Algram Group Limited, the wholly owned subsidiary of Olympus Optical Company in Japan has secured new business within the prestige UK aerospace/defence sector.

The company has secured long term contracts to supply various injection moulded components, which has provided us with the opportunity to buy new equipment (Arburg 200T press with robot, a Krauss Maffei 50T press and a Mazak 5 Axis lathe), which has been a significant investment and part of Algram’s future business plan.

The new business involved Algram working together with its customer, during the development stages to come up with a robust design using their in-house design team offering technical support to ensure the components will be manufactured using the injection moulding process in a high performance engineering polymer and then finished machined.

The main design criteria, was to achieve a robust manufacturing solution, to ensure the customer product specification was met in all aspects of quality, cost and delivery.

The tooling was manufactured at one of our established tool makers in China inconjuction with Algram’