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Economical Electric Press, In-Mold Coating, LSR Process Control, and More Fakuma News Among the new developments to be presented next month at the Fakuma 2017 show in Germany will be a new size of all-electric press from Engel Austria (U.S. office in York, Pa.). The e-mac 280 is a 280-metric-ton expansion of the economi- cally priced, general-purpose e-mac line, which previously topped off at 180 m.t. Engel says this series is well suited to technical parts and elec- tronic components—two areas in which the trend is toward larger molds with higher cavitation. Engel will be running this press (pictured) with a four-cavity mold for 40-pole connector housings of glass-filled PBT. It will demonstrate three software packages for real-time process control: iQ weight control (introduced in 2012), which maintains constant shot size and compensates for changes in the material or environmental conditions; iQ clamp control (2015), which continuously adjusts clamp force to save energy and protect mold life, while mini- mizing flash; and the new iQ flow control (2016), which regulates mold temperature-control units according to the needs of the process. • For automotive, Engel will present the first applications for exterior components using in-mold coating with clear liquid PUR. Up to now, these high-gloss, scratch- proof coatings have been aimed at interior decorative elements and electronic functional components. Engel's clearmelt process first molds the thermoplastic substrate and then coats it in a second cavity. The process can easily be combined with IML to avoid any post-mold finishing or decorating. The integrated two-compo- nent PUR mixing/dispensing system comes from Hennecke in Germany (U.S. office in Lawrence, Pa.; henneckeinc.com). • For the medical market, Engel has further refined its stainless-steel pipe distributor (introduced two years ago) for cavity separation of small parts from multi-cavity molds. It now fits completely into the expanded safety gate of the injection machine (photo). It will be shown on an Engel e-victory 80-m.t. electric tiebarless machine, molding PS needle holders for 1-ml safety syringes in a 16-cavity mold. The parts will be extracted by an Engel viper 12 linear robot and trans- ferred to the distribution system, with 16 bags hung in a cart directly beneath the pipe distributor. Individual shots can be extracted for QC purposes. For unmanned cleanroom operation overnight, two carts can be alter- nated in sequence, with a buffering system to enable the fully automated switchover— handled by the CC300 machine control. Thanks to shared data storage, the CC300 can precisely coordinate the movements of the press and robot. And to provide flexibility, the pipe distributor and bag-packing cart are supplied as a single unit that can be moved from machine to machine. • For LSR, Engel will demonstrate real-time shot-size control with its iQ weight control software on a tiebarless victory press running LSR in a 16-cavity mold. This will also be the first presentation at a show of a victory machine with a next-gener- ation injection unit. Last fall, Engel reorganized the sizes of its hydraulic injection units and upgraded the performance specs for injection speed and pressure and plasticating capacity (see January's K show report). 717-764-6818 • engelglobal.com New Software Boosts Surface Analyzer's Capabilities Cincinnati-based BTG Labs has introduced new Archer software that further enhances the capabilities of its Surface Analyst SA3001. First launched in 2014, this was the first fully self-contained instrument for non-destructive testing of a part's surface conditions on the shop floor. Designed to quickly and easily test whether a surface is ready to accept painting, printing, or adhesive bonding, it is well suited to process control as well as problem-solving and R&D; applications. The next-generation Archer software is reportedly faster, more powerful, more reliable, and even more user- friendly. It reportedly delivers precise and accurate surface cleanliness measure- ments in under 2 sec. Overall, it makes the Surface Analyst better equipped to quickly and precisely verify bonding processes. Key features include: • A new Performance Check Option with a test sequence and tool- correction process can verify and help maintain proper measurement results. • Archer Stats allow users to view a range of results in graph form directly on the instrument screen for quick access and trend analysis. • It now allows users to quickly look up previous test results by simply typing in the test number. • An Extended Sleep Recovery feature permits the unit to conduct a quick 5-shot priming purge, allowing for more accurate measurement after the unit has been sitting for a long period of time. 513-469-1800 • btglabs.com INJECTION MOLDING TESTING 84 SEPTEMBER 2017 Plastics Technology PTonline.com Keeping Up W it h Technolog y