Tech Centre Explores Large Imms

Husky Injection Molding Systems officially opened their Detroit technical centre on November 1 with a ceremony at the centre’s 25 acre Novi, MI site hosted jointly by Husky president and CEO Robert Schad, Decoma CEO and president Al Power, and DaimlerChrysler president Jim Holden. The facility covers 100,000 sq. ft. and will showcase developments in applications for Husky large tonnage machines in North America. The centerpiece of the facility, and the reason for its completion two years ahead of schedule, is the E8000 8800-ton injection molding machine, built as part of a joint project with Decoma and DaimlerChrysler to produce large automotive body panels. With a 145-pound shot capacity, “large” is an understatement, as the press is capable of producing bodyshell halves, for example those in use on DaimlerChrysler’s Composite Concept Vehicle prototypes.

The E8000 is said to be twice the size of the largest presses currently in use in the automotive industry, and weighs 650 tons. The eight tie-bar machine features a cast moving platen weighing 207 tons, believed to be the third largest single nodular iron casting in the world. The injection system uses two stages, with a 6.7 in. extruder feeding a shooting pot to allow shot weights from 20 to 145 pounds. The press is powered by four arrays of variable displacement pumps, driven by water-cooled electric motors. One array acts as a spare for reduced downtime, and the entire powerpack resides in an enclosed pit for safety and noise isolation.

The E8000 is currently producing hardtops for Jeep vehicles, a proof-of-concept application which can be ramped up to 5000 units per year at the centre, although full-scale production will take place at dedicated facilities.