PLASTINUM Family of Gas-Assisted Injection Molding Solutions

Why Use CO₂ or N₂ for GAIM?

Gas offers many advantages as a pressure medium for injection molding. Whether using nitrogen (N₂) or carbon dioxide (CO₂) to shape a hollow or channel in a molded plastic part, gas-assisted injection molding (GAIM) - also known as gas injection molding (GIM) - overcomes the downsides of water as the pressure fluid. These include the need for a drying cycle, longer process cycles, process stability issues and - in the event of a leak, for instance - the surface damage due to water.

Driven by the “lightweighting” trend and rising expectations around surface quality, GAIM is increasingly used to manufacture handles for cars and white goods, for instance, or automotive panels and similar parts with thicker cross-sections.

Driving Innovation

Covering all steps in the process flow from the gas supply system and piping through the pressure boosting equipment and gas control units to the injectors, our turnkey PLASTINUM^® offering is designed to meet your current and evolving GAIM needs. With a range of cost-effective N₂ and CO₂ supply and injection solutions to choose from, PLASTINUM can also help you meet your sustainability and efficiency goals.

Over time, we have been systematically innovating and refining standard GAIM methods to take productivity and profitability to the next level. For instance, we added an inner cooling process that accelerates cooling by pressing nitrogen through the gas channel. To further increase the competitive and technical gains potentially offered by GAIM, we went on to give customers the option of using carbon dioxide instead of nitrogen, which accelerates process times through its excellent cooling performance. We also developed an innovative purging solution for even greater quality and productivity gains.