7/24/2019 CE - 01

1/9

Career Episode - 1

Pre-feasibility study for setting up and operating an Injection & Blow Molding

Plastic Goods Manufacturing Plant

a) Introduction

1. I worked on my undergraduate final year project from January, 2002 to May, 2002 at

University of ngineering ! "ec#nology, $a#ore, %akistan in order to fulfill t#e

re&uirements of my 'ac#elor of ngineering (Mec#anical ngineering). "#e topic of my

project was a pre*feasi+ility study for setting up and operating an Injection Molding

%lastic oods manufacturing plant.

b) Bacground

2. "#e manufacturing of #ouse#old dura+les t#roug# t#e plastic injection and molding

+usiness is a via+le +usiness provided t#at it is operated wit# a good +usiness acumen t#atinvolves #aving a t#oroug# knowledge and e-perience of t#e product range, tec#nical

re&uirements, operational procedures and also managing t#e jo+s wit# t#e rig#t type of

tec#nical manpower. In my opinion, w#en t#ese factors com+ine wit# good and effective

+usiness development skills, t#e +usiness is e-pected to give considera+le profits, w#ic#

are e-pected to grow over t#e years.

. /irstly I took a review of %lastic Industry and its market. "#e per capita consumption of

plastic in %akistan is .1 kilograms, w#ile t#is is . kg in India and kg in #ina. "#e

#ig#est per capita consumption of plastic is in United tates and ermany, w#ere per

capita consumption is 120 kg per annum. lo+ally, t#e per capita plastic consumption

works out to +e around 23 kg per annum1. "#e consumption of plastic is less in %akistan,as t#e local industries are not developing as rapidly as t#ey are growing in t#e ot#er parts

of t#e world.

3. econdly I got information a+out t#e market players in %lastic Industry. "#ere are some

4,000 plastic manufacturers in %akistan and 400,000 people are directly and indirectly

engaged wit# t#is +usiness. "#e plastic industry falls in cottage industry and t#ere are

some manufacturers, w#o are medium*si5ed industries. I visited different plastic

industries and took #elp and suggestions from t#eir owners and staff.

6. "#irdly I also studied onsumption ! Imports of %lastic goods!%akistan imports 70*80

percent raw material for plastic making from different countries, and at present t#ere isonly one company producing raw material for t#e industry. ngro 9sa#i is producing

100,000 tonnes raw material providing 0,000 tonnes to t#e local plastic industry and t#e

remaining 0,000 tonnes are e-ported. "#ere are some small*scale raw material

manufacturers as well, w#o are producing 26,000 to 0,000 tonnes annually. "#e total

consumption of raw material used in t#e plastic industry in t#e country is around 360,000

tonnes. "#e country imports 0 percent raw material from U9 and /ar astern

countries. "#e special grade raw material is imported from ermany and U9, w#ic# is

20 percent of total raw material consumption. India is also a major producer of plastic:s

raw material. "#e total consumption of plastic raw material in India is two million tonnes

annually. "#e prices of raw material of plastic industry depend on international scenario.

;uring Ira& war, t#e prices s#ot up +y 0 percent. "#e raw material of plastic industry is

a +y*product of crude oil. "#e prices are directly related to crude oil prices as t#e raw

7/24/2019 CE - 01

2/9

material is made from via+ility of t#e

+usiness.

c) Personal "orplace #cti$ity

4. %lastic is a common name for %olymers? materials made of long strings of car+on and

ot#er elements. ac# unit in a string is called a monomer, and is a c#emical usually

derived from oil. "#ere are many different types of plastic, depending on t#e starting

monomer selected, t#e lengt# of polymer c#ains, and t#e type of modifying compounds

added. ac# plastic is developed for a special purpose. =owever t#e varied use of plasticin our everyday life #as made it an integral component in almost everyt#ing. %lastic is

used in everyday items like +allpoint pen, +uckets, cups, glasses, water pipes, plastic +ags

to items of engineering e-cellence like cars and airplanes. 9ccording to some e-perts,

around 60 kilograms plastic is used in every car manufactured in ermany. @it# suc# a

#ig# ratio of usage in developed countries, plastic #as +ecome a c#eap +ut an important

commodity

Properties of Plastics

. "#e numerous properties of plastics #ave made it possi+le to virtually make every product

conceiva+le. ome properties of plastic t#at distinguis#es t#em from ot#er materials are?

