Plastics Injection Molding and Extrusion in Spotlight at Virtual Engineering Days

Michael Paloian founded the industrial design firm Integrated Design Systems Inc. in 1983 and holds more than 40 patents. His presentation on successful design for injection molding will discuss some of the key challenges engineers and operators encounter, including maintaining tolerances during production and designing parts for long-term performance. “Anticipating tolerances that can be maintained during production is always a challenge,” Paloian told PlasticsToday. “This is especially true when features must comply with tolerance ranges outside the industry standards. Examples of these features include snap fits, press fits, and lap joints between covers. If the tolerance variations are too wide, parts will not function as anticipated due to the excessive clearance, and if the clearances are too tight, parts may not fit together as expected,” explained Paloian.