A mold can cost from several thousand to hundreds of thousands of dollars, and the most important factors that affect the price of the mold are the complexity of the part that will be produced from the mold, the size and the number of cavities. In addition, we also need to consider more about some other factors such as the injection system (Hot Runner or Cold Runner), geographic location of suppliers, or some other requests...
We are all clear that if a mold has higher levels of complexity, larger size, it will have a higher price for processing than simpler and smaller-sized molds. Besides, the number of cavities that you want will also affect the cost of the mold. Multiple cavities, the mold will be larger, and need more materials, or processing will also take more time and fee.
That's not to mention Mold Base Standard that you requeste or mold supplier suggest. If you do not give specific requirements for Mold Base Standard, when you compare the price of the suppliers you should also pay attention to this. Also,type of steel that is used to make the mold also affects the cost. So, if you want a good standard mold, high quality, it is clear that the cost will be higher, which also means that will help you get high quality products, less faulty in the manufacturing process, and the mold life will also be higher.
A feature that cannot be produced from the mold in the straight open and shut direction will require a moving part added to the tool. Some of these moving sections are referred to as sliders, collapsible cores, and unscrewing molds. Each of these moving parts makes the tool bigger or more complicated, of course, that will require more work and ultimately increase the cost.
Using Hot Runner or Cold Runner in Injection system will also affect the price of a mold. Obviously we all know that Hot Runner is different from Cold Runner, and the cost is also different.
Another factor that we also need to pay attention to is the surface finish. If the surface finish is not critical then a machined finish may be acceptable — this does not require secondary finishing thus reducing the time and cost to produce the tool. Hand polishing takes time and effort and has to be built into the cost of the tool.
The article comes from China injection mold manufacturer - Mold Best Assurance Company Limited, website is www.mbamoldanddesign.com
