Sensors for predictive maintenance in injection molding

The injection mold is the most important resource in the injection molding process, because it is usually impossible to replace. Damage inevitably leads to a production stoppage that can put the supply chain at risk. This is why predictive maintenance is so very important. At present, this type of maintenance is controlled depending on time intervals or production quantities, forcing users to maintain their molds more often than necessary so as to ensure production capability in all cases. Sensors placed intelligently in the mold can be used to monitor the operational status of the tool (mold monitoring). Objective measurement data provides a reliable basis to allow extended maintenance intervals.