Dashboard keeps tabs on machine, material, and mold

A Process Stability Dashboard is designed to manage quality for all molds that run in a plant whether they have in-cavity sensors or not. The Dashboard, supplied by RJG Inc. (Traverse City, MI), is to help molders deal with processes that are not set up properly as documented or get changed after setup.

Admitting that many think that as a company it’s all about cavity pressure, RJG says this product recognizes that it is not practical to put cavity pressure into every mold all at once. It believes the next best thing is to monitor the machine and material and make corrections in a systematic way.

RJG says that since a molder can’t find or manage these variables by walking around the plant, an overview is provided on its eDART network, showing each machine’s status and how much it has deviated from the process it should be running. Once a proper process template is recorded, the eDART sends a record of any deviations in machine speeds and pressures from that template to the overview. A quick scan down the overview screen lets molders quickly pinpoint any processes that aren’t running as they should.

The eDART also observes changes in material viscosity, comparing them with the saved parameter in the template. RJG says this feature allows a molder to re-set the process for a different material before part quality suffers.

RJG stresses that while the display may look like a production-monitoring system, it is not. RJG says production monitoring is a quantitative record of parts made, scrapped etc., while its approach is a qualitative one that attempts to answer the question, “Is this the right process?” —[email protected]