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The Evolution of Generative Design Software

CAD software has, for more than 50 years, been a boon to industrial designers, product engineers and the manufacturers who turn design ideas into finished objects. During this time, production techniques have evolved to include metal 3D printing, digital object mapping and high-speed, multi-axis CNC machining centers while CAD programs have remained relatively unchanged. Now […]

How Gate Design Affects Your Plastic Parts

The runner and gate system used in plastic injection molding is responsible for directing molten plastic from the nozzle of the molding machine into the cavity of the tool. The gate architecture and its location affects cycle times, tooling costs, lead times, the location of witness marks and many other potential defects that are commonplace […]

How To Save Money On Your Next CNC Project

There are many ways to improve your design drawings to make them faster, easier and cheaper to CNC machine while maintaining quality. One way is by understanding and optimizing your specifications for corner radii. Sometimes a few minor changes to your corner radii can make a big difference in price and delivery times. Here is […]

What Tolerances Can You Expect When Manufacturing Prototypes And Low-Volume Production?

When you supply your 2D and 3D drawings for a quotation on a new project, you must specify the dimensions for critical areas on your parts, as well as the tolerance that you require. Very tight tolerances are neither practical nor desirable in most instances, so let’s look at the tolerances that we specify at Star Rapid for most projects, why we do that and what it means for your parts.

How To Prepare Your CAD Drawings For Manufacturing

All manufacturers need design drawings of one kind or another to make a finished part from metal or plastic, and that usually means a computer-generated CAD file. But many product developers may not know how those files are used on the shop floor. Here is what you need to know from a manufacturer’s point of […]

How To Control Weld Lines In Plastic Injected Molded Parts

Plastic injection moulding is the industry’s most common way to manufacture parts. This production method is particularly popular when manufacturing in large quantities. Weld lines are a common imperfection to be found in most plastic injected molded parts. They are the result of fundamental physical effects taking place inside of the mold tool cavity. Although they […]

Goal-Directed Design Software Will Change Digital Manufacturing

There is a new class of design software based on problem solving that will produce mechanical design solutions more sophisticated than any that a single designer could possibly do, and it’s coming soon. How will this change the ways things are made and how will it benefit you? What Is CAD Software And How Does […]