Huon Aquaculture Fortress Pen project - 2014
Redefining the Existing Boundaries
Huon Aquaculture had a concept for a new style of salmon farming cage that would solve a number of operational challenges and put them at the forefront of infrastructure technology within their industry. With the majority of their existing products coming from a rotational moulding process, the new design from Huon pushed them beyond the structural limitations of what was typically found in rotationally moulded products.
Elemental Manufacturing was contracted to design the new components in 3D with specific attention to the suitability for injection moulding. As structural components, they were the first of their kind to push the existing boundaries of plastic injection moulding beyond their previously establishied comfort zones. With a shot size +70Kg and a flow length of over 3 metres, walls sections beyond 25mm, many industry experts warned it was not possible. Using our Taiwanese mould maker, we designed and manufactured this series of large moulds with a range of contingencies integrated so as to give us options and pathways to adapt if the outcome was not as planned. We followed this up with extensive destructive testing of the final moulded products to prove they were fit for purpose before putting them into production locally here in Australia.
The project was an outstanding success.
Aquatec Injection Moulded Tank
A Big Change up for a Legacy Product
Rotational moulding and large tanks go hand in hand. What makes this tank stand out from all of its competitors is the fact that is injection moulded from HDPE.
We were contracted to design and develop this tank concept for our customer Aquatec Environmental, in Shepparton, Victoria. After a year of R&D and many design reiterations under the watchful eye of APS innovations, who provided all of the advanced FEA services, we had an FEA proven design ready for manufacture.
Elemental Manufacturing, in conjunction with our Taiwanese mould supplier designed and engineered this 56 Ton monster of a mould, along with several other smaller components and completed the manufacture and testing on behalf of our customer. With engineering and design challenges as large as the mould itself, we pragmatically walked through this project one step at a time allowing us to have faith in the mould design, solving challenges as they arose so that we entered the manufacturing stage with confidence
This mould is now in full production locally here in Australia.
Hush Wind Energy Turbine Blades
Balance and Precision
For this project, Elemental Manufacturing was one member of a collaborative team of engineers working on behalf of Hush Wind Technologies to design and develop a plastic injection moulded turbine blade and cowling.
With countless hours spent developing models and reiterative FEA testing, we explored a wide range of new and cutting edge polymers to achieve a mechanically stable, vibration free, operationally proven product for our customer, with a profound emphasis on efficiency and strength. The team collectively explored a range of different manufacturing techniques and technologies to establish a confident pathway to manufacturing for this new and innovative range of products.
Precision CNC Machine Tool Programming
Machining Strategies for Challenging Materials
Elemental Manufacturing spent several years working with medical implant companies Ventracor and Heartware respectively, implementing manufacturing improvements to their CNC machining processes.
With the introduction of new fixtures and strategies, coupled with ultra high precision machining programs, we were able to drastically improve production efficiency and quality to the extent that per month output was increased by hundreds of percent.
Titanium, Platinum, Palladium and a range of Cobalt alloys present exceptional challenges for the CNC machinist and programmer due to their extreme toughness and hard and abrasive physical qualities. Obtaining micron level accuracy and distortion tolerances coupled with sub micron surface finishes means programming must be strategically accurate and precise to allow tool life and part integrity to be sound.
Elemental Manufacturing uses industry leading Powermill to generate 3 to 5 axis CNC programs for our customers spanning a broad range of industries and applications.
Injection Mould Design Training Course
Sharing the Knowledge
In 2014-15, Elemental Manufacturing, in conjunction with software group Delcam, held some advanced training courses in Asia, specifically designed at educating software engineers on the more detailed concepts of mould design. We explored specific techniques developed to expedite the mould design process and allow both efficiency and adaptive planning to be more harmoniously integrated into designing both products and moulds in the 3D environment.
We also conducted real world field trips to injection factories and toolmaking facilities to allow a hands on understanding of all of the features and concepts learned throughout the course. This practical experience was of great benefit to physically realise the theory, and witness both the positive and negative outcomes and relate them back to both the product and the mould designs.
Designing products specifically for injection moulding allows a CAD operator the opportunity to incorporate a range of design level features that allow the mould designer to not only understand the manufacturing intent, but seamlessly incorporate a product design to a mould design with the minimum of changes. This concept was at the heart of these courses and was well received by all who attended.