Plastic Welding Machines - Fabricating Plastic

2008-11-05 10:35:06

( Business )



Welding is a fabrication or sculptural process that joins materials, usually metals or thermoplastics, by causing coalescence. This is often done by melting the workpieces and adding a filler material to form a pool of molten material (the weld puddle) that cools to become a strong joint, with pressure sometimes used in conjunction with heat, or by itself, to produce the weld.

Many different energy sources can be used for welding, including a gas flame, an electric arc, a laser, an electron beam, friction, and ultrasound. While often an industrial process, welding can be done in many different environments, including open air, underwater and in outer space. Regardless of location, however, welding remains dangerous, and precautions must be taken to avoid burns, electric shock, eye damage, poisonous fumes, and overexposure to ultraviolet light. Safety equipment used in welding can include welding helmets, welding mask, welding gauntlets and apron.

Welding machines are usually classified as constant current or constant voltage; a constant current machine will vary its output voltage to maintain a steady current while a constant voltage machine will fluctuate its output current to maintain a set voltage. Shielded metal arc welding will use a constant current source and gas metal arc welding and flux-cored arc welding typically use constant voltage sources but constant current is also possible with a voltage sensing wire feeder.

Fabrication of plastic parts can be done with plastic welding. The use of plastic welding machines is dictated by the volume and part design of the plastic and on the plastic materials. After knowing what kind of plastic is to be used, and the dimensions are determined, determining the type of plastic welding machines to use is the next step. There are vibration plastic welding machines, ultrasonic plastic welding machines and plastic welding machines for producing weld seams.

As an industrial process, the cost of welding plays a crucial role in manufacturing decisions. Many different variables affect the total cost, including equipment cost, labor cost, material cost, and energy cost. Depending on the process, equipment cost can vary, from inexpensive for methods like shielded metal arc welding and oxyfuel welding, to extremely expensive for methods like laser beam welding and electron beam welding. Because of their high cost, they are only used in high production operations. Labor cost depends on the deposition rate (the rate of welding), the hourly wage, and the total operation time, including both time welding and handling the part.


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