query on cost of plastic mould set up

Mylargo

Hi
I was wondering if anyone knew anything about the cost for making a mould to build a customised plastic product. The product is a simple design 1000mm long by 130mm wide by 12mm deep.
I received a quote of $9,400 to set up a mould from a company in China. It seems such an exorbitant price for such a simple design and I was wondering if it was some kind of mistake.
Thanks in advance for any input

tacofries

I'd very strongly recommend speaking to an Irish manufacturer before going ahead and getting a mold made in China. Something that appears simple can actually make for a pretty complex mold so you'd have to show us the part for us to know. Did you have input in the products design from someone experienced with injection molding? AIT have some good people.

I'm assuming it's an injection mold you are getting made but we'd also need to see the quote itself as the price is directly related to steel type, hot runners used, effectiveness of the cooling system, number of cavities, finish, ejection method, guarantee etc.

1000mm is a long part so be careful with warpage and make sure that the quote includes a mold flow analysis. Be very careful of the gate locations also as if you put a gate at the center of a long piece of plastic it will be pretty easy to snap in two and ensure that the mold is made to run fully autonomous e.g. the mold opens wide enough so a robot can go in and grab the parts.

Also, it is one thing getting a mold made, it is another thing to actually see it make thousands of perfect parts. It's going to be a pretty slow and painful process!

Mylargo

Hi tacofries
Thanks for your reply and info. I did speak to a few Irish manufacturers a while back and they did not seem too interested in what I was asking them to do. Those that did show interest were quoting exorbitant prices that would only produce a small amount of shots from the mold, making it not viable. I admit at the time I was less informed than I am now about the process and could not tell you what exact processes were involved, be it urethane casting, injection molding or some other. Not that I am an expert now or anything close. I hope warping will not be too big an issue as the units will be lying flat on the ground when in play. it is quite a simple design with dowels at one end and corresponding holes at the other so hopefully the unit can be replicated with considerable ease. I will be sure to ask for a mold flow analysis as you advise. I have since received more favourable prices including one who suggests I can use blow molding to produce the unit. I am also waiting on a price from a company that uses rotational molding. If you have any other advice I would appreciate it
Regards

thecommander

If the price for China is exorbitant, and a price from Ireland is exorbitant then have you considered that that's the actual price and your sums aren't right?

Not being a prick about it, but I work in printing and get this all the time. People have a number in their head for some reason and get a cost and think they're being ripped off without having any idea of what the cost should be.

Tell me how

What are you trying to prove OP?

The suitability of the designed piece for the purpose which it is intended or to get a head start on determining the layout and costs associated with a moulding cell to produce such parts?

If it's former, maybe 3d printing would suffice to produce testable pieces. If it's the latter, I can tell you, $9,400 seems only a drop in the ocean of what it will ultimately take.

How many parts do you require/expect per hour?

Mylargo

Hi
"Not being a prick about it" indeed...
Thanks everyone who has taken their valuable time to give me some info on an area I have little or no true knowledge of (including thecommander) who I must apologise to for using exorbitant much too liberally. Some of the quotes since have not been so exorbitant thankfully. I appreciate the few nuggets I got from here that have in turn helpfully steered me in the right direction on google.