An Overview on Advances in Injection Moulding Remanufacturing

The paper presents an overview of injection mold failures and alternatives in repairing these expensive tools. During the injection mold operations the main components are subjected to wear and require some form of repair. The typical defects of the components of the plastic injection moulds are cracks and the typical repair route is presented. Among the analyzed processes, namely TIG welding, plasma welding and laser welding, the laser welding process has a number of advantages that make it suitable for linear repairs, for small moulds and for face repairs. For each process a series of specific advantages but also slightly different fields of application are presented. The most advanced welding repair equipment uses ND: YAG laser technology and the main differences compared to TIG welding are presented.