9ttractive

=ard

oft and ru++ery

asy to clean

/le-i+le

ood insulators of #eat or electricity

$ig#t weig#t

=ygienic

asy to s#ape and color

conomical

7. 9part from some of t#e properties of plastics, I mentioned a+ove, one important feature of

plastic is t#at it is a non*rusting material, w#ic# makes it a very usa+le commodity

especially in coastal areas w#ere t#ere is a lot of #umidity. 9s I stated earlier, t#e use of

plastics is increasing all t#e time as t#ey replace materials suc# as metal, wood, paper,

ceramics and glass in a wide variety of uses. More over t#e overall demand and local

supply gap t#at prevails in t#e market remains largely unmet w#ic# also provides

opportunities for entering in to t#is +usiness.

8. ome most common applications of commodity plastics in our everyday life are?

#pplications

%PE =ig# ;ensity %olyet#ylene 'ottle crates, containers, #ouse ware

'PE$ow ;ensity %olyet#ylene "oys, +ottle caps, lids, +owls, s#opping +ags

7/24/2019 CE - 01

3/9

P( %olystyrene"oys, containers, tape cassettes, disposa+le cups, transistorca+inet, appliance #ousing

C#ellulose 9cetate "oys, pen, #andles for tools

P*CAigid %olyvinyl #loride %ipe fittings, guttering, plum+ing items

(P*Coft %olyvinyl #loride @as#ers, soft tu+es, soles, #eels, footwear

+ey (uccess ,actorsPractical .ips for (uccess10. I gave t#e t#ree main practical tips for success t#at affect t#e decision to invest in my

proposed +usiness setup are?

elated E/perience - "#e entrepreneur must #ave considera+le e-perience of t#e plastic

industry w#erein #e> s#ould +e a+le to identify t#e c#anging environment +ot# at t#e

demand and t#e supply side and react accordingly. Molds are very e-pensiveB t#erefore

t#e entrepreneur needs to c#oose molds only for t#ose products for w#ic# demand is

e-pected to rise in t#e future. Aelated industry e-perience is also re&uired w#ere purc#ase

of raw material is +eing considered. %rices of =;%>%% plastic resins are directly related

to petroleum prices, w#ic# are very dynamic.

Mareting (ill -9not#er critical factor is t#at t#e entrepreneur must #ave effective %A

! marketing skills. "#ese marketing skills will ena+le t#e entrepreneur to carryout

+usiness development activities to target #is potential customers and also to maintain #is

e-isting client +ase. ontacts wit# relevant distri+utors and major w#olesale > retail

outlets and markets play a crucial role in +usiness development.

.oll ManufacturingContract Manufacturing -onsidering t#e price competition and

t#e possi+ility of decreasing margins at retail level, many plastic good manufacturers #ave

ad#ered to toll manufacturing w#ere t#ey are su+contracted +y large companies to

manufacture product parts like refrigerator parts, 9 vents, grills etc. 9lt#oug# t#e

margins received initially mig#t not +e significant +ut t#e volume of +usiness is

considera+ly large w#ic# makes up for t#e low margins. "#e margins tend to +e very

significant if t#e manufacturer possesses an e-pensive mold, w#ic# is not availa+le &uiteeasily in t#e market. 9 strong referral +ase needs to +e esta+lis#ed in order to get suc#

contracts.

Proposed Business 'egal (tatus11. 9lt#oug# t#e legal status of +usiness tends to play an important role in any setup, I

suggested t#at plastic good manufacturing +usiness could +e operated on a sole

proprietors#ip +asis, w#ic# may e-tend to partners#ip in case of addition of new products

t#at mig#t add significant +usiness to t#e e-isting setup.

Project In$est0ent12. I #ave estimated t#at t#e total cost of t#e project is as +elow.

Ite0 Cost s!)

onstruction ost 6,827,000

Cffice /urniture 100,000

Injection Molding Mac#inery DAefur+is#edE 4,700,000

Metal Molds 2,126,000

9dvance Aent 400,000

%reliminary -penses 60,000

@orking apital 18,862,27

Aaw Material Inventory 3,02,648

Aesin oloring Mac#ine 1,460,000

.otal 2134563726

Proposed Product Mi/1. My proposed project is assumed to manufacture t#e following items using =;% > o F

7/24/2019 CE - 01

4/9

%% DGupleneE plastic F Injection rade?

