Superlative Duo Engel Constructs the Largest Injection Molding Machine in the World

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The injection molding giant Duo 12000 US expands Engel's capabilities for the industrial production of large injection-molded parts. It concerns previously unattainable dimensions...

The world's largest injection molding machine, the Duo 12000 US from Engel, is a two-platen system that can reduce the component costs of large-area components, according to the Austrian machine manufacturer. At the same time, manufacturers can implement innovative product concepts and reduce assembly costs. According to Engel, this offers more design freedom and additional opportunities to replace traditional materials such as metal or concrete with plastic. This creates the technological prerequisites for competitive and more sustainable product systems in terms of mobility, infrastructure and, of course, industry.

Injection Molding Components With a Surface Area of 2.5 Square Meters

With an incredible clamping force of 110,000 kilonewtons (approx. 12,400 US tons), the Duo 12000 US was specially developed for components with projected surfaces of over 2.5 square meters (approx. 27 ft²) and was recently put into operation at the customer's premises. It therefore enables the economical production of such large components in a single integrated production process. Functional integration, a reduced number of components and lower assembly costs create new degrees of freedom in construction, lightweight construction and product design. Not to forget: New products require new production concepts. Injection molding machines of this size go a long way towards achieving this. The injection molding giant also reduces the amount of material used, simplifies production logistics and thus saves time and costs, as Engel explains further. It also improves the carbon footprint over the entire product life cycle. Last but not least, Engel supports users in opening up new dimensions of economical production and making innovative, sustainable products of this size a reality.

The Duo 12000 US Shows Compact Gigantism

In order to achieve large shot weights of this dimension for large-area components, the system is equipped with two injection units working in parallel, as we are told. With screw diameters of up to 210 millimetres (approx. 8.3 in), a maximum shot volume of 65,000 cubic centimetres (approx. 4,000 in³) can be achieved, guaranteeing homogeneous filling of even large projected surfaces. Incidentally, the design with eight tie bars was identified as the most practical concept together with the user of the plastics processing giant. However, machines of this size are also possible with four tie bars, as Engel points out.

However, the dimensions of the system illustrate the technical challenge: with a length of around 24 meters (approx. 79 ft) and a height of around 8.4 meters (approx. 28 ft), it is one of the largest industrial production systems in the injection moulding sector worldwide. The total weight is 551 tons (approx. 607 short tons) and the maximum mould weight is 170 tons (approx. 187 short tons). A total of around 30 kilometers (approx. 19 mi) of cable were laid in the machine. The total installed output is around 2.4 megawatts. The total current is 2,900 amperes. Despite these dimensions, the machine remains relatively compact thanks to the modular design of the Duo series. Engel lets it be known that such large machines can hardly be realized without underlying user requirements. And tests can be carried out in the large machine technology center.