CH3 Solutions LLC has invested $150,000 in its largest injection molding machine yet.
The Dalton, Ga.-based custom molder recently added a 750-ton wide-platen hydraulic injection molding machine from Engel to meet the needs of new customers and gain more business.
“Last year, I actually had to pass up on a couple customers because I did not have that size machine, so we figured it was time,” Rodney Davenport, vice president of manufacturing and quality at CH3 Solutions, said in a Feb. 21 phone interview. “We've been on quite a growth rate since we opened in the middle of 2015.”
The Engel machine brings the company's injection molding press count to eight: four electric machines, one servo hydraulic and three hydraulic. Clamping forces start at 110 tons.
CH3 Solutions primarily uses Japanese injection molding machines from Toyo and Nissei, but Davenport said he got a great deal on the used Engel press.
“I've run Engels in the past and this was a really good machine — low hours, has a lot of options,” he said. “It had everything we needed, so it worked out perfectly for us. We're pretty excited about it.”
Davenport said he plans to have the machine up and running by early March.
“Our plans are for next week to hopefully put the mold in and go into production,” he said.
CH3 Solutions started out in a 35,000-square-foot facility with two injection molding machines, manufacturing its own proprietary product before getting into custom molding. The company now has 20 employees and operates out of a 90,000-square-foot facility in Dalton, where it molds parts primarily for the consumer product and agriculture markets.