EVCO Plastics Embraces Cutting‑Edge Technologies to Elevate Injection Molding Excellence

Operating nine plants across the U.S., Mexico and China, EVCO Plastics employs more than 1,400 skilled workers and 183 injection machines ranging from 100‑to‑3,500 tons. The company serves diverse markets—medical cleanroom molding, thin‑wall packaging, automotive, agricultural equipment and household appliances—yet remains committed to innovation.

EVCO’s latest breakthrough is the iMFLUX low‑pressure molding system, introduced by a new Procter & Gamble subsidiary. iMFLUX promises shorter cycle times, lower melt temperatures and reduced clamp‑force, while enhancing part quality and consistency. Since last month, the company has installed iMFLUX controls on five or six high‑performance machines, tackling its toughest jobs in packaging and plumbing. The first deployment is a 400‑ton Toyo press producing a Noryl pressure vessel, where the goal is to strengthen weld lines. Following that, Husky packaging lines with 64‑cavity stack molds will benefit from even a one‑second cycle reduction, a comment President Dale Evans notes as a welcome efficiency gain.

Parallel to molding, EVCO is expanding its 3D printing capabilities. The firm prints metal‑powder mold inserts for rapid prototyping and is building a “printer farm” for short‑run production of up to 600 parts. The farm is powered by 12 Markforged machines that combine fused‑filament fabrication (FFF) with the company’s proprietary continuous filament fabrication (CFF) technique, which layers molten polymer with continuous glass, carbon or other fiber reinforcements. Collaborative robots from Universal Robots (UR) handle unloading and other manual tasks, freeing labor for higher‑value work.

UR cobots also support assembly, insert loading and part boxing. Automation Engineer Jimmy Lee highlights that these vision‑assisted robots mitigate labor shortages and enable employees to focus on more complex functions.

EVCO is launching its inaugural painting line, slated to begin production once UV‑cured sample parts receive customer approval. The line will initially handle electrical housings, followed by lawn/garden and heavy‑equipment components.

To embed Industry 4.0 principles, the company is enhancing process monitoring across its injection machines. Automation Manager Bernie Degenhardt describes this as the first step toward a unified system that integrates production data, process analytics and automated quality control, storing extensive historical records. This initiative began in the medical molding division, where meticulous documentation is essential.

All eight North American plants already use the Syscon‑PlantStar system for production oversight. Evans notes that real‑time scheduling reveals machine cycle times in Georgia or Mexico, enabling precise coordination of personnel, materials and equipment. PlantStar also monitors plant‑wide sensors—central chillers, air compressors, power usage—and now extends to injection machines, recording ten critical variables (temperatures, speeds, pressures, water flow, part weight, etc.) shot‑by‑shot. The system can trigger alerts, automatically segregate nonconforming parts via robots, and track auxiliary equipment such as dryer temperatures and mold‑temperature controls.