“3D printing” is a hot topic right now. This new technology has attracted a lot of attention. It opens up many exciting possibilities for cost-effective plastic manufacturing in the future. But what is injection mould 3D printing? How does it work? Most importantly, what can we use it for? How does it compare to the time-tested plastic injection molding function? In this blog, we will discuss 3D printing, what it can do and its similarities and differences with plastic injection molding.

There are limitations to 3D printing, though. First of all, the parts you make can only be as large as the printing area in side of the machine. Also, the thickness of the layers your equipment can produce will create the final precision of the component and its outside surfaces. Finally, most current 3D printers on the market can only create one part at a time, which means it may not be ideal for large-scale production. However, technology is always improving, so many restrictions may almost disappear in the future.

3. 3D printing VS. Plastic injection molding
At OmkBoxes, we specialize in plastic injection molding, which has its own advantages and disadvantages compared with 3D printing. Instead of squirting liquid plastic into free-form layers, injection molding involves forcing liquid plastic into a metal mold, which has been precisely machined into the final outside shape of the plastic part. This process is great for high-volume production, offering cost-effective speed compared with the current 3D printing technology.  However, it can be costly to redesign, machine, and swap out the custom molds and tooling needed for injection molding when it comes to prototyping or small-volume production. 3D printing allows you to make small changes in part design without expensive reassembly, so it is ideal for developing new parts.

Also, because injection molding requires a negative mold, there are real limitations to the shapes and geometries of the parts it can produce. Obviously, once a part is formed, it must be able to be removed from the mold, so certain shapes will not be usable. The use efficiency of injection molding materials may also be slightly reduced, because the parts must be made with redundant drill bits (such as "thimble"), and these parts need to be removed during the finishing process, resulting in plastic waste. Injection molding may also involve more finishing, because the final seam of most parts is a visible seam, the two halves of the mold are together, there are additional mold markings and the thimble we mentioned earlier.

Most importantly, plastic injection molding and 3D printing can complement each other, each with their own advantages and drawbacks depending on the application. 3D printing might be the hot manufacturing technology of the future, but injection molding is in no danger of becoming outdated any time soon. When used together, they offer fast, cost-effective ways to make plastic parts from prototyping and short-run production all the way up to full, large-scale manufacturing with the lowest unit costs possible.