house production and quality management system. 

Our quality approvals include: ISO 9001:2015; ISO 13485: 2016 (medical); and ISO 14001: 2015 (environmental). 

Download our plastic moulding quality certificates here. 

Do they offer outstanding customer service? 

Ultimately, the OGM difference comes from the outstanding services that we provide to every plastic moulding customer.  This starts on the day that you make your initial enquiry and continues for as long as we do business together. 

We provide technical and applications support, to help you develop new methods of injection moulding your plastic parts, or to improve the quality, finish or cost of existing plastic components.  Throughout, we pride ourselves on the level of innovation that we bring to each plastic moulding project, no matter how large or small, with the goal of delivering the best possible customer experience. 

To learn more, contact our team today.

Metal additive manufacturing is the archetypal digital manufacturing technology. When additive techniques first became commercially available, proponents claimed that they would fundamentally change the way manufacturing is done. By removing the need for traditional moulds and tools, they argued, 3D printing would replace many older manufacturing techniques.

That revolution has yet to happen.

Read More “Metal additive manufacturing turns up the volume”

Our new innovation, using the latest hybrid metal additive manufacturing technology, will help to eliminate the problems caused by gas traps in injection mould tools.

Read More “Innovation from OGM eliminates gas traps in injection mould tools”

So, you have decided that injection moulding is the way you intend to manufacture your components; but you now face a choice as to which polymer or combination of polymers is best suited to your needs. Most importantly, that will meet the design criteria for the part and provide the physical properties demanded by the application.

Read More “Choosing appropriate materials for injection moulding”

But before we answer that question, let’s take a broader look at the industrial uses of plastic injection moulding. How it has become such an important tool in the manufacture of an extraordinarily wide range of components, many of which we are likely to encounter in our everyday lives.

Read More “How Does an Plastic Injection Moulding Machine Work?”

A new solution to improve part quality and cycle rates

One of the challenges when manufacturing injection mould tools is how best to incorporate channels that allow even and effective cooling of the tool, to ensure that part quality while reducing cycle times.

Read More “Conformal cooled injection mould tool inserts”

Speed is of the essence in the production of injection moulded components. Manufacturers need to get their designs from concept to production as quickly as possible. Moulders also need to achieve the shortest possible part production cycle times to maximise productivity and keep unit costs down.

Read More “Hybrid additive manufacturing speeds production of conformal cooled tool inserts”

A revolution in toolmaking technology is driving up the quality and speed of manufacture of injection mould tools that produce plastic parts. At the heart of this revolution is the way additive and subtractive equipment work together in an integrated process.

Read More “Hybrid technology advance boosts production”