Plastic injection molding involves melting granular plastic pellets into a liquid form and then compressing this liquid into the empty cavity of a mold tool. The plastic will retain the shape of the mold as well as the surface texture of the walls of the cavity. After an optimized injection and cooling phase, the now solidified plastic part is ejected and the molding cycle is repeated.
This molding cycle can take from as little as a few seconds to several minutes depending upon part size, molding resin and part design.