Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Sustainable Plastics
  • Rubber News
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Processor News
    • Suppliers
    • More News
    • Digital Edition
    • End Markets
    • Special Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Videos
    • Podcasts
    • Injection Molding
    • Blow Molding
    • Film & Sheet
    • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
    • Rotomolding
    • Thermoforming
    • Recycling
    • Machinery
    • Materials
    • Molds/Tooling
    • Product news
    • Design
    • K Show
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Sustainability
    • Public Policy
    • Material Insights Videos
    • Numbers that Matter
    • Automotive
    • Packaging
    • Medical
    • Consumer Products
    • Construction
    • Notable Leaders in Sustainability
    • Processor of the Year
    • Best Places to Work
    • Women Breaking the Mold
    • Rising Stars
    • Diversity
    • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
  • Opinion
    • The Plastics Blog
    • Kickstart
    • One Good Resin
    • Pellets and Politics
    • All Things Data
    • Viewpoint
    • From Pillar to Post
    • Perspective
    • Mailbag
    • Fake Plastic Trees
  • Shop Floor
    • Blending
    • Compounding
    • Drying
    • Injection Molding
    • Purging
    • Robotics
    • Size Reduction
    • Structural Foam
    • Tooling
    • Training
  • Events
    • Plastics News Events
    • Industry Events
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Livestreams/Webinars
    • Editorial Livestreams
    • Ask the Expert
    • Plastics News Events Library
    • Plastics News Executive Forum
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Plastics Caps + Closures: A Global Online Event
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
    • Bioplastics Live
    • Numbers that Matter Live
    • PFAS Live
    • Plastics in Politics Live
    • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Polymer Points Live
    • Sustainable Plastics Live
    • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
    • Plastics in Healthcare Library
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
  • Rankings & Data
    • Injection Molders
    • Blow Molders
    • Film Sheet
    • Thermoformers
    • Pipe Profile Tubing
    • Rotomolders
    • Mold/Toolmakers
    • LSR Processors
    • Recyclers
    • Compounders - List
    • Association - List
    • Plastic Lumber - List
    • All
  • Directory
  • Resin Prices
    • Resin Prices Overview
    • Commodity Thermoplastics
    • High Temperature Thermoplastics
    • Engineering Thermoplastics
    • Recycled Plastics
    • Thermosets
    • Europe - Virgin
    • Europe - Recycled
    • Europe - Feedstock
  • Custom
    • Sponsored Content
    • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
    • Conair Sponsored Content
    • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
    • ENGEL Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Classifieds
    • Place an Ad
    • Sign up for Early Classified
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
February 12, 2021 09:55 AM

Mold maker Westminster adds capacity, technology for medical devices

Catherine Kavanaugh
Senior Reporter
Plastics News Report
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print
    Westminster Tool Inc.
    Westminster Tool Inc. invested in updating, replacing and expanding equipment to keep up with demand from its customers, who came under increased pressure last year to meet new needs related to the pandemic.

    Plainfield, Conn.-based Westminster Tool Inc. invested in new technology to meet demand for high-precision molds from medical customers following a growth spurt that started a few years ago and accelerated during the pandemic.

    The investment represents more than 10 percent of 2020 sales, according to company officials, who say machining capacity was doubled and automation added.

    Founded in 1997, the mold maker is experiencing unprecedented growth from medical device manufacturers that need complex molds. The company helps injection molders with initial part design, simulations, mold sampling and part quality.

    "The largest portion of our sales growth has come from surgical devices," Westminster Tool Vice President Hillary Thomas said in an email. "Our medical injection mold building growth started in 2018. Most of this growth came from carving out a niche as a solutions provider that rolls up their sleeves to get intimate in helping our customers produce the complex components they need."

    Company officials put some of the sales increase toward updating, replacing and expanding equipment to keep up with demand from its customers, who came under increased pressure last year to meet new needs related to the pandemic.

    "We did not directly work on any COVID-related projects, but due to the dramatic increase, our customers had to not only maintain their existing business, but also launch new devices and testing devices within months for COVID, [and] we received a surplus of the existing work," Thomas said.

    Westminster Tool Inc.
    Victoria Rooke, a 21-year-old electronic discharge machine specialist, works on the new Sodick EDM at Westminster.

    "We found that in 2020 specifically, there was more work than local mold builders could keep up with, forcing many companies to expand their approved mold supplier lists," she added.

    The primary value of the latest investments at Westminster Tool boost capacity and will make it possible to reduce lead times. The company added three high-speed three-axis machines and one high-speed five-axis machine to its single Mikron HSM500, increasing the shop's milling capacity by over 400 percent.

    The expanded machining capabilities and advanced automation is letting Westminster Tool bring in more work, according to Westminster Tool President Ray Coombs.

    "The five-axis capabilities, for example, open us to more intricate types of jobs because we can now hit complex geometries and angles difficult to achieve before," Coombs said in a news release. "And this will have major long-lasting benefits for how we do business."

    On the automation end, Westminster Tool is going with a new pallet handling system — Mikron HSM 400U LP — to reduce setup and move toward a lights-out operation. Once installed, the pallet pool attachment will be able to run almost entirely unattended.

    Westminster Tool has 38 employees working mostly a single shift from 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and then there's a small second shift that works nights and weekends as needed, according to Thomas.

    "We have focused the majority of our efforts on increasing unattended time through use of robotics and pallet systems that can keep a machine running for the hours while we are home," she said.

