The technical center will be located at Big 3 Precision's Millville, NJ, facility. In addition to the moldmaking capabilities, the partnership will provide a GMP certified, climate-controlled lab with two Uniloy injection blowmolding machines.

One of the Uniloy machines is dedicated to monolayer applications utilizing the UIB 199-3 Hybrid injection blowmolding machine. To facilitate this development work, and in addition to the machine, the consortium will have available a 20-cavity test mold with the latest Mold-Masters Axiom hot runner technology for a 50/60 cc tablet bottle.

This machine system will be available for customer demonstrations along with training programs, including, but not necessarily limited to, the set-up, operation, maintenance and processing of systems as well as each of the individual components; machine, mold and hot runners.

For co-injection blow molding development, there will be a smaller Uniloy injection blow molding machine outfitted withco-injection hot runner technologies from Mold-Masters & Kortec including the versatile E-Multi auxiliary injection unit from Mold-Masters.

Currently, this machine is set up for a series of co-injection developments targeted for the medical/pharma industry. The focus is currently dedicated to barrier applications using COC/Nylon/COC and PC/Nylon/PC material combinations. Development work has proceeded quickly producing the first commercially available system from Uniloy using Mold-Master's hot runner technologies & Big 3 Precision Mold technologies. 

Additionally, this consortium will focus on the collaborative development of high-cavitation tooling featuring the technologies and products of DME, Mold-Masters (Axiom hot runner, TempMaster controller technology) and Big 3 by virtue of the capability of the technical center to facilitate resin testing, process development and tooling validation/optimization for its customers.

"This capability for process optimization of new injection blow molds will provide customers with plug & play advantages," the company stated. "Essentially, customers can be assured that, when the tools arrive, that they are receiving a process that is already optimized and transferable to their factory floor, giving them higher productivity and lower scrap."

Milacron will also be offering a turn-key systems approach to the injection blowmolding market consisting of a Uniloy Machine, Big 3 Precision Molds, Mold-Masters Axiom hot runner and TempMaster controls integrated into the machine. Customers will be able to source from one company the machine, hot runner, die set, production mold and auxiliary equipment fully integrated and tested prior to shipment to the plant.  Uniloy and Big 3 will also provide in-plant assistance during the initial installation of the mold and tools.

According to Eric Hallstrom, sales manager of new business development, "We are employing the total systems approach that has been so successful for Uniloy's intermittent extrusion, reciprocating screw technologies."

 "In that line of our business, we have always supplied the entire system by coordinating the container design, the mold engineering, manufacturing and the necessary specifications, engineering and assembly of the machine," he said. Essentially, we take over all of the development and engineering work on the system and concentrate of delivering to our customers a fully integrated, fully qualified system for the production of the ultimate container or product--our customers have really come to value that approach to their needs."