Burco Precision Products, Inc.

Speeds Upfront Modeling Time

Design Engineer Gregory Brown Discusses Benefits of MoldWorks and SplitWorks

How do you use MoldWorks and SplitWorks?

We made the change from 2D AutoCAD® to solids-based design more than three years ago. As we became more experienced, we identified several areas that would help improve our upfront modeling time.

These areas include:

• Designing complex cavity core splits
• Creating mold bases using standard mold components.
• That's where MoldWorks® and SplitWorks® come in.

How do MoldWorks and SplitWorks impact your design process?

We start with the part, add shrink, and then build up the cavity, core, and any side action that may be required. If the parting lines are straightforward, we can create a cavity and core assembly just with SolidWorks® software.

With more involved parts, we use SplitWorks to automatically split cavity and core sides of the part, and then extrude a solid boss up to the parting line. This works for side action and lifters as well. Next, we use MoldWorks to select an initial mold base and then modify any of its dimensions as needed.

MoldWorks takes care of all the mates and makes sure that all plate sizes are correct and that all assembly screws are where they should be. We are free to keep things standard or depart from there and add custom plates as needed. Next, we use MoldWorks to add standard ejector pins from PCS, National, or Hasco. MoldWorks then automatically puts the ejector pinholes in the core insert, B plate, and support plate. It also counter-bores the ejector retainer plate. I prefer to use one sketch for each unique pin diameter.

MoldWorks uses "cutting tool" solids that are subtracted from several parts at once, creating the pockets and screw holes required for installation. We use this concept with our own subassemblies too. It's an excellent way to make sure all surrounding plates and components don't interfere with the part you're about to put in.

Tell us about an instance where you used MoldWorks and SplitWorks.

SplitWorks performs the task of collecting surfaces so you can knit them together into one large surface.

Recently, we built a mold to produce the decorative top cover for a cell phone. The phone had over 1800 surfaces and only a few of them were flat. Using SplitWorks, we split the cavity and core, and modeled all the internal shut-offs and external parting lines. From there we extruded base sketches to create our cavity, core, slide, and lifters. To split cavity and core surfaces for that part would have taken several hours, but SplitWorks completed the task in less than five minutes.

Here's a neat trick. Import Diagnosis does not work for a knit surface, making it difficult to locate where the gaps or leaks are hiding. To get around this, consider saving the unknit surfaces out as an IGES and then reading the IGES right back in again. It shows up as an "Imported Surface" and will allow you to use Import Diagnosis to locate any gaps that may be there. Then you can try to correct the original surfaces.

How does MoldWorks and SplitWorks save time?

Mold design, like most design fields, requires developing one final configuration of components that best satisfies the competing objectives, all within a finite period of time. The ability to look at several "what-ifs" quickly helps us eliminate dead ends sooner and arrive at a final design. Our goal this year is to reduce model time by 25%. I think that is very reasonable to expect.