    Overall, the investments are creating jobs at the company.

    Westminster Tool Inc.
    Westminster Tool Inc. invested in updating, replacing and expanding equipment to keep up with demand from its customers, who came under increased pressure last year to meet new needs related to the pandemic.

    "It will allow us to convert hard machining from a one-person role to a two- to three-person team. It also opens up more cross-training opportunities, which helps us create a CNC [computer numerical control] team that is more dynamic team and can manage multiple machines and operations," Thomas said.

    Westminster Tool bought another wire electric discharge machine — Sodick ALN 400G — in anticipation of a 30 percent increase in aerospace production in 2021. The extra machine also gives Westminster Tool production workers a chance to cross-train and improve their manufacturing skills to join other areas of the shop.

    Until it was installed, the company had enough work to keep the single mill running 24/7, leaving few opportunities for training. One hard mill apprentice, Amy Skrzypczak, doubled her training progress in just three weeks, company officials said.

    "Cross-training is a critical part of our culture here, but sometimes production requirements made it hard to use the machines for that training," Thomas said.

    The shop was completely reconfigured to house all the new technology. All milling equipment is in a single, centralized cell. The electrode milling machines also were moved closer to the new five-axis machine with hopes of combining the two departments by midyear.

    "We spent weeks planning and reimagining what operations would look like here with the new equipment," Thomas said, adding the goal was to optimize the shop's workflow.

    Westminster Tool typically tries to reinvest 10 percent each year but it is not always into equipment, Thomas said, pointing to facility upgrades, including repaving and a new roof, made in 2019 along with the purchase of a Sodick wire EDM, 2 HAAS machines and an EDM hole popper.

    "In 2019, we did invest approximately 5 percent into equipment as a start to address our growing demands," Thomas said.

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    M. Holland selling 3D business after Ravago deal
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Plastics News would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor at [email protected]

    Most Popular
    1
    An 8,000-ton dream for Milacron, 20/20 Custom Molded Plastics
    2
    Sonoco closing California plant, laying off more than 300
    3
    Plastics industry ‘not running away from its own problems,' ACC's Eisenberg says
    4
    ExxonMobil completes $2B Texas expansion
    5
    ACC campaign targets Biden administration's ‘regulatory overreach'
    SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Find more newsletters at plasticsnews.com/newsletters.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe today

    Subscribe to Plastics News

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Plastics News covers the business of the global plastics industry. We report news, gather data and deliver timely information that provides our readers with a competitive advantage.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI 48207-2997

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1723

    Resources
    • About
    • Staff
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Media Kit
    • Data Store
    • Digital Edition
    • Custom Content
    • People
    • Contact
    • Careers
    • Sitemap
    Related Crain Publications
    • Sustainable Plastics
    • Rubber News
    • Tire Business
    • Urethanes Technology
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Processor News
        • Injection Molding
        • Blow Molding
        • Film & Sheet
        • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
        • Rotomolding
        • Thermoforming
        • Recycling
      • Suppliers
        • Machinery
        • Materials
        • Molds/Tooling
        • Product news
        • Design
      • More News
        • K Show
        • Mergers & Acquisitions
        • Sustainability
        • Public Policy
        • Material Insights Videos
        • Numbers that Matter
      • Digital Edition
      • End Markets
        • Automotive
        • Packaging
        • Medical
        • Consumer Products
        • Construction
      • Special Reports
        • Notable Leaders in Sustainability
        • Processor of the Year
        • Best Places to Work
        • Women Breaking the Mold
        • Rising Stars
        • Diversity
        • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
      • Newsletters
      • Videos
      • Podcasts
    • Opinion
      • The Plastics Blog
      • Kickstart
      • One Good Resin
      • Pellets and Politics
      • All Things Data
      • Viewpoint
      • From Pillar to Post
      • Perspective
      • Mailbag
      • Fake Plastic Trees
    • Shop Floor
      • Blending
      • Compounding
      • Drying
      • Injection Molding
      • Purging
      • Robotics
      • Size Reduction
      • Structural Foam
      • Tooling
      • Training
    • Events
      • Plastics News Events
        • Plastics News Executive Forum
        • Injection Molding & Design Expo
        • Plastics Caps + Closures: A Global Online Event
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
      • Industry Events
      • Injection Molding & Design Expo
      • Livestreams/Webinars
      • Editorial Livestreams
        • Bioplastics Live
        • Numbers that Matter Live
        • PFAS Live
        • Plastics in Politics Live
        • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
        • Polymer Points Live
        • Sustainable Plastics Live
      • Ask the Expert
      • Plastics News Events Library
        • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
        • Plastics in Healthcare Library
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
    • Rankings & Data
      • Injection Molders
      • Blow Molders
      • Film Sheet
      • Thermoformers
      • Pipe Profile Tubing
      • Rotomolders
      • Mold/Toolmakers
      • LSR Processors
      • Recyclers
      • Compounders - List
      • Association - List
      • Plastic Lumber - List
      • All
    • Directory
    • Resin Prices
      • Resin Prices Overview
      • Commodity Thermoplastics
      • High Temperature Thermoplastics
      • Engineering Thermoplastics
      • Recycled Plastics
      • Thermosets
      • Europe - Virgin
      • Europe - Recycled
      • Europe - Feedstock
    • Custom
      • Sponsored Content
      • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
      • Conair Sponsored Content
      • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
      • ENGEL Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • Sign up for Early Classified