The Rodon Blog - A Focus on Plastic Injection Molding and American Manufacturing

Over the past few years, we've written many articles about the state of manufacturing within the United States but thought we'd narrow in on the Philadelphia region since our facility is located about 45 minutes outside of the city. We are proud to be third generation family business located in this region. Manufacturing is a top priority throughout the nation and continues to support over 17 million U.S. jobs. Manufacturers in the Greater Philadelphia area in particular have good reason to be optimistic about the outlook for 2015 and 2016. 

Kreischer Miller, a leading independent accounting, tax, and advisory firm serving the Greater Philadelphia area since 1975, recently announced that its Manufacturing Industry Group has released the results from its first Regional Manufacturing Capability and Outlook Survey.  The survey covered key areas such as economic outlook, workforce turnover, employee training, outsourcing, information security and more.  

In today’s world, the green movement is more important than ever. No matter what the industry, it’s a company’s responsibility to make changes and choices that support the environment.When you’re looking for a plastic injection molding company, there are several things you can check for to be sure you’ll be working with an environmentally responsible business.

Certification

ISO 9001 Certification is a way for companies to keep a close eye on their production processes. Meeting the International Standards for Quality Management ensures the company has been thoroughly audited and is fully in control of its’ procedures so that no part of the production process “slips through the cracks.”

Waste Reduction

Make sure the company you work with is minimizing waste. During the molding process, excess plastic is generated. What does the company you work with do with it? Look for a company that has a system to recycle all excess plastic.

What about boxes? The efforts of cardboard recycling make a huge difference. At Rodon, we conserve 150 tons of cardboard per year, enough to fill 3000 cubic yards of landfill space or 3 football fields about a foot deep!  Using servo robots to incrementally stack parts, we reduce part distortion while tripling or quadrupling the number of parts packed into the same size carton. Rodon's customers are also offered a returnable/reusable packaging program to further reduce cardboard use

When purchasing injection molded parts, it is important to understand some of the common but scary problems and defects that impact product quality.  Being familiar with these imperfections and their causes can help you work with injection molders to insure the highest quality part production is achieved.

Since 1956, The Rodon Group has made billions of American made products in our 125,000 square foot facility, including over 32 billion parts for the K'NEX construction toy system. 

K'NEX is the only construction toy company committed to manufacturing in the United States. K'NEX bricks,rods and connectors are manufactured in Pennsylvania right here at our eco-friendly facility. K'NEX and Rodon are proud to be family owned and operated. While most toys are made overseas, we are committed to manufacturing in the United States

"Community is one of our core values, so as a company, we are proud to invest in American workers who demonstrate unparalleled commitment to innovation and some of the greatest working spirit in the industrial world," said Michael Araten, President and CEO of K'NEX and The Rodon Group.

Our eBook "An Introduction to Plastic Injection Molding" will give you lots answers.  We developed this eBook with designers, engineers and purchasing specialists in mind.  It is written to provide a basic understanding of plastic injection molding presses, processes and costs.  Our goal is to make our customers more knowledgeable about what goes into making a plastic part. You can download your copy here.

There are hundreds of injection molding terms used in the industry.  We have chosen to highlight the most common nomenclature used when discussing injection mold parts, materials and problems.