13.3 grams of plastic saves lives
Two small Danish-designed plastic parts are crucial for one of the world’s largest manufacturers of life jackets for professionals.
In collaboration with the rescue equipment manufacturer Viking, we have designed and manufactured two plastic components of 13.3 grams. They can withstand a tensile strength of up to 170 kilograms and can be assembled. Simple and yet complex. Today, the items are used on over 30,000 life jackets all over the world.
When Viking manufactures life jackets for professionals in e.g., contingency, shipping, and fishing, the quality must be top notch. All the elements of the life jacket must be able to withstand severe weather, including the small plastic components that hold the life jacket together. However, the life jackets must also be easy to disassemble, and this created a dilemma for Viking.
“The life jacket consists of an inflatable bladder and a cover. In order for the bladder to be replaced if it is defective, it must be possible to separate it from the cover. It is not so simple as it sounds. If you cast one component that held the life jacket together, you could easily achieve the necessary strength, but then the two parts of the life jacket would not be able to be separated. As the two components have enormous strength and resilience, they solve our dilemma perfectly.”
Michael Folmer Kristensen, Project Manager at Viking.
Customized solutions are the future
At Carmo A/S, we injection mould components for the medical industry and other markets that require extremely high quality. The collaboration with Viking is a good example of what we at Carmo see as our core task.
”Our customers rarely find a standard component on the shelves. Therefore, being able to custom design products has become a crucial part of our production.”
Anders Johnsen, VP R&D and Technology at Carmo
Read more about how Carmo can help with your customized solution
Companies must be adaptable
We have spoken with Ann-Louise Andersen, associate professor at Aalborg University, and she believes that custom designed products are a general trend seen in Danish companies. At the same time, she says that the additive manufacturing method 3D print, is a part of the future solutions for Danish industry.
“The future belongs to the companies that not only offer standard products but manufactures custom designed solutions. All companies must be adaptable. They must be able to adapt their products and equipment. 3D printing is very promising for industrial purposes, as it is a manufacturing method where you can quickly go from product design to manufacturing. This creates limitless opportunities for customization of products.”
Ann-Louise Andersen, associate professor in adaptable production at Aalborg University
At Carmo we look into the future, and 3D printing is fully integrated in the development of prototypes. We have developed a method, where we 3D print moulds that we use to injection mould prototypes.
”By using 3D printing for the moulds, we can injection mould prototypes up to 80 percent faster. At the same time, we can injection mould the prototypes in the right materials in order for the customer to be able to test the prototypes faster. The combination of 3D print and injection moulding ensures that we develop robust prototypes ready for volume production.”
Anders Johnsen, VP R&D and Technology at Carmo