In our everyday lives, we are surrounded by objects made by plastic manufacturing processes, one of which is the thermoforming operation. This is a production process that provides versatile solutions for various applications.
As you can partly guess from the terminology, this requires proper thermoregulation and power management, areas in which CD Automation stands out for its preparation, professionalism and experience.
Thermoforming: a thermal operation
Thermoforming is a plastic production process that involves heating a sheet of plastic and giving it a specific shape using moulds. The shaped material is then cooled and trimmed to obtain the finished part. The process is carried out using a thermoforming machine that heats and stretches the plastic sheet over the mould.
The different thermoforming processes
The most popular thermoforming techniques are as follows:
- Vacuum forming: the plastic sheet is heated and then forced against a mould thanks to the application of vacuum, which makes the sheet perfectly adhere to the mould imitating its form. This type is known for its convenience and speed of the production process.
- Pressure thermoforming: the plastic film is pushed onto the mould by high pressure exerted from the outside by air, which facilitates cooling. Pressure thermoforming is used when a high degree of detail is required.
There are also other thermoforming methods: mechanical, draping, laminated die, double foil and negative die, designed for specific applications and production volumes.
What are the advantages of thermoforming?
Thermoforming allows even very thin thicknesses to be moulded, unlike other plastics processes. In addition, through the production of moulds with numerous footprints/cavities, it makes it possible to reduce production times and to achieve an advantageous balance in the ratio of production costs to the number of parts sufficient to sustain a break-even-point of sufficient or fair economic viability.
Last but not least, thermoforming tooling costs and set-up times are significantly lower than in other processes involving thermoplastics, offering maximum flexibility due to reduced machine set-up times and maximum convenience for the production of small quantities of thermoformed parts.
Numerous applications
Therefore, thanks to the possibility of using sheets with different thicknesses, surface finishes and colours, thermoforming lends itself to the production of a wide range of artefacts in many areas, including:
- food packaging;
- pharmaceutical packaging;
- medical & hospital sector;
- automotive and transport industry;
- nautical industry;
- electrical and electronics industry;
- building and furnishing.
Two crucial steps: clamping and warming up
The thermoforming process is characterised by two crucial moments for the success of the products: clamping and heating. As far as the first step is concerned, in order for the plastic sheet to be clamped in the most appropriate manner during the moulding process, it is necessary for the clamping frame to have a rather high power. Where the process is automated, it is also necessary to provide a protective casing for the moving parts in operation to prevent any accidental damage.
The elements involved in the heating phase are, on the other hand, generally infrared, installed inside a reflector plate made of aluminium. The sheet to be formed, as described, must be heated to a high temperature. During this process, it is necessary for the heat to be homogeneous over the entire surface and thickness. For this reason, the application requires the use of energy regulators to monitor these heating zones.
Why rely on CD Automation?
CD Automation has been playing a leading role in the control of heating elements for over thirty years. Since 1987, the company has in fact been manufacturing thyristor power units, soft starters and SCR power controllers of the highest quality, and is a leading partner in industrial temperature control.
In addition, CD Automation has created a competence centre to support partners in electrifying applications, reducing complexity and consumption and improving the power quality of thermal processes, according to a sustainability-oriented approach.
Products serving thermoforming
CD Automation has developed, for the efficiency and sustainability of thermoforming processes and the control of heating elements, the REVO PN and REVO PC multi-channel power units, capable of handling applications with many power zones, through a small footprint. Thanks to the power distribution algorithm, with these two units it is possible to balance and limit the peak current demand in order to maintain a high quality of the absorbed current, limiting losses and consumption and avoiding penalties and unforeseen expenses.
A CD Automation summary of benefits
In short, the solutions developed by CD Automation, for customers engaged in thermoforming processes, enable:
- optimising consumption;
- monitoring electrical variables;
- early diagnosis of heating element breaks and short circuits on thyristors;
- communicate via the most common field buses;
- reduce flickering in applications involving short-wave infrared lamps, thanks to the “Dynamic burst firing” mode.
You want to find out how to make your thermoforming processes more efficient and competitive? Contact us and book a free consultation session with one of our experts. You will receive strategic and customised proposals according to your needs.
