PTXPO 2023 information?

Published 2/20/2023

PTXPO Preview 2023: Mold Material/Mold Base Needs

At PTXPO 2023, the Moldmaking Pavilion returns, housing exhibitors ready to meet attendees' mold material and mold base challenges head on.

MMT Staff

And thank you to our sponsors — Canon Virginia, Hasco, Maguire and Novatec!

Mold Materials/Mold Bases

Get to Know Edro Engineering and Specialty Steels

Moldmaking is important to Edro’s business because moldmakers are the company’s key customers in the plastic industry. Servicing mold manufacturers with custom mold bases, unique core and cavity materials and PVD/DLC coatings is something Edro’s team take great pride in.

Photo Credit: Edro Engineering and Specialty Steels

An innovation for the moldmaking marketplace is the company’s RoyAlloy stainless mold base steel. RoyAlloy addresses the shortcomings of traditional 420 pre-hard with its superior dimensional stability, enhanced toughness and machinability.

Be sure to visit Booth 921 and the available technical experts representing all segments to better understand how Edro remains at the forefront of developments in DLC coatings and additive manufacturing (AM). Displays will include mold base manufacturing and mold base steels, Bohler core and cavity steels, MoldMAX copper alloys, aluminum plate and expertise in manufacturing 3D-printed inserts.

**Find Edro in the Injection & Blow Molding Pavilion.

Get to Know Ellwood Specialty Steel

Ellwood is a family-owned business that has been producing American-made mold and die steel grades for the North American marketplace for decades; the company’s hot work steels are used in tools for most major OEM and Tier 1 suppliers. By focusing on the domestic markets, carrying an unequaled volume of inventory and by staying close to customers and partners, Ellwood has grown its mold steel sales to over half of the company’s annual sales. Ellwood takes prided in knowing that its products are used in saving lives, building world-class vehicles and exploring the deepest regions of space.

Photo Credit: Ellwood Specialty Steel

Highlighted at Booth 1519 will be Ellwood’s P20 modified grade of mold steel. The improved lens/texture quality (LTQ) alloy offers very consistent surface finishing properties. Recognizing the increased demands for flawless diamond polish finishes on lens molds and complex geometric and delicate texture patterns, Ellwood’s metallurgists have engineered a steel that will perform to the most stringent requirements. In fact, Ellwood’s P20 LTQ is said to be the first steel to be fully qualified to General Motors’ GMW 18157 mold steel specification.

Employing a newly developed chemistry, state-of-the art remelting facilities, a proven forging process and a tightly controlled heat treatment, Ellwood says this through-hardened steel meets all challenges. In addition to consistent surface finishing, the thermal conductivity, machinability and welding properties can be relied upon. Ellwood stocks various sizes of LTQ for quick delivery.

Meet with Ellwood staff — citing decades of experience with molding grades, stamping grades, die-casting grades and metallurgy — for your moldmaking questions and needs.

Get to Know International Mold Steel

Moldmaking is important to International Mold Steel (IMS) because the company cuts-to-size, squares, surface grinds, chamfers and laser engraves mold steel. The company appreciate the many products that are created to make our lives better and, most importantly, IMS values the spirit and determination of the people who have made a career in moldmaking.

Photo Credit: International Mold Steel

International Mold Steel was the first mold steel supplier to offer in house double-head squaring services. IMS hopes to continue learning and sharing its innovations with the community in the Moldmaking Pavilion.

The IMS Booth 1228 theme is “Partnerships in mold steel.” The company’s jam is discovering customer application issues and then working together to solve them. NAK55, PX5 and DCMX provide proven technology for extending the life of a mold. DAP-AM HTC powder is now available to intensify the cooling of a mold. Conversations are anticipated, and snacks will be provided, maybe even some bourbon… IMS is based in Kentucky after all.

Get to Know Molder’s World

For over 20 years, Molder’s World Inc. has specialized in self-venting porous mold steels. When Porcerax II was discontinued, Molder’s World developed and produced a stronger, harder and less expensive self-venting mold steel with an improved machined finish called Vortex. Vortex has since become the industry’s gold standard in self-venting mold steels.

Vortex is a sintered, porous metal that is heat treated to 43 HRC with porosity of 25% air by volume. A system of interconnected pores with an average diameter of 7 (0.0003 inch) microns is dispersed throughout the Vortex material. Using Vortex in appropriate areas eliminates gas buildup, reduces injection pressure, lowers cycle times, gloss levels and substantially reduces scrap and reject rates, saving time and money in the process.

Photo Credit: Molder's World

Molder’s World is at PTXPO to display the machining, molding, financial and environmental benefits of Vortex self-venting mold steel while connecting (and reconnecting) with those in the industry who would benefit the most.

Stop by Booth 1534 and witness Vortex venting in action! Russ Bowen, president of Molder’s World Inc., has been involved with specialty mold steel and the molding industry since 1987, and will be on hand to answer any questions.

Get to Know National Tool & Manufacturing Co.

National Tool & Manufacturing has played an active role in moldmaking for over 90 years. As the industry continues to advance with new technology and increased precision and delivery demands, National makes its own investments — in precise equipment and highly trained staff — to exceed those demands, supplying U.S. moldmakers with mold bases and mold base steel. One such example is the company’s development and expansion of its VR stainless steel collaboration.

Photo Credit: National Tool & Manufacturing Co.

National Tool’s offering of cost-efficient, premium-quality stainless mold base steel, combined with multiple levels of plate processing, has enabled both smaller and large shops the ability to compete in new arenas globally. Finishing large mold bases and completing additional machining, gundrilling and precision surface grinding has allowed shops to focus on high-value core cavity work for expedited timelines.

Visit Booth 1215 to learn about National’s newest machine acquisitions and fast-to-market offerings, from steel to quick precision machining. Staff available to attendees will include moldmakers and designers.

Get to Know Vincent Tool Technologies Corp.

Moldmaking is the crux of operations at Vincent Tool. The family owned and operated company specializes in building custom injection mold bases, and its close focus on injection molding, teamed with industry expertise, enables Vincent Tool to produce molds of the highest quality at the most competitive pricing — with on-time production — in the U.S. Vincent Tool’s strong customer relationships sets it apart from industry competition.

Vincent Tool has invested in the development of dynamic machining including the addition of a Makino, a four-axis, two-pallet CNC machine with superior accuracy that enables a machinist to work on three sides of a mold base in just one setup, ultimately helping to automate the company’s process. Additional efforts to improve automation include the addition of a CNC with multiple pallet pools allowing the machine spindle to remain in nearly constant motion as the machinist completes setups on pallets not in the machine.

Photo Credit: Vincent Tool Technologies Corp.

Vincent Tool, Booth 1427, is a proud display of American manufacturing at its best. With video demonstrations of its procedures from rough machining all the way to the final assembly stage, the company offers an up-close and personal visual of its moldmaking process. With over 20 years of mold base making experience, the company owner, Kenny Skar, looks forward to one-on-one dialogue with industry natives and is equipped to handle any questions you might have when you swing by.