You have a wide variety of materials to choose from for injection molding. Formlabs and our customers have tested the following materials with 3D printed injection molds:

However, initial investment costs for setting up automated systems and training personnel can be significant. Therefore, a careful analysis of the production volume, part complexity, and expected long-term benefits should be conducted to determine the feasibility of automation in reducing overall costs in injection molding operations and meeting the needs of low-cost injection molding.

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Depending on the geometry and the size, multiple molds can be printed at once on a build platform to increase printing efficiency.

For prototyping and low-volume production (approximately 10-1000 parts), 3D printed injection molds provide a time- and cost-efficient solution. They also enable a more agile manufacturing approach, allowing engineers and designers to test mold designs, easily modify them, and then continue to iterate on their designs much faster, while being orders of magnitude cheaper than traditional CNC machining.

Adding two to five degrees of draft on surfaces perpendicular to the direction of pull will allow the part to be removed more easily and will minimize degradation of the mold.

Interested in other applications of 3D printed molds? Download our white paper that also covers thermoforming and casting with elastomers.

A high-performance desktop SLA 3D printer, like the Formlabs’ Form 3. The Form 3 can produce accurate molds with crisp features, and a smooth surface finish that will yield high-quality final molded parts. Beyond DIY injection molding, an SLA 3D printer is also a valuable asset for prototyping and other applications throughout product development.

Your mold is now ready for printing. Export each half, making sure to check the “Selection Only” box in the Blender exporter.

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Now that you’ve designed and 3D printed your mold, you can mold the parts on your benchtop plastic injection molding machine.

Consider the desired properties of your object and the capabilities of your injection molder before you make your choice. From there, simply follow the bespoke instructions on your injection molder to quickly and efficiently produce your parts.

The exact approach to DIY injection molding will vary based on your desired design and volume, but these tips and tricks will help increase your success rate.

Select the first half of your object, and choose the boolean option under the Modifiers Menu. Select the object you’re cutting, and make sure that the “difference” operation is selected. Apply the operator, and do the same for the other side. It should look something like the image below. If you get stuck here, this tutorial on adding interlocking components to a design may be helpful.

While everyone desires low-cost injection molding, it’s equally vital to avoid the pitfalls of subpar quality and compromised mold making that often accompany “cheap” options. Sungplastic, drawing from extensive experience and global manufacturing advantages, offers low-cost injection molding without compromising on quality.

Injection molding is ubiquitous as a manufacturing process—in fact, the majority of plastic products in the world today are manufactured by injection molding. While it is an ideal technique for large-scale production needs, traditional CNC machined metal molds have prohibitive high costs and long lead times for low-volume production.

Depending on the injected material, adhesion of the part to the mold can cause deterioration of the mold during extraction, in particular with flexible materials such as TPUs or TPEs. Using a mold release agent is a good solution to help separate the part from the mold. Silicone mold release agents are compatible with Formlabs Grey Pro Resin, High Temp Resin, and Rigid 10K Resin.

To reduce the visibility of print lines on the finished part, print the mold with a smaller layer height (50 or 25 microns per layer instead of the default 100). Note that this increases print time.

The price of plastic raw materials directly affects the cost of injection molding, because plastics are usually the main raw materials for low-cost injection molding manufacturing. The following are some common plastic raw materials and their relative prices:

Plastic Mold Manufacturing Plastic Injection MoldingRapid PrototypingCNC MachiningSheet Metal StampingPressure Die CastingSilicone & Rubber PartsSurface Finishing

Building a setup for DIY injection molding does require some investment. It takes both money and time to acquire the right equipment and to master using it. However, these costs are in many cases still lower than the cost of a single metal mold, so the eventual time and cost savings, once you’re up and running, will easily offset the initial effort.

Creating custom molds using a stereolithography (SLA) 3D printer, like the Form 3, is simple and convenient, allowing you to leverage the benefits of both 3D printing and traditional molding techniques.

The answer is very simple. It starts with finding a company that can provide high quality parts while enabling low-cost injection molding manufacturing. Sungplastic achieves cost efficiency by selecting appropriate plastic raw materials, mold steel, and introducing injection molding automation. These methods provide us with complete control over a low-cost injection molding process, ensuring that every part manufactured is of exceptional quality.

High Temp Resin offers a heat deflection temperature is 238 °C @ 0.45 MPa that is suitable for injection molding. This material is more brittle, but is recommended for materials with a high molding temperature and to reduce cooling time.

Based on internal testing and case studies with our customers, we suggest to choose the 3D printing resin based on the criteria from the table below. Three stars means the resin is highly effective, one star is less effective.

Rigid 10K Resin is an industrial-grade, highly glass-filled material, which provides a solution that can cope with a wider variety of geometries and injection molding processes. It has an HDT of 218°C @ 0.45 MPa and a tensile modulus of 10,000 MPa, making it strong, extremely stiff, and thermally stable.

Plastic injection molding is a complex manufacturing process that demands expertise at every stage to ensure top-notch results. Cutting corners at any point in the process can result in costly repercussions. Therefore, when seeking affordable injection molding solutions, it’s crucial to partner with a company that possesses the necessary experience and knowledge.

Download our white paper for guidelines for using 3D printed molds in the injection molding process to lower costs and lead time and see real-life case studies with Braskem, Holimaker, and Novus Applications.

