At Allstates Rubber & Tool Corporation, our exceptional aptitude for mold building played a vital role in the production of the truck vent grommet highlighted here, that we made for Sauber Mfg. Its unique configuration demonstrates how our toolmakers apply their ingenuity to create a successful insert molded product while at the same time keeping costs to a very reasonable level.
The interesting shape of the workpiece allows air to flow out of a box truck trailer without compromising the vehicle’s aerodynamics under all types of driving conditions, which is especially important in hot weather when cargo may expand or release fumes. The challenge was to form the leftward facing cone on the top and the rightward facing cone on the bottom and have them mate perfectly to create the center grommet area. Our toolmakers designed and built a multi-plate mold that featured precisely lined-up core pins. By centering the core pins in reference to each other and then aligning them perfectly with the center portion of the mold, they were able to achieve outstanding geometric accuracy when shaping the grommet portion of the workpiece. In addition, they designed the mold to easily pull apart, release the workpiece, and allow extraction of the two separate cores.
Constructed from EPDM rubber to dimensions of 2” in length x 1” in diameter, our innovative molding concept allowed us to manufacture this vent grommet with outstanding accuracy and consistent repeatability. From initial concept to delivery of the 1,000 units in the order, this project was only 10 weeks start to finish.
If you are interested in learning more about this product or any of our manufacturing processes, contact us today.