polycarbonate goggles based on photoelasticity and digital image processing technique - polymer injection molding

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Blaige & Co. served as the exclusive financial advisor to NN Inc. on the transaction. Greenberg Traurig LLP served as counsel for Blackford Capital, with legal entity support from Varnum LLP. Parliament Capital Management provided lending for the acquisition, with legal support from DLA Piper. Plante Moran advised on financial and tax diligence, and Signature Associates CRE brokered the Sale Leaseback transaction with STORE Capital.

“We are excited to welcome the IMC team to Davalor. We are committed to providing our customers with the most advanced, most reliable injection molded plastic products available," said Davalor CEO John Boeschenstein. "As we seek to expand our capabilities beyond our core plastic injection molding offering, we are thrilled to have found a strategic partner with a great management team, a professional and highly capable staff, and a strong, design-for-manufacturing approach to injection molded plastics. I look forward to working together to expand our capabilities on a national scale."

Additive manufacturing (AM) is great for plenty of applications, but it does have some disadvantages when it comes to certain areas. Industrial 3D printers may be able to build enough parts in one batch, thanks to a large build envelope, to make mass manufacturing worthwhile, but desktop AM systems are less useful for such applications.

Founded in 1947 and based in Lubbock, TX, IMC molds precision components for global customers in a variety of end markets. The long-tenured management team will continue in their current roles, said the news release.

Headquartered in Chesterfield, MI, Davalor provides injection molding services primarily for the automotive industry. It was acquired by Blackford Capital in 2016, and the addition of IMC to the portfolio “marks an initial stride toward establishing a global, full-service plastics injection molding business with a range of capabilities and a diversified, global customer base,” said Blackford Capital.

John Newman is a Digital Engineering contributor who focuses on 3D printing. Contact him via [email protected] and read his posts on Rapid Ready Technology.

Founded in 2010, Blackford Capital focuses on the acquisition and management of founder- and family-owned lower middle-market companies in the manufacturing, industrial, and distribution sectors. The company is based in Grand Rapids, MI.

Private equity firm Blackford Capital has acquired Industrial Molding Corp. (IMC), the first add-on acquisition for its portfolio company, Davalor Mold Co. IMC is an independently run subsidiary of NN Inc., a precision metal manufacturer based in Charlotte, NC, with a global footprint. NN Inc. said total net cash proceeds would reach approximately $16 million. IMC is NN’s sole plastics processing plant and, as such, was targeted for divestment because it was not core to its strategic direction.

So what our machine offers is a way for individuals, small businesses or even large companies to use low cost aluminum molds to produce their own prototype partsff.  Or they can even make moderate production runs of a custom plastic product. In addition, this machine makes it convenient to test various plastic resins and to confirm that a part can actually be molded.Below you’ll find the Kickstarter video for the PIM-SHOOTER Model-150A.” frameborder=“0” allowfullscreen=“yes”>Sources: Kickstarter, LNS Technologies

Below you’ll find the Kickstarter video for the PIM-SHOOTER Model-150A.” frameborder=“0” allowfullscreen=“yes”>Sources: Kickstarter, LNS Technologies

Although users will still have to get molds made to use the machine, the ability to pop out a small run of plastic objects without waiting multiple hours for a desktop 3D printer to finish a single print could make the LNS Technologies’ offering a useful tool for trial runs of products or offer greater capacity to small manufacturers and colleges.From the Kickstarter page:So what our machine offers is a way for individuals, small businesses or even large companies to use low cost aluminum molds to produce their own prototype partsff.  Or they can even make moderate production runs of a custom plastic product. In addition, this machine makes it convenient to test various plastic resins and to confirm that a part can actually be molded.Below you’ll find the Kickstarter video for the PIM-SHOOTER Model-150A.” frameborder=“0” allowfullscreen=“yes”>Sources: Kickstarter, LNS Technologies

