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Volume One, Number One
Greetings fellow rotomolding fans! You subscribed to our newsletter while reviewing our Web site, modroto.com. This issue offers new information to help design engineers, product managers and others benefit from plastics in design and manufacturing. Email me with questions and comments. If you need to unsubscribe, just scroll down for instructions.
Now boldly mold!
For more information, contact Meese Orbitron Dunne Co., American Rotational Molding Group; 16404 Knott Ave., La Mirada, CA 90638; Phone: 888.724.1228; Fax: 877.904.1670; www.modroto.com.
TECHNICAL PLASTICS DOCUMENTS FOR ENGINEERS NOW ONLINE
Design News recently added a Technical Document Section that offers downloadable information on the outdoor weathering of plastics; material properties needed in engineering design using plastics; and on the standard terminology for abbreviations used in plastics, among other documents. The pdf files cost around $35.00 each at https://tdc.techsavvy.com/designnews/plastics/
MOLD MAINTENANCE PREVENTS SPORADIC DOWNTIME
Q: What is mold maintenance and who pays for it?
A: The intense heating and cooling process of plastics molding puts considerable stress on the molds. That's why it makes sense to develop a high quality mold from the very beginning. The better the mold, the more able it is to withstand many long production runs. Over time, every mold does require maintenance, which consists of reworking framing. Most rotomolders charge for mold maintenance but MOD Custom Rotomolding includes it as an accommodation.
Information from the Association of Rotational Molders is included in a Rotomolding FAQ at http://www.modroto.com/faq.shtml
PLASTIC TANK ELIMINATES STEEL TANKS' ENVIRONMENTAL, SAFETY AND COST CONCERNS FOR CHEMICAL APPLICATORS
Move over steel. The one-piece, plastic agricultural tank for applying seed or fertilizer is here and with it, the solutions to chronic problems related to personnel protection, operations, environmental management and costs that farmers and chemical applicators using complex steel tanks have contended with for years but could do little to solve.
Designed and manufactured by the Meese Orbitron Dunne Company (MOD) for Phenix Farms Industries, a distributor of farm machinery with a farm of its own, the tank has been approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and is a recipient of the "Best Design Award" from the National Farm Machinery Show.
The MOD/PFI tank is rotomolded from a linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) as a seamless, one-piece unit that is immune to fertilizer dust corrosion and resists degradation from ultraviolet (UV) light. The plastic tank maintains integrity across a broad temperature spectrum, keeps internal temperatures stable in hot weather, and is more economical to purchase and use than steel fertilizer tanks.
The tank eliminates worries about dangerous leaks, ruptures and explosions that occur with steel tanks. Leaking or ruptured steel tanks could expose equipment operators to corrosive fertilizers and fires, and release harmful chemicals to the environment that ultimately leach through the soil and contaminate water sources.
In the past, leaks and ruptures had been a frequent source of concern with steel tanks for a simple reason---corrosive degradation. Continued exposure to fertilizer dust weakens and degrades the multiple components and fasteners--joints, seals, solders and welds-used to join component parts in steel tanks. And constant contact with fertilizer dust literally devours stamped steel and sheet metal.
Thanks to its plastic construction and a UV-nhibiting additive, the MOD/PFI seed and fertilizer tank also resists ultraviolet (UV) light degradation, and its integrity is assured through a temperature range from 30-degrees below zero to 160 degrees F. The result: Farmers and applicators can now depend on extreme resistance to extreme conditions over widely changing temperatures.
The tanks accommodate either 4,000 lbs. of fertilizer or 3,000 lbs. of seed under pressures up to 3 PSI. The tank costs 50 percent to 60 percent less than steel tanks and weighs half of an equal capacity steel tank, helping to reduce operational costs. Less weight means less fuel needed to haul the unit and less wear and tear on hauling equipment.
Tested in the field for over one year, Randy Plummer, President of PFI reports, "The tanks have performed very well. In fact, they¹re even better than what we were hoping for." MOD's in-house engineering staff custom designs tanks to suit nearly any shape, capacity or specification.
FOR A FREE TANK BROCHURE
Contact Meese Orbitron Dunne Co., American Rotational Molding Group; 16404 Knott Ave., La Mirada, CA 90638; Phone: 888.724.1228; Fax: 877.904.1670; www.modroto.com.
SPOTLIGHT NEXT MONTH
Recreational product design!
Adventures In Rotomolding is published by Meese Orbitron Dunne Co., Saddle Brook, NJ, www.modroto.com; 800.829.3230. Copyright 2001 Meese, Inc. May not be reprinted without permission. Please feel free to pass along to other engineers and colleagues.
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