Information management integration in plastic injection mould making industries using the template approach

Abstract

The major contributions in this research is the development of the Information Management Integration in Plastic Injection Mould-Making Industries (IMIPIMI) framework that uses the template approach to manage the data and information more efficiently for the various stages and processes in the mould projects. Under this framework, every main stages of the mould project whose processes are routine are created as modules. These modules work in essentially the same manner by the use of templates, different types of databases, rules and heuristics as commonly used by local mould-making industries. The implementation of the initial 3D mould design module, the detailed 3D mould design and the mould-testing module further contributes to the core of this research. This complete system integration will make a significant contribution to the mould-making industries as currently there is no system that could properly managed the mould projects, due to the nature of the uniqueness of each mould. Since data are being transmitted automatically between teams, teams can now stay more focused and they can complete their required duties more efficiently. This would definitely reduce the mould project lead-time considerably.