I am a student athlete at Fordham University, and I work at rubber molding company. Rubber molding, plastic injection molding, and cast polyurethane are other services that the company offers. While industrial manufacturing is a little different from CS work. They are both still very enjoyable.
Here is a brief overview of rubber injection molding:
The size and shape of the rubber good to be manufactured needs to be examined particularly to determine that a mold design is possible, and that the required size tolerances are practical. Customers unfamiliar or lacking the proper background with rubber/polyurethane may need help with the design to ensure that a commercial product is possible.
A rubber compound should meet the customer’s requirements in terms of both physical properties and service life. Abrasion resistance is really important. In reality it is necessary to look at other commercial feasible parameters. Rubber manufacturers typically have inplant rubber compounding facilities or they could possibly purchase compounds from a rubber mixing supplier. In both scenarios, quality control is of the utmost importance. Company policy will dictate quality control is for in house production. If a rubber compounder is used, there needs to be constant dialogue between the supplier and the injection molding company. Although it is possible to produce rubber parts on virtually any machine with little knowledge of the equipment or technology, there are features of the rubber injection molding equipment that need to be understood individually and within the whole process itself. It is through this understanding that process analysis and prevention of failure is achieved using failure mode effect and analysis.
Bonding rubber to metal is a complex and interesting combinations of elastomer sciences, metal sciences, surface science, adhesion science, and process engineering. In all aspects of bonding, clean work environment, quality controls, and a meticulous attention to fine detail are important for achieving a good bond. In general, different amounts of consideration to different parameters should be considered when selecting an adhesive system. The adhesive system should have systems in place to wet the substrate with even application over the surface under both good and bad conditions. The adhesive system must use the correct polymer type and the correct chemicals to vulcanize the rubber during the molding process. Avoiding sweep at molding temperatures such that adequate cohesive strength is achieved. It should be capable of interfacial mixing with the rubber without unnecessarily harming the integrity of the adhesive film. It should maintain bond integrity both through all post-bond finishing operations and when exposed to the environmental conditions which the part will see during service. Finally, the system should accommodate different cure and processing conditions used in making the parts.