Anaheim, Calif. — Scientific molding specialist Suhas Kulkarni sees trends indicating more global parity in molding processes, enthusiasm for additive manufacturing of molds and efficiencies resulting in faster cycle times.
Greater consistency in molding technologies means the same processes can used in China, the U.S., Mexico and elsewhere, said Kulkarni, president of scientific molding solutions provider Fimmtech Inc. of Vista, Calif.
While companies "still need to look at [processing] subjectively, rejects are going down" for many operators and the advent of "more efficient tooling and equipment" is permitting faster cycle times, he said in an interview at Antec 2017 in Anaheim.
In his youth, he benefitted from observing the work of his father, Mohan Kulkarni, a research scientist at the National Chemical Laboratory in Pune, India. That is "where the seeds of my future were laid," Suhas Kulkarni said.
Publishing firm Carl Hanser Verlag GmbH & Co. KG of Munich has issued the updated and revised second edition of Kulkarni's book, "Robust Process Development and Scientific Molding," including a new chapter on basic quality concepts. The first edition was published in 2010.
Kulkarni noted, "While the topic of process development is a complex one, I go back to the basics about molds, machines and processes" in troubleshooting a problem.
At Antec 2017, Valerie Lauer said the Kulkarni book is "one of our best sellers and appeals to industry and education" practitioners. Lauer is marketing manager for Hanser's Cincinnati-based Americas unit.
Hanser offers accessibility to an eBook Bonus download with purchase of the book in recognition of the growing popularity among professionals for reading on a computer, smartphone or tablet.