Until she retired in September 2021, Clare Goldsberry reported on the plastics industry for more than 30 years. In addition to the 10,000+ articles she has written, by her own estimation, she is the author of several books, including The Business of Injection Molding: How to succeed as a custom molder and Purchasing Injection Molds: A buyers guide. Goldsberry is a member of the Plastics Pioneers Association. She reflected on her long career in "Time to Say Good-Bye."

The TOP 700 can achieve delivery rates of over five litres/minute at a maximum pump pressure of 210 bar, so enabling short cycle times both when filling larger parts and with large numbers of small cavities. Additives and colours can be dispensed from 1, 4 and 20 litre containers. In order to achieve the dosing precision that is particularly vital for very small parts, the volumetric meter for colours has a resolution of below 0.1 μl/l. Depending on requirements, dosing can be carried out simultaneously or in a freely selectable mixing ratio.

Thorsten Häuser, development manager, explains: “We developed our TOP 700 dosing pump to meet customer demand for a space- and material-saving solution from ELMET. We’ve achieved this with a footprint of less than 0.5 m² (799 mm × 600 mm) and our new pump design. As a result, this new dosing system is particularly suitable not only for customers processing high-value, shear-sensitive or abrasive materials but also for R&D, prototyping and small-batch applications. The TOP 700 rounds out our product range while setting new standards in compact dosing technology.”

According to Kevin Prunsky, co-founder of Thunderbird LLC, the purchase complements Thunderbird’s recent acquisition, announced Feb. 28, 2018, of Williams Plastics LLC (Shelbyville, IN). Williams Plastics provides injection molded drinkware and custom art, design and print services. The string of acquisitions will form a stronger, more complete offering of plastic injection molding design, execution and delivery. Thunderbird has retained the Indiana Plastics/Kruis Mold Inc. management team and added marketing and financial management.

TOP 700 provides the same high precision dosing of silicones and additives as Elmet’s flagship TOP 7000 Pro dosing system with its 200 or 20 litre drum size which was launched back in 2021.

To avoid operating errors, the drums can be changed fully automatically from the drum rim from three sides within two minutes. Intuitive operation of the system, the use of simple clamp connections, a guided drum change procedure and an integrated cooling system mean even relatively low-skilled personnel can operate it without any problem. Fully automatic venting as standard completes the system’s many and varied safety and convenience features.

Indiana Plastics maintains a skilled production staff that uses the latest molding practices and modern equipment, along with 50 years of experience, to produce superior injection molded products, explained Thunderbird. Kruis Mold builds and repairs custom tools for the molding industry.

Designed to be FDA- and EMA-compliant, the new TOP 700 dosing system is used for applications requiring the highest levels of cleanliness such as medical technology, personal care, foodstuffs and optics. Virtually abrasion-free pumping also prevents metal particle contamination of the LSR which would impair its functionality. There are also no limits to the consistency of the processed LSR under real-world conditions because Elmet’s new system can dose any commercially available product with the same precision thanks to its ability to handle viscosities of between 0.001 Pas and 2000 Pas (shear rate 10/s) or 16,000 Pas (1/s). Its optionally OPC UA- and Euromap 82.3-compliant control system can be seamlessly integrated into the injection moulding machine’s own control system.

The companies’ capabilities include injection molding (85 to 660 ton), assembly, in-mold decorating, high-volume molding, multi-material molding, insert molding, design, prototyping, and testing.

As a member of the Thunderbird LLC portfolio of companies, Indiana Plastics can now cross-manufacture various products with Metal Impact, a manufacturer of impact extruded and machined metal parts, and F&B MFG, a manufacturer of hydroformed and machined metal parts, with Kruis providing mold and tooling support with CNC and wire EDM capabilities, said Thunderbird’s information.

Thunderbird LLC (Elk Grove Village, IL) has acquired the assets of Indiana Plastics/Kruis Mold Inc., based in Elkhart, IN, and named the new companies Indiana Plastics LLC and Kruis Mold LLC. Indiana Plastics is a custom injection molding company. Kruis Mold builds and repairs custom tooling and molds for a variety of companies.

Due to the optimised design of the follower plates, just 40 ml of residues are left behind when the 20 litre drums have to be changed, resulting in material utilisation of up to 99.8%. With a design service life of 20 years or more for all its mechanical components, a modular structure and particular ease of servicing which keeps maintenance costs low, the TOP 700 is synonymous with cost-efficiency. Its low energy consumption of less than 50 Wh and minimal compressed air consumption also help to keep costs down.

Capabilities include injection molding, assembly, in-mold decorating, high-volume molding, multi-material molding, insert molding, design, prototyping, and testing.

Thunderbird’s portfolio consists of American companies that manufacture their products in America but aim for a larger world market. They specialize in industries including automotive, military, power, industrial and consumer. Thunderbird is looking for opportunities to expand its portfolio to include more businesses in these industries that need financial, marketing and management skills to reach higher levels of growth and revenue.