Diversified Plastics Inc. is creating an environmentally controlled area for injection molding of parts needing a cleaner than normal environment, but not necessarily a certified clean room.
The 1,800-square-foot area was created last month and is being fitted with one horizontal and two vertical injection molding presses this month, according to Annette Lund, vice president of the Minneapolis-based injection molder.
“We've had several customers ask for it. One came to us for a specific project. So there's been a lot of interest,” she said in a phone interview.
Lund said the company retrofitted space that had been used for assembly, and it will be open for molding, sonic welding and packaging.
She said customers in medical device, aerospace and electronics industries had some parts that were “contamination sensitive” that needed to bridge the gap between normal molding and ISO-rated clean rooms.
The new area features venting systems directly over the injection nozzles of each machine, removing fumes from the process. The floors were treated and all walls were covered with a special paint. Resins are dried and stored in an external room and supplied via a vacuum system. Employees follow clean room procedures, wearing gowns and cleaning shoes and using sticky mats when entering the work area.
Diversified is an employee-owned custom molder that has a 38-year history. It is a full-service contract manufacturer, handling everything from design and mold construction to molding and clean room assembly. It is ISO 9001:2008 and 13485:2003 certified, FDA registered, ITAR certified and UL registered.