@ater 'uckets

@as# "u+s

@aste 'in

'at#ing "um+ler

"oll Manufacturing

It desira+le to #ave a vast array of products w#ere most of t#e plastic manufacturers #aveat least 20 to 26 different product categories running in t#eir production line, +ut initially

t#e entrepreneur, needs to +e careful in c#oosing t#e product mi- of t#e rig#t type and si5e

t#at #as t#e greatest accepta+ility suc# t#at t#e sales volume generated is a+le to cover t#e

mold costs re&uired for eac# separate item. onsidering t#is factor, I proposed t#at t#e

entrepreneur produces plastic goods for t#e a+ove mentioned product categories wit# t#e

following details?

I.EM (I8E C9'9 *#I#:.

@ater 'uckets 20 liters, 23 liters 'lue ! Aed

'ucket =andles 14 liters, 20 liters 'lue ! Aed

@as# "u+s 23 liters, 0 liters 'lue ! Aed'at#ing "um+ler

7/24/2019 CE - 01

5/9

mac#ine, as mac#ines may vary according to t#eir makes, +rands, products produced etc.E.

.ips for Purc;asing a Mold14. "#e mold is t#e most e-pensive component re&uiring considera+le investment, w#ic# is

sometimes #ig#er t#an t#e cost of t#e mac#inery itself. "#erefore as I discussed earlier,t#e molds need to +e carefully c#osen +ased on product acceptance production ease.

ome of t#e following points s#ould +e considered w#en selecting t#e mold?Ca$ity (i>e of t#e injection molding mac#ine is t#e major factor w#en deciding on t#emold. "#e larger t#e cavity capacity t#e greater t#e adjusta+ility of large si5ed molds for large

products. /or e-ample an injection mold mac#ine wit# 6*ounce cavity capacity cannotaccommodate a 100*ounce mold. It is preferred t#at t#e mold s#ould +e at least 10 ounce lesst#an t#e cavity si5e.

Mold #rea & (tructureis anot#er important factor to consider since it is not necessaryt#at t#e mold si5e fits in t#e cavity as t#e dimensions of t#e mold also need to +e incongruence wit# t#e cavity dimensions. "#e lengt# widt# and dept# of t#e mold needs to

+e in line wit# t#e cavity dimensions.

.ie Bars aret#e strong#olds t#at firmly grip t#e mold suc# t#at it remains unmoved

during t#e impact. "#e distance +etween t#e tie +ars w#ic# #olds t#e mold and t#eirrelative properties need to +e considered in order to avoid mismatc# and errors during t#einjection molding process.

Mold 9pening (pace is t#e space re&uired +y t#e ejector mec#anism to eject t#eproduct, in case t#e mold opening space is smaller t#an t#e mold, t#e ejector will not+e a+le to eject t#e cooled product wit#in t#e availa+le space.

Process ,low

1. Injection molding is a powerful and compre#ensive manufacturing process. =owever, it

can also +e a complicated and costly e-perience. "#e entrepreneur and t#e product

designer must not only consider part performance re&uirements, +ut process and material

constraints as well as well as market accessi+ility. ffective management of t#eseconstraints in a time efficient manner can yield significant product cost savings and a

&uick time*to*market. Muc# savings can +e reali5ed +y making informed decisions early

in t#e product design process. "#e product designer s#ould #ave several tools and forms

of knowledge at #is disposal. In t#e early stages of design, and t#roug#out muc# of t#e

design process, t#e designer can employ &ualitative knowledge in t#e form of personal

e-perience and ta+ulated rules of t#um+. =ence I #ave given a +rief overview of w#at

t#ings to +e considered w#ile developing t#e product re&uires to +e deli+erated upon.

Product esign & Basics

17. Cf critical importance to a good product design practice is t#e product under

consideration, w#ic# directly impacts on t#e raw material and t#e features of t#e molds

to +e used. I prepared following sc#ematic diagram depicts some of t#e +asic

7/24/2019 CE - 01

6/9

re&uirements?

'ased on t#e a+ove product re&uirements t#e molds are to +e carefully c#osen since t#ey

are t#e most costly component of t#e Injection Molding Mac#ine. "#e geometric varia+le

#as t#e largest impact on mec#anical performance of t#e product, of w#ic# wall t#ickness

is t#e most critical. ince wall t#ickness is so strongly coupled wit# processi+ility, any

design tec#ni&ue must also consider material and process constraints on wall t#ickness

configuration. "#ere are a num+er of factors t#at influence t#e c#oice of wall t#ickness,

including?

