Axiom Group buys injection molding compounder to support development of EV components

Photo Credit: Axiom Group

Aurora, Ont.-based plastic parts molder Axiom Group has bought a dual-screw, 1,300-ton injection molding compounder from German machinery maker Krauss Maffei in order to boost its capabilities to develop and test materials for complete electric vehicle (EV) components.

“Engineering chassis components to the powertrain in the EV market will require new methods and solutions, and Axiom wants to be at the forefront of these technologies,” Axiom’s president and CEO Perry Rizzo said in a news release. “Our commitment to advanced compounding with the injection moulding compounder will play a significant role in the integration of part design, advanced material strength enhancements and weight reduction.”

Axiom officials say the company is currently working with various OEMs and vehicle platform developers in advanced compound integration. “The new IMC machine supports this work, and the growth of new markets, by combining the benefits of both continuous extrusion and discontinuous injection molding, yielding parts with better values, increased efficiency and substantially decreased cost of raw materials by reducing the amount of additives needed,” the company said. “It also enables the combination of different elements like graphene, carbon fibres and resins to create new compounds that are stronger than steel but also lightweight, cost-effective and easy to source.”

Joe Daoud, laboratory coordinator at University of Toronto’s Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering, will be consulting on the set-up and initial trials of the injection molding compounder. Carbon fibre is one of the first materials Axiom plans to trial, the company said, with parts expected to be tested by the end of 2021.

Founded in 1987, Axiom has manufacturing and engineering centres located in Canada, Mexico, and Italy.