Moldflow Analysis Services
With injection molding, it’s all about the bottom line. Do you have the right materials selected? Is your part designed with the optimal gate size and location? What process makes the most sense? We can analyze, identify, and solve your most pressing injection molding problems so you can manufacture your part, on time and on budget.
Moldflow Analysis Levels
Focus on design to reduce costs.
In-depth part feasibility (DFM) can eliminate many manufacturing problems prior to Moldflow analysis. Wall stock check, draft analysis, tooling action are among the results provided.
Not concerned with cycle times or warpage?
Perfect for prototype tooling sources and product designers who require gate sizing, weld line locations, and clamp tonnage results within days, not weeks! Simply send part data, material info and let us do the rest!
Evaluate your part design and eliminate risk.
Isothermal Warpage analysis added to Bronze level. Save time & money by having CAE Services evaluate your part design prior to sourcing your mold builder. Our staff will recommend part design improvements to widen your processing window and avoid surprises during mold sampling. Cooling and warpage analysis is available at the Gold Level.
Cycle time, warpage or tight tolerance concerns?
Our Gold Level adds cooling and warpage analysis. Ensuring an efficient and uniform cooling design is the goal so that cycle times are optimized, and warpage issues are identified, tooling recommendation are included at no charge. For glass filled materials or tight tolerance concerns ask about our morphing and windage capabilities.
GM STI
CAE Services has been an authorized GM STI Moldflow provider since 2007. We thoroughly understand the 16355 process and the 16365 try out protocol. Validation and sampling support is available.
Specialty Moldflow Analysis Services
Contact us if you have a challenging application or require an experienced team of certified Moldflow analysts.
- Co-Injection
- Compression
- Conformal Cooling
- Gas Assist
- Injection/Compression
- Low Pressure
- MuCell
- Multi-Shot & Overmold
- Structural Foam
- Thermoset
Moldflow Analysis Deliverables
| BRONZE | SILVER | GOLD | ||
| FLOW | Gate size & location | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Gate freeze time (gate sizing) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Optimized gating | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Fill time & pattern | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Weld/meld lines, air traps | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Pressure to fill | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Cold runner sizing & balancing | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Hot runner & bore sizing | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Sequential valve-gating (SVG) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Variable valve-pin speed (SoftGate, SynFlow, FLEXflow) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Shear rate & shear stress | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Fiber orientation | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Core Shift | optional | optional | optional | |
| PACK | Packing pressure profile (shrinkage uniformity) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Volumetric shrinkage | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Sink mark depth | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Clamp force recommendation | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| WARP | Isothermal warpage (no cooling effects) | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Predict warpage magnitude & direction | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Determine primary cause of warpage | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| ★★ Part design recommendations to reduce warpage ★★ | ✓ | ✓ | ||
| Warpage w/ cooling effects | ✓ | |||
| COOL | Cavity & Core surface termperature differential | ✓ | ||
| Optimize cycle time | ✓ | |||
| Cooling design evaluation | ✓ | |||
| Coolant temperature rise (circuiting analysis) | ✓ | |||
| Ensure turbulent flow rates (GPM) | ✓ | |||
| Evaluate cooling process settings | ✓ | |||
| Evaluate various steel types & cooling inserts | ✓ | |||
| WINDAGE | Initial warpage will be reverse-biased | optional | ||
| Determine windage shape & scale factor | optional | |||
| Provide morphed CAD model for tooling, stitched & draft-corrected | optional | |||
| Keep morphed features out of die lock condition | optional | |||
Analysis deliverables are subject to change
Reports
- Online meetings will be conducted as needed throughout the course of a project to review results
- Preliminary reports will be issued (if needed) to communicate pertinent information about gating recommendations once they have been determined (PPT & MFR formats)
- Final reports will be issued at the conclusion of all simulation work (PPT & MFR formats)
Moldflow Analysis Glossary
Filling Analysis
Filling analysis is the fundamental building block upon which all molding simulation is built. It predicts the filling patterns for a number of gating scenarios and identifies the one most beneficial to the part quality and molding efficiency.
Cooling Analysis
Cooling analysis solves the problem of providing both uniform and efficient cooling to an injection mold, leading to better part quality and increased profit margins through reduced cycle times.
Warpage Analysis
The ability to not only predict, but determine the cause of warpage is one of the real strengths of Moldflow analysis. Our engineers use this information to significantly reduce or eliminate the warpage in your part, to avoid problems down the road!
Gas Assist Analysis
Gas assist analysis identifies the feasibility of achieving efficient gas penetration in areas designed to be cored out.
Co-Injection Analysis
Co-injection analysis will help determine the appropriate gate location and timing for shooting both the A & B materials. This optimizes the amount of B material being used and keeps it from blowing through the A material.
Injection-Compression Molding
Injection-compression molding is often used in thin-wall applications to help reduce molded-in stress by filling plastic into a slightly opened (i.e., thicker) mold and closing the mold to complete the filling. Analysis helps determine the best gate locations and the resulting decrease in clamp force requirements.
2-Shot Analysis
2-shot analysis requires balanced gate locations that avoid prominent knit lines. Air traps for the 2nd shot should be pushed to the parting line instead of up against the 1st shot material.
Core Shift Analysis
Core shift analysis identifies excessive shifting of deep cores due to pressure imbalance and its resulting effects on the thickness of the plastic walls.
DOE (Design of Experiments)
DOE analysis identifies which inputs are most influential and calculates their level of influence on any number of outputs.
Fiber Orientation Analysis
Fiber orientation analysis is essential to accurate warpage predictions and helps determine the best gating and filling pattern to deliver the most advantageous fiber orientation.
Compression Analysis
Compression analysis identifies the best location for the placement of the “charge” to provide complete and balanced filling.
MuCell Molding
MuCell (microcellular) molding is a mechanical foaming process used to lightweight plastic parts and reduce warpage. Moldflow analysis will help determine the best gate location and processing to achieve efficient foaming distribution.
Need Help?
Ask the Moldflow Experts
We’re here to support you. Reach out with any questions or call (630) 761-9898.
If you are ready to solve molding problems, request a quote.