Plastics News - Show Daily - October 17, 2024 - 2

FAKUMA 2024
2 * Plastics News, October 17, 2024
Small machines equal big business for Babyplast
By Jim Johnson
Plastics News Staff
While the big players of injection
molding machinery like to
tout the size and power of their
equipment, Rambaldi + Co. IT is
content with approaching the
market in a different way.
The Molteno, Italy-based company,
instead, wants to cater to
a more niche market, one that is
much smaller, both literally and
fi guratively.
Just the name of Rambaldi's line
of injection molding machines
- Babyplast - provides a clue
about the size of the company's
equipment. Hint: They are not big.
Rambaldi's benchtop machines,
which can weigh around
200 kilograms, or 440 pounds, are
designed to make the smallest of
small plastic parts, often weighing
just a small fraction of a gram.
These precision parts are used
in applications including health
care, electronics and automotive.
Vittorio Terraneo, a company
co-owner, was attracted to the
microinjection molding machine
market when he fi rst saw a tiny
machine about 30 years ago in Barcelona,
Spain. He decided to invest
not only because he liked the business
opportunity but also he liked
to visit Barcelona, he recalled.
Three decades later, Babyplast
injection molding machines continue
to be made in Barcelona before
they are sent to Molteno for
any needed fi nishing work before
being shipped out to buyers.
A typical Babyplast machine
can cost between €25,000 and
€30,000 ($27,225 and $32,670),
depending on the confi guration.
Their small size means multiple
units can be located in one area,
allowing a single employee to
monitor production if needed.
Not only are Babyplast machines
less expensive to buy, but
also they have lower operating
costs compared with their larger
cousins. And molds, because of
their small size, also are less expensive
to purchase. They also allow
for rapid tooling changes, the
company said.
" Our thoughts go in the direction
of having as accessible machines
as possible, " said Martin
Carolan, who is involved with
sales for the company. " Small-size
machines to make a difference. "
Carolan and Terraneo also touted
the fl exibility of Babyplast.
" It's important to have machines
that can be used in different ways, "
Carolan said during an interview
at the Fakuma trade show in Friedrichshafen,
Germany.
" We have our customers with
a number of machines. You have
one person in a reduced space because
the footprint [of the Babyplast
machine] is very small. It's
a meter square. So you can have
one person checking the various
molds, " Carolan said.
" You can even have more BabyVittorio
Terraneo,
left, and Martin
Carolan at
Fakuma 2024 in
Friedrichshafen,
Germany.
Plastics News photo
by Caroline Seidel
BABYPLAST
CHRISTMANN
KUNSTSTOFFTECHNIK
GMBH
B3-3002
plasts making the same part. So if
one cavity has a problem, you're
taking out one small Babyplast
mold, and the other machines
continue producing the part. Instead
of making a big mold with
multicavities, if you have one
problem with one Babyplast
mold, with one cavity; you're
checking a small bin of parts and
not a big container of parts which
are all rejected at the end of the
day, " he said.
Because of the nature of the
Babyplast setup, machine owners
are smart to rely on custom products
with higher price points and
stay away from commodity production.
" If you're making packaging
industry or low-cost parts, there's
not much advantage, " Carolan said.
Babyplast typically sells between
350 and 400 units each
year. " Our machine is a niche in
the market, " he said.
Babyplast
attracts
attention
because the machine allows processors
to enter the injection
molding business with a lower
cost compared with traditional
machines, Carolan said: " People
come to us because of the low investment,
the fl exibility. "
Being a niche player also means
the company has to be receptive
to new suggestions and requests
from those customers. That openness
as helped Babyplast expand
over time.
" We grew with the customers.
Their ideas helped us grow. As a
company, we grow with our customers, "
Carolan said. " We're always
helping our customers grow
and are very fl exible. "
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Plastics News - Show Daily - October 17, 2024

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