Mec;anical e

7/24/2019 CE - 01

7/9

Plastici>ing * descri+es t#e conversion of t#e polymer material from its normal #ard

granular form at room temperatures, to t#e li&uid consistency necessary for injection at its

correct melt temperature.

Injection * is t#e stage during w#ic# t#is melt is introduced into a mold to completely fill

a cavity or cavities.

C;illing * is t#e action of removing #eat from t#e melt to convert it from a li&uid

consistency +ack to its original rigid state. 9s t#e material cools, it also s#rinks.

Ejection * is t#e removal of t#e cooled, molded part from t#e mold cavity and from any

cores or inserts.

Process escription20. "#e solid polymers are added into t#e injection unit +y way of t#e #opper, w#ic# a

motor t#en crus#es propelled screw in a #eated cylinderB t#e molten polymer onreac#ing t#e desired temperature levels is introduced into t#e mold t#roug# a pressurevalve Dat t#e desired pressure levelE. "#e molten plastic t#en fills t#e cavities inside t#emold until t#e core is completely filled. Cnce completely filled, t#e plastic is allowed tocool down at t#e desired temperature for a certain time period Dt#is also affects t#e

plastic propertiesE. 9fter cooling, t#e plastic product is ejected out of t#e mold t#roug#ejection pins operating from an ejection plate placed +e#ind t#e mold. 9 mold is a #ollowmetal +lock into w#ic# molten plastic is injected to form a certain fi-ed s#ape. 9lt#oug#t#ey are not illustrated in t#e figure s#own a+ove, actually t#ere are many #oles drilled int#e +lock for temperature control +y means of #ot water, oil or #eaters. Molten plasticflows into a mold t#roug# an aperture and fills cavities +y way of runners and gates."#en, t#e mold is opened after cooling process and t#e ejector rod of t#e injectionmolding mac#ine pus#es t#e ejector plate of t#e mold to furt#er eject moldings. "#efollowing diagram gives a common illustration of a mold?

Color Pig0entation21. 9ttractive plastic products are key elements t#at appeal to t#e customer, since similar

products vary nominally amongst various manufacturers. Usually t#e productionmanager decides on t#e color in consultation wit# t#e owner and t#en develops t#e

pigment mi- in terms of &uantity and &uality to meet t#e desired color sc#emes. "#ecolor pigments are t#en +oug#t from t#e market and added to t#e plastic resins, w#ic# aret#en c#urned in t#e coloring mac#ine. Cnce t#e resins are colored according to t#edesired intensity, t#ey are dried and cooled +efore +eing su+se&uently poured into t#einjection molding mac#ine.

aw Material e

7/24/2019 CE - 01

8/9

%olymers DGupleneE. "#e main supplier of t#is plastic resin is H =M., w#ic# #asconsidera+le presence in t#e %akistani Market and is easily availa+le. Moreover t#e color

pigments are also easily availa+le from t#e local market according to t#e color mi- asdesired +y t#e manufacturer. "#ere are recycled plastic resins availa+le in t#e market andone #as to +e careful to c#eck t#e plastic resins to ensure t#at t#ey are not recycled sincet#ey diminis# product &uality and outlook.

Production Capacity2. "#e production capacity for eac# of t#e mac#ines depends on two main t#ings

ooling ycle "ime

Aaw Material Injection @eig#

'ased on t#e a+ove two factors and keeping in view t#e products to +e produced, t#eyearly production output D+ased on 70 capacity utili5ationE for my proposed projectwill +e as follows?

I.EM (I8E =:I.(@ater 'uckets 20 $iters 3,770

@ater 'uckets 23 $iters 3,770

@as# "u+s 23 $iters 3,770

@as# "u+s 0 $iters 38,820

'at#ing "um+ler 1 $iter 688,030

;ust+in

7/24/2019 CE - 01

9/9

mac#ines are also availa+le +ut locally t#e former DJapanese > 9mericanE mac#ines arepreferred.Injection Mold -"#e molds are very costly and need to +e carefully picked. ome moldsare locally made +ut people usually prefer #inese molds t#at are usually ro+ust andrefined. I proposed used molds Davaila+le in t#e marketE for t#is setup since t#ey arec#eap and efficient in delivering t#e desired products.Coloring Mac;ine -"#e coloring mac#ine is a round s#aped mi-er, w#ic# is similar to

t#e common cement mi-ing mac#ines mostly found near construction sites. "#e coloringmac#ine is easily availa+le from t#e local market.

%u0an esource e