Predictive Mould design for thermo mould industry

T-Form

Throughput-Time Reduction & First Time Right Production for the thermoform industry by introducing a predictive mould design & manufacturing system.

The product design, mould design & production within the thermoforming process are currently based on craftsmanship & an iterative trial-and-error approach. The European Thermoform industry (Employees: 275,000; Turnover: €27.5 billion; 85% of companies are SMEs) is facing severe competition from far-Eastern countries. In order to fight this competition, a combination of Throughput Time reduction & right-first-time production should be established. The current craftsmanship should be integrated in a predictive approach from product design to manufacturing with the emphasis on mould design to permit right-first-time production of less costly thermoformed parts in shorter timescales.

The T-ForM project will result in a technology which is able to supply the thermoform industry with:

Design guidelines for thermoformed parts
A complete proposal for an ideal thermoforming mould design based on a dedicated Production Simulation software tool by developing a predictive mould design software tool for thermoforming
Optimal thermoforming parameter settings coming from the developed predictive mould design software tool

Within T-ForM the following strategic objectives have been addressed:

Objective 1: Shorten the time from part design to actual manufacturing by introducing design guidelines for thermoformed parts.
Objective 2: Easy to use, predictive mould design system for thermoforming based on, & connected to, a simulation system.
Objective 3: Optimal thermoforming parameter settings based on the optimised product & mould design & mould manufacturing.

These objectives will enable right-first-time production & a throughput time reduction of 40% as the trial-and-error approach will become obsolete. Due to this reduction it is expected that the costs will be reduced with 35%.

Start Date: 1/09/2005
Completion Date: 31/08/2008

For more information, please visit - www.t-form.eu