You can see several Rotomolded plastic products in your daily life. Almost the majority of the containers and tanks are made using this process. It is a simple process of melting polymer powder and forming a shape with the help of a rotating mold. Once the coating solidifies during cooling, the component will be ready. In this article, let us discuss some of the advantages and disadvantages of the rotational molding processes. 

Advantages of rotational molding processes

Rotational molding processes have various advantages as follows,

No or little tool cost 

You can use any material to form the mold as per your wish. But as there will be no operating pressures, you can use aluminum as the mold material. Aluminum will be cheaper and you need not have any more tools for the process. Hence, the cost of the machinery will be less as a whole. 

Uniform wall thickness

You are creating the component by the settlement of the polymer by the constant rotation of the mold along two axes. Since the mold will be constantly rotating, the polymer resin will get evenly coated over the walls of the mold. So, there will not be any discontinuities or seams in the coating. It will also ensure that the wall thickness of the coating is uniform throughout the component. 

Easy double-wall construction

Using rotational molding processes, you can produce double-walled components without any extra tooling or pressure applications. Some example components will be complex-shaped double-wall containers. 

Durable to the core

The process of rotational molding creates a component that is made as a single piece. There will not be any combining processes of two or more components with the help of joining processes like welding or bolting. So, the component will be highly durable without any risks of the separation of two parts. 

Strong components

The finished products of rotational molding will be strong enough to withstand for longer periods. As there is no external pressure during the production process, your final component will have high endurance without any deterioration in shape. Every corner of your finished component will be thicker. So, you do not need to face the threat of damages in these areas due to stress concentration. 

Finishing quality

The rotomold products will have a high-quality finish with beautiful texture, and will accurately make the logos or letterings visible on the surface. The use of soft metal tooling is responsible for this. 

Limitations of rotomolding processes

Although there are many benefits to the rotational molding processes, it is advisable to know some of the limitations of them. Let us discuss some of these limitations of rotomolding processes,

Lack of repeatability

One disadvantage with the rotomolding processes is that you cannot repeat the production processes using the same soft-tooled rotomolding machine for more than 3000 cycles of operation. You would have to replace it after every 3000 cycles. 

More labor

You would need more labor to do the processes as there are no automation developed for them at the moment.