The PIM-SHOOTER Model-150A offers a mold size of up to 7 x 5 x 5 in. with a shot capacity of 1.25 cu. inch volume or 21 grams weight. The machine can handle ABS, PE, PP, PS, ACETAL, EVA, and TPE plastics and has a footprint comparable to one of those can smashers people bolt to their walls.Although users will still have to get molds made to use the machine, the ability to pop out a small run of plastic objects without waiting multiple hours for a desktop 3D printer to finish a single print could make the LNS Technologies’ offering a useful tool for trial runs of products or offer greater capacity to small manufacturers and colleges.From the Kickstarter page:So what our machine offers is a way for individuals, small businesses or even large companies to use low cost aluminum molds to produce their own prototype partsff.  Or they can even make moderate production runs of a custom plastic product. In addition, this machine makes it convenient to test various plastic resins and to confirm that a part can actually be molded.Below you’ll find the Kickstarter video for the PIM-SHOOTER Model-150A.” frameborder=“0” allowfullscreen=“yes”>Sources: Kickstarter, LNS Technologies

Echoing those comments, Blackford Capital founder and managing director Martin Stein noted that IMC’s seasoned leadership team and deep expertise in the plastics injection molding industry will be a “capability multiplier for our customers.” The acquisition, he added, builds a “solid foundation for accelerated and sustained growth within the Davalor platform, paving the way for continued expansion and innovation.”

LNS Technologies is looking to fill the gap between AM and injection molding for small runs of plastic parts by offering a desktop plastic injection molding system. Already fully funded via Kickstarter, the company plans to sell its system for $1,500, which is cheap for nearly any injection system that isn’t fueled by Play-Doh.The PIM-SHOOTER Model-150A offers a mold size of up to 7 x 5 x 5 in. with a shot capacity of 1.25 cu. inch volume or 21 grams weight. The machine can handle ABS, PE, PP, PS, ACETAL, EVA, and TPE plastics and has a footprint comparable to one of those can smashers people bolt to their walls.Although users will still have to get molds made to use the machine, the ability to pop out a small run of plastic objects without waiting multiple hours for a desktop 3D printer to finish a single print could make the LNS Technologies’ offering a useful tool for trial runs of products or offer greater capacity to small manufacturers and colleges.From the Kickstarter page:So what our machine offers is a way for individuals, small businesses or even large companies to use low cost aluminum molds to produce their own prototype partsff.  Or they can even make moderate production runs of a custom plastic product. In addition, this machine makes it convenient to test various plastic resins and to confirm that a part can actually be molded.Below you’ll find the Kickstarter video for the PIM-SHOOTER Model-150A.” frameborder=“0” allowfullscreen=“yes”>Sources: Kickstarter, LNS Technologies

The PIM-SHOOTER Model-150A offers a mold size of up to 7 x 5 x 5 in. with a shot capacity of 1.25 cu. inch volume or 21 grams weight. The machine can handle ABS, PE, PP, PS, ACETAL, EVA, and TPE plastics and has a footprint comparable to one of those can smashers people bolt to their walls.Although users will still have to get molds made to use the machine, the ability to pop out a small run of plastic objects without waiting multiple hours for a desktop 3D printer to finish a single print could make the LNS Technologies’ offering a useful tool for trial runs of products or offer greater capacity to small manufacturers and colleges.From the Kickstarter page:So what our machine offers is a way for individuals, small businesses or even large companies to use low cost aluminum molds to produce their own prototype partsff.  Or they can even make moderate production runs of a custom plastic product. In addition, this machine makes it convenient to test various plastic resins and to confirm that a part can actually be molded.Below you’ll find the Kickstarter video for the PIM-SHOOTER Model-150A.” frameborder=“0” allowfullscreen=“yes”>Sources: Kickstarter, LNS Technologies

From the Kickstarter page:So what our machine offers is a way for individuals, small businesses or even large companies to use low cost aluminum molds to produce their own prototype partsff.  Or they can even make moderate production runs of a custom plastic product. In addition, this machine makes it convenient to test various plastic resins and to confirm that a part can actually be molded.Below you’ll find the Kickstarter video for the PIM-SHOOTER Model-150A.” frameborder=“0” allowfullscreen=“yes”>Sources: Kickstarter, LNS Technologies