Injection molding is a complex manufacturing process that requires multiple steps and expertise to ensure each step is performed accurately. In a fiercely competitive market, low-cost injection molding manufacturing has also become a factor that manufacturers need to consider. Low-cost injection molding is the key to maintaining competitiveness and is crucial to the long-term development of enterprises. However, cutting corners anywhere can have costly consequences. Therefore, when looking for an affordable injection molding solution, it is crucial to choose an experienced and skilled company. Sungplastic is an injection molding manufacturer with extensive experience, and we are able to provide low-cost injection molding services without sacrificing quality. Welcome to contact our  professional team to discuss your next project and learn more about our affordable injection molding solutions.

The choice of mold steel depends on the characteristics of the desired product, the life of the mold and production requirements. High-quality tool steel is more expensive, but it can provide longer service life and better forming quality, which can reduce production costs in the long run and meet the needs of low-cost injection molding. During the mold design phase, manufacturers need to carefully weigh material selection to balance cost and performance.

A benchtop injection-molding machine, such as the Galomb Model-B100 or the Holipress. There are a number of benchtop injection molders on the market that vary in cost. Many of the lower cost molders use a hand-driven plunger, while some of the more expensive units use a screw or pneumatic system. Some of our customers have recommended systems from Minijector, Morgan, APSX, or Micromolder as well. Desktop automated molders such as the product line from Babyplast are good alternatives for mass production of small parts.

Injection molding is a widely used manufacturing process in which molten plastic material is injected under high pressure into a mold cavity. Once the plastic has cooled and solidified, the mold is opened to reveal the final product. This versatile technology can be used to produce a wide variety of plastic parts and products, from small complex components to large complex items. Injection molding is favored for its efficiency, precision and ability to create complex geometries. Due to its ability to mass-produce high-quality, cost-effective, and consistent plastic parts, it is used in a variety of industries, including automotive, electronics, medical devices, and consumer goods.

Want to learn more about injection molding with 3D printed molds? Download our white paper for detailed guidelines for using 3D printed molds in the injection molding process and see real-life case studies with Braskem, Holimaker, and Novus Applications.

To 3D print the mold, it’s essential to pick a material that can withstand the temperature and pressure on the mold during the injection molding process.

Now, you can position your mold. Ensure that the object fully intersects with the inlet for the molten plastic during the injection molding process. Use orthographic mode, engaged via “toggle perspective/ortho,” to make this more straightforward.

First, pick the CAD software tool of your preference to design the mold insert. We’ll use the open-source Blender, but the workflow should be fairly similar in any other CAD software.

If you have more questions about the workflow, make make sure to check our article FAQ: Injection Molding With 3D Printed Molds.

Cost estimation and control in low-cost injection molding involve a thorough analysis of various factors throughout the production process. By estimating and controlling costs at each stage of the injection molding process, we can optimize production efficiency, reduce waste, and offer low-cost injection molding solutions without compromising on quality. Continuous monitoring and improvement are essential to achieving and maintaining cost-effectiveness in the long run. Here’s a breakdown of how costs are estimated and controlled for low-cost injection molding:

A 3D printing material that can withstand the temperature and pressure on the mold during the injection molding process. We recommend the following materials for Formlabs SLA 3D printers:

In Blender, use the eye icon in the scene explorer to toggle off one half of the mold. Once your workspace is set up to your liking, set both halves of the mold to the “wire” draw type under the Object menu, as in the image below.

Download the blank mold insert design files—you’ll use them to create your injection mold design. The designs can also be easily scaled to accommodate most injection molders and mold frames. Alternatively, you can also design your own mold insert for the using the cavity diagrams of the master mold frames.

If designing for an aluminum mold frame, add .125 mm of extra thickness to the back of the mold plates to account for compression forces and to ensure a complete seal.

The conversation around 3D printing and injection molding is often oppositional, but it’s not always a question of one versus the other. By directly 3D printing parts or using 3D printed molds for injection molding for prototyping and low-volume production, you can leverage the benefits of both technologies. This will make your manufacturing process more time- and cost-efficient and allow you to bring products to the market faster.

Before purchase, make sure to evaluate the injection molder carefully against your production requirements. For large parts, industrial processes will still be necessary. This DIY injection molding technique is best optimized for producing small parts at low volumes.

Turn the visibility of your current mold core off, and turn the other side on. Repeat the process to ensure that the object fully intersects with the inlet of the other half of the mold core. With your object lined up, you’re ready to subtract the area of two intersecting objects by using the “boolean difference” function in Blender.

Sungplastic is a plastic product manufacturer with rich experience in injection molding. According to the different product development requirements, we flexibly adjust the manufacturing process to achieve high quality, high efficiency and more economical.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through the process of DIY injection molding and share all the tools and tips necessary to utilize plastic injection molding in-house using 3D printed molds.

Setting up the print only takes a few seconds in PreForm, the print preparation software for Formlabs 3D printers. If your mold design requires support structures for printing, make sure to orient the mold halves in PreForm so that the cavity faces up. This will simplify post-processing and ensure a high-quality surface for your molded parts.

We offer a variety of manufacturing services: Rapid Prototyping, Tool Making, Injection Molding, Product Design and Development, CNC Machining and Metal Stamping. You can choose from a variety of plastics, silicone rubber, or metal for your product. Regardless of mass production or small batch customization, Sungplastic has always been committed to providing assured, efficient and more economical one-stop processing services for your projects.

Mold steel is a critical component of injection molds and has a direct impact on cost and production quality. Here are some common mold steel materials and their relative prices:

Grey Pro Resin has a lower thermal conductivity than High Temp Resin or Rigid Resin, which leads to a longer cooling time, but it is softer and can wear hundreds of cycles.