New Production run - Moulding and casting timeline.

Timeframes of productions runs

This blog post is to highlight the timeframes of productions runs and to let you know (the potential customer) what to expect.

After back and forth on prototypes which can vary between 2 - 6 weeks depending on complexity, we now get to the mould making stage.

The master (3D Printed or any other medium) is stuck to a board and walls created to hold in the Silicone Rubber. Silicone Rubber takes 2 days to cure and as we have no oven on site, so there's no speeding this process up. If a batch of 500 units are required, we can do some simple maths to work out how long roughly that would take.

***A bit of Maths***

1: Master in silicone rubber which takes 48 hours to cure, removal of master after 48 hours leaves one mould

2: Now we have one mould, we can cast into that mould at a maximum of 2 casts per day - this means to reach a capacity of 500 units, this would take.............that's right, 50 weeks (using a 5 day working week), however there are considerations to think about, but well come back to that later.

3: Ok, so you as the customer are not happy about waiting 50 weeks, so what happens if we make another mould - 2 Moulds = 4 casts per day

At 4 casts per day working a 5-day week:

4 casts/day × 5 days = 20 units per week

To reach 500 units: 500 ÷ 20 = 25 weeks

How About 4 moulds to really get things moving

At 8 casts per day working a 5-day week:

8 casts/day × 5 days = 40 units per week

To reach 500 units: 500 ÷ 40 = 12.5 weeks

At 16 casts per day working a 5-day week:

16 casts/day × 5 days = 80 units per week

To reach 500 units: 500 ÷ 80 = 6.25 weeks

Ok so now you get the picture, the more moulds, the faster the output, however those time lines don't take into consideration the 48 hours it takes to for silicone rubber to cure. Below is a dated timeline on what to expect if doing a 500 unit batch run.

WEEK 1

Monday - Initial Mould Creation Create the first silicone mould around the original master. Allow 48 hours for the silicone to fully cure.

Wednesday Afternoon - Master Removal and Mould Multiplication

Remove the master from mould #1. This is a critical step because we need to create additional copies of the master to enable simultaneous production across multiple moulds.

Cast the first copy into mould #1 and allow 4 hours for hardening. While this copy cures, we can immediately return the original master to its wall and pour silicone around it to create mould #2.

After 4 hours, remove copy #1 from mould #1. Inspect it for quality, then build a wall around this copy and pour silicone to create mould #3. At this point, we can begin casting copy #2 in mould #1.

Thursday - Scaling Up Production

Continue casting in mould #1 to produce additional copies, allowing 3-hour intervals between casts for styrene evaporation:

• Morning: Cast copy #3 in mould #1

• Afternoon: Cast copy #4 in mould #1

By end of Thursday, we have completed 4 total copies (copies #1, #2, #3, and #4).

Thursday Afternoon - Mould Completion

After 48 hours of curing time, remove the master copies from moulds #2 and #3. We now have:

• 3 operational moulds ready for production

• 1 original master (safely stored)

• 4 working copies available for continued production or additional mould creation

Friday Morning - We can now add 4 working copies into Silicone Moulds all the while casting into Moulds 1 - 4

WEEK 2

Monday Morning- Removal of 4 working copies from Fridays Moulds leaving us with 8 Moulds.

Monday Afternoon - Cast into 8 Moulds = 8 Casts

Tuesday Morning - Cast into 8 moulds

Tuesday Afternoon Cast into 8 Moulds

Total 24 Casts by COP Tuesday

Wednesday and thereafter - Refer to ***A bit of Maths***

Considerations to take into account

• Understanding Styrene and mould degradation - See this blog post for Resins and their reactions

• Work Schedules: We Manufacture various products, so when we are approached with a timeline to produce a specific quantity of castings (for example) we have to take into account, our own order book, buying in materials, weekends and holidays.

• Timelines: If we're given a timeline and advise you as the customer whether this can be achieved and then we are asked to make "slight alterations" or "can it be done a week sooner" but still need to hit that same deadline, this is going to be a No.

• Moulds: If your deadline starts to get squeezed, unfortunately Unity Gifts making more moulds is not going to cut it, please refer to ***A bit of Maths*** to understand that this still eats into time.

• Masters: More often than not, masters that we receive are 3D printed, sometime hollow, sometimes not. We have in the past poured Silicone Rubber over hollow 3D prints for them to come out warped and unused. We would suggest 3D print walls of 6mm and above:

• Masters: Multiples: Supplying multiple masters can speed up mould production but please let us know as it may be us creating the masters, or you.

• Delivery: Imagine a cast standing at 22cm tall weighing 1 Kilo and you as the customer have ordered 500 units. You can see why this might be a challenge when it comes to transportation. We suggest a direct collection or Unity Gifts can Hand deliver direct to you. All of our casting quotes are separate from our delivery quotes, because of numbers, we really can't tell what size and weights the boxes will end up.

• Distinction: So as to not confuse in the back and forth between Manufacturer (unity gifts) and you the customer, it's best to be on the same page when it comes to the phrasing of certain words.

  Mould:

  This is made from silicone rubber and contains a void which is where we cast into to get a replica of the master that's been used to create the mould.

  Cast:

  This is what has been removed from the silicone mould and is a replica of your original master, usually made from polyester or sometimes epoxy.

• Once made: Once a silicone mould has been made, it can't be altered. The only way to alter is to alter the master and make a new mould. We can't add, take away or do anything to the mould.

• Quotes: When we quote it has a lifespan, the reason it has a lifespan is because Resins (especially Polyester) fluctuate which means a price on day 1, might be higher on day 7 - this means we can secure a price per cast on a given day that lasts however long, to give you the piece of mind that your price isn't going to fluctuate.

• Handmade: Everything we make is handmade, there are no buttons, there's no economy of scale and we aren't an injection moulder. We hand cast everything.

• Post cast removal from mould: The cost between a cast removed from a mould and nothing done to it against hand painted, spray painted and even cold cast can vary dramatically.

• Mould type - We use Block Moulds and tend to stay away from Fiberglass moulds, simply for the reason that it takes time to make Fiberglass moulds and when requiring multiple units, this isn't cost effective.

• Mould Complexity: This is a big issue when it comes to mould renewals and we take this into account when quoting. The easiest way to describe complex moulds is a figurine that has pointy out bits, whether arms, big hair, holding something. See here for an example of a complex mould versus a simple mould

  
  

The above is not inclusive of the whole process but this is to give you a general outline of our process. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.