| Complex, 3-dimensional Parts? |
YES - a "Sweet Spot" for RIM | YES | LIMITED | YES | VERY LIMITED |
| Self-Supporting, Structural Parts? | YES - polyurethane structural foam is ideal for this application | LIMITED - for small parts only | NO - requires structrual frame | YES | NO - requires structural frame |
| Thin & Thick Wall Sections in same part | YES - easily mold thin and thick part geometries without sink marks or warp using polyurethane structural foam. | NO - very limited wall thickness variation | NO - very limited wall thickness variation | YES - but sink marks are common | NO - must weld various parts thickness together |
| Mold Very Large Parts? | YES- a RIM "Sweet Spot" | YES - but extremely high tooling and equipment expense | YES for simple geometries | YES, but very expensive | YES - but requires multi-step assembly |
| Easily Mold Deep Draw Parts with Ribs? | YES | LIMITED | LIMITED - thinning of material due to stretching | YES | NO |
| Tooling Costs & Materials | low tooling investment using primarily aluminum but also lower cost materials | high to very high investment - using mostly steel | moderate to expensive - using a variety of materials | moderate to expensive | low to very expensive - limited to steel due to pressures if forming is required (stamping) |
| Prototype Tool to be Production Tool | YES - low cost tooling can be used for prototype and production | LIMITED - can add cavities under certain circumstances | LIMITED - can add cavities under certain circumstances | LIMITED | LIMITED |
| Material Versatility? Foam/ Solid? | Highly Versatile range of foam and solid materials resulting in broad range of part characteristics. Can mold foam or solid materials with same equipment | VERY LIMITED - requires separate tooling and equipment for foam and solid | NO | NO | NO |
| Easily Encapsulate Components and Attachment Points? | YES - metal hardware, magnets, antennas, batteries, electronics, PCB's can be encapsulated right into the molded part. | LIMITED - to hardware only | NO | NO | NO |
| Annual Production Rates? | Low to medium high | Medium high to extremely high | Low to medium | low to high | low to medium |
| In Essence: | Polyurethane structural foam makes RIM a very versatile process for parts the size of your phone to an MRI machine in medium production volumes. The bigger and more complex, the better. THINK: what can be molded in place instead of being assembled? Including the supporting frame. |
great for small parts and high volume prodction. | for simple skins without strucutral function | well suited for heavy duty machinery | ... if you just need a box ... |
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RIM Process Comparison  |
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