Expanding Quietly, Growing Stronger
At API, we are committed to steady growth in order to better serve our customers. While we’ve kept things under wraps, we are excited to announce that we have expanded our facility by adding two new buildings. This addition brings our total under-roof space to 97,000 square feet, enhancing our capacity, efficiency, and overall production capabilities.
Alongside the extra space, we have also invested in a new Ferry - RS4-4600 4 Arm Rotational Molding Machine. This advanced machine allows us to manufacture larger and more complex plastic products with precision and reliability. Additionally, the expansion includes increased shipping and warehousing space, which improves our ability to store more inventory and streamline logistics for faster deliveries.
This growth reflects our ongoing commitment to innovation and quality. We look forward to the opportunities it brings and truly appreciate the continued support of our customers and partners. Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to evolve!
The Cost Factors in Plastic Injection Molding: Understanding the Investment
Like any other manufacturing process, plastic injection molding requires a substantial upfront investment to cover the costs of mold creation, materials, and initial production runs. This investment can be daunting, especially when first starting out with an untested product. However, with expert mold creation, carefully selected materials, and experienced design guidance, the investment will pay for itself and then some.
The Costs of Mold Creation
The actual molds themselves are one of the greatest costs when starting a new plastic injection molding project. To achieve repeatable precision, molds must be created from quality metal alloys that will retain their tolerances throughout production. This requires advanced machining capabilities and experienced operators. Several factors will influence the overall costs of mold tooling, including:
- Design Complexity: Designs with tight tolerances, complex undercuts, and fine surface details will require molds with greater durability, and a higher price tag, to retain repeatable precision across all production volume requirements.
- Mold Cavities: Molds with multiple cavities will require more extensive tooling than single cavity molds; however, the higher initial cost is quickly offset by higher production efficiencies.
- Expected Production Volume: Low-volume production requirements, such as limited edition products or prototyping, may be able to get away with a lower-quality and less pricey aluminum mold. High-volume production, on the other hand, requires higher-strength steel molds to ensure long-term accuracy.
Injection Molding Material Considerations
After mold costs, materials are the next biggest investment and play a pivotal role in overall production costs. The key is to use the most cost-effective resins that have the desired characteristics, which can be a complex choice with a wide range of options depending on the final product’s requirements. Due to the complex and ever-evolving nature of material sciences, it's best to speak with plastic experts to determine optimal materials for your project.
Production Requirements
In the simplest of terms, the higher the production volume, the quicker the return on investment. This also allows you to spread the costs across higher volumes of products, keeping your prices within customer affordability without sacrificing your profit margins.
API: We Are The Plastic Experts
With almost 50 years of plastic injection experience, API is committed to helping streamline manufacturing with cost-effective plastic injection molding solutions. Contact us today to learn more and request your quote to get started.
How Transformer Pads Impact Electrical Grid Reliability and Safety
API was founded to provide safe and reliable electric utility products designed by a lineman, for linemen. After nearly 50 years, we have learned a thing or two about what it takes to create high-quality solutions that will withstand the elements and protect linemen. While every carefully designed utility product helps ensure safe and reliable electrical services, transformer pads play a crucial role in maintaining electrical grid reliability and safety.
Transformer Pads Role in Reliability
When designed with linemen in mind and manufactured from high-quality materials, transformer pads are pivotal to overall grid reliability, especially with the backlog of transformers currently plaguing the electric industry.
Stability and Protection: Our transformer pads are specially designed with advanced features that ensure inground stability, providing a stable foundation for the transformer and preventing it from tipping over or shifting, which can lead to damage and power outages.
Weather Resistance: Constructed from UV-resistant durable prime melt compounded polyethylene, our electric utility products protect valuable and sensitive equipment from harsh weather conditions like rain, snow, and direct sun exposure, ensuring its longevity and optimal performance.
Accessibility: The elevated position of the transformer on the pad allows for easier maintenance and inspection while also providing accessibility while waiting for backlogged equipment, reducing downtime and minimizing the risk of failures.
Electric Utility Products Ensure Continued Safety
From high-visibility utility markers to stabilizing transformer pads, electric utility products are designed to enhance overall electrical safety. Transformer pads, in particular, provide several safety features, including:
Physical Barrier: The pad, which is equipped with tamper-resistant fixtures, is a physical barrier between the valuable but dangerous equipment and unauthorized access, protecting the high-voltage equipment from theft or damage while reducing the risk of injury or death from accidental contact.
Grounding: Transformer pads are often grounded to the earth, providing a safe path for electrical current in case of a fault and minimizing the risk of electric shock. At API, our electric utility products are constructed from non-conductive material, further reducing the risks.
Clearance: Just as the elevated position provides easier access for maintenance and installation, it also ensures adequate clearance from surrounding objects, reducing the risk of electrical arcing and fire.
Ensure Long-Term Reliability and Safety with API
At API, we take the safety of linemen very seriously and have developed innovative electric utility products that enhance reliability while ensuring long-term safety. Contact API to learn more about our custom Transformer Pads or request your quote today!
Custom Rotational Molding vs. Injection Molding: Choosing the Right Process for Your Project
The greatest innovators with the most revolutionary ideas often lack design and engineering expertise, leaving them navigating the complex world of plastic manufacturing with little to no background on advanced techniques or the processes available to them. We’re often approached by customers with great concepts who trust us to produce the best product at the right price. To ensure absolute customer satisfaction, we work closely with them to develop cost-effective solutions to their plastic manufacturing needs, guiding them to the right molding process for their project.
Custom Rotational Molding vs. Injection Molding
While we touched on the pros and cons of each plastic manufacturing process in the past, deciding which is the best process for different projects requires a deeper understanding of the technologies involved. Both custom rotational molding and injection molding use advanced technologies to create plastic components and products, but in two very different ways. Rotational molding, for example, uses centrifugal forces to fill custom molds with specialized resins. Injection molding, on the other hand, fills molds by forcing the melted resin through small channels into specially designed cavity molds.
Factors that Influence the Molding Process
Both rotational and injection molding produce quality plastic products; but which process is the best for your project will depend on the following factors:
Component Size
Size plays a major role in determining which plastic manufacturing process is right for you. Rotational molding is ideal for larger products that require hollow or double-wall construction. Injection molding, however, works best for small to medium-sized components.
Production Volume
Required production volume plays just as much of a role in determining process as size does. When high-volume production is required, injection molding is the optimal choice for its ability to mass produce components in multi-cavity molds. Rotational molding, however, is a slower process best suited for lower volume production.
Design Complexity
Rotational molding, while perfect for simple products that require uniform wall thickness, is limited in its ability to create complex components or components with intricate surface details. In these cases, custom injection molding is the ideal solution.
Cost Considerations
When it comes to cost considerations, it becomes a balance between initial investment and long-term cost savings. Custom rotational molding, for example, has a lower initial investment but limited production capacity. Injection molding may have a higher initial cost, but it provides greater value over time. Because of this, it’s not unheard of for OEMs to invest in rotational molding to start the development process and transition to injection molding once the design is streamlined and product demand increases.
Let API Take the Guesswork Out of Your Plastic Manufacturing
API has extensive experience in custom rotational molding and injection molding technologies. Our team of expert design engineers will work with you to develop the most cost-effective solution for your plastic molding requirements. Contact us to learn more or request your quote to get started today!
BRING IT HOME!
It’s time to bring your manufacturing back to the USA. This is commonly known as “reshoring” and the trend is growing and growing fast. Expect to see significant tariffs on imports from the new administration. Besides avoiding the tariffs that will be imposed, there are numerous advantages to manufacturing in the United States. These include the following:
- A more reliable supply chain with shorter lead times. Disruptions to the supply chain cost time, money, and the potential loss of customers. Time spent “on the water” can be lengthy and unpredictable.
- Intellectual property protection. We have firsthand experience of a patented product that was copied overseas. There are many more safeguards when dealing with U.S. Companies.
- Job creation. Reshoring stimulates economic growth by providing new jobs.
- Quality control. Higher manufacturing standards improve the quality of the products you receive.
- Consumers prefer buying from U.S. Companies. Give the consumer what the consumer wants.
- The federal government and large companies are encouraging purchases through the Buy American Act. This will certainly affect the way companies think about their purchases.
Finally, it’s just the right thing to do. Supporting local, state, and national businesses just makes sense. Let’s bring it home!
Beyond Commodity
Remember that there's a difference between something that's just good enough and something that's built to last.
In the world of utility products, they are often seen as mere commodities—interchangeable, generic, and easily replaceable. But at API, we see things differently. To us, these products represent a crucial component of a reliable and lasting infrastructure, and we take pride in crafting them to be more than just another item on a list.
What sets our products apart is our commitment to customization, durability, and quality. We don't just offer standard products; we work closely with our customers to create products that meet their specific needs. Each product is uniquely tailored to its intended use.
The confidence we have in our products comes from years of testing and a dedication to using the best materials and manufacturing processes available. When we hear stories about products breaking down in the field, we can say with certainty that it's not one of ours. Our products are engineered to stand the test of time, providing reliable service year after year.
Rotational Molding vs Injection Molding
We are often asked by prospective customers which plastic manufacturing process is best suited for their products. Many times, the discussions are with entrepreneurs who have a great idea but don’t know how to see it to fruition. There are several factors to consider when determining the right process for your product. These include size, volume, complexity, and costs. Let’s highlight some of the pros and cons for rotational molding and injection molding.
Rotational Molding Pros
Ideal for large hollow and double-walled parts
Uniform wall thickness
Lower tooling and start-up costs
Rotational Molding Cons
Slow production cycles
Lower production
Less precision and detail compared to injection molding
Injection Molding Pros
Ideal for mass production of small to medium sized parts
Suitable for parts requiring tight tolerances and surface detail
Fast production cycles
Injection Molding Cons
High initial tooling costs
Expensive for low volume production
We have seen examples where customers focused on lower start-up costs choose to rotomold their product to prove the concept and to assess sales. Once proven, injection molds were purchased to lower the pricing for the product due to higher volumes and much faster processing.
API offers rotational and injection molding from our facility in Gainesville, Texas. Let us support you on your next project.
The Revolutionary MOD 20 Pedestal
API has been producing above grade secondary electrical pedestals in Gainesville, Texas for 27 years. We have built a reputation on the durability of our enclosures and our permanent, molded-in warning labels and logos. Our goal is to produce the safest pedestals for your neighborhoods and our latest offering continues that tradition. Using feedback from lineman and engineers at various utilities, we sought out to solve the problems they are currently presented with. We are excited to introduce the MOD20. API’s MOD20 pedestal is a modular unit that can be used as an above grade enclosure or below grade vault by simply changing the lid. Although this is not a revolutionary concept, we have combined the modular function with our superior durability to produce a pedestal that will be a replacement for comparable failed units as well as a great foundation for new projects. Like all our other pedestals, the MOD20 is available with permanent, molded-in warning labels and logos, temporary service doors, pre-mounted connectors, and a variety of color options. Visit our website at https://api-plastics.com/find-your-rep/ to find your area representative or email amberhill@api-plastics.com for more information.
Plastics News, Best Places to Work 2023
API was recently awarded the 4th place award for Plastics News Best Places to Work 2023. Plastics manufacturers from all over North America, including extruders, injection molders, rotational molders, and blow molders, participate in the employee survey. API is one of only 2 rotational molders selected. The survey is operated by an independent organization that selects the finalists based on specific criteria and the responses of our employees.
Advanced Pedestals prides itself on being a family-oriented, second-chance, and employee-first company. Our CEO Mitchell Shauf strongly believes that "people don't care how much you know until they know how much you care". We will continue to build on our culture by providing the tools, training, resources, and environment that gives our employees a feeling of pride and belonging. With the help and hard work of our dedicated team, we will continue to strive for excellence and look forward to attending The Plastics News 2024 nominations.
API was represented at the awards ceremony in Clearwater Florida by COO Jeremy Williams and HR Director Melissa Derheim.
Our Focus
Many large companies are focused on shareholders and shareholders only. They come before the employees and even the customers. At API, we commit to an “employee first” philosophy. The logic is simple…… An unhappy employee creates an unhappy customer, and unhappy customer creates an unhappy shareholder. Never underestimate the importance of your employees. They are the key to happy customers AND shareholders.