Handling of plastic parts without marking

Utescheny AG in Zaisenhausen produces plastic parts for motor-vehicle interiors. For the manufacture of grab handles for Audi cars, the company uses round bellows-type suction pads with 2.5 corrugations made by Schmalz. These suction pads are made of the new material HT1, can withstand temperatures of up to 160° C and, above all, leave no marks on the handled parts. They also adapt themselves excellently to the contours of the parts. Each gripper has eight such suction pads. Two suction pads are used to grip each plastic grab handle, which means that four handles can be removed from the injection-moulding machine in each working cycle.

The grab handles are produced with the aid of the "internal gas pressure" technique. The handles are removed from the machine and placed separately on a set of scales to check their weight. After passing the quality inspection, the handles are placed on a conveyor belt from which they are removed manually and packed for transport to the customer.