Precise, reliable performance from tools aid plastics makers ?Ms. Jessie Lee, Managing Director, Progressive Components (Asia) Pte Ltd

Unique positioning enhanced by more responsive customer support has allowed the company to expand its market share and product development significantly in the Asian markets. 桵s. Jessie Lee

Beyond price and supply, critical to any plastics manufacturer is the excellent quality of production tools and above-standard services that suppliers can provide. International Plastics News for Asia (IRNA) talked to Jessie Lee, Managing Director of Progressive Components (Asia) Pte Ltd, on the company's Asian operations. IRNA: What are the recent developments in the plastics industry that paved the way for the creation of Progressive Components' new line of tooling products? Lee: Progressive Components is a leading supplier of components for the production tooling industry. Since 1990, Progressive Components has strived to develop innovative new standards to reduce costs, speed up mould building, and reduce mould downtime. The demands placed on today's moulds are a lot different from the tooling of yesteryears. Lowering the long term costs of tooling is critical in the same way that unnecessary mould damage and downtime is intolerable. Precise, reliable performance and predictable maintenance is required from tools that increasingly are allowed little or no lubrication. Progressive Components addresses these needs with the introduction of new components utilizing Friction FreeTM technology - Progressive's exclusive SRTTM Slide Retainers, Needle Bearing Locks and Roller PullersTM. IRNA: How does the new line of tooling products meet the specific needs of your target markets? Lee: The SRTTM Slide Retainers solve the issues of resistance and abrasive wear associated with other slide locking methods. The SRT reduces the wear on the leading edge and shut-off surfaces, with no lubrication maintenance required. It features a roller that engages into a groove within the side action assembly, and an engineered spring that has been proven after millions of cycles tested. Advantages for the moulder include maintenance free operation, reliable slide retention, and simple installation with nominal bore and thread sizes. The Needle Bearing Locks are designed to withstand the most demanding requirements in mould alignment, for consistent, smooth, precise registration between the two halves of the tool. This innovation incorporates precision needle bearing technology - as the locks engage, the bearings provide dramatic lifting power without metal-to-metal wear. Benefits include the maintenance of ultra precise mould alignment with Zero Clearance, even after millions of cycles; bearings that roll versus skid, eliminating friction, galling and damage; engineered to lift thousands of pounds and actually correct misalignment that occurs with the mould and platen. The Roller PullersTM are a simple and effective approach to control parting line sequencing within a mould. It is engineered especially for mid-volume production runs targeted to perform beyond a million cycles. They fit within the company's Friction FreeTM engineering standards with no lubrication required for the long-term function of the product, making it a unique choice for medical moulds or tools with downstream paint operations where part contamination is a concern. Benefits include consistent pull force without frictional wear; spring 詓ight windows' for indicating and adjusting pull force; elimination of breakage associated with latch-type systems. Pulling force can be adjusted up to 2-1/2 times the original setting using the spring sight window. IRNA: Does the company adhere to a set of standards as far as its production process is concerned? Lee: We used an independent testing laboratory to analyze our products' strength and durability. Its findings: the SRT Slide Retainers has an eCompra Zapatillas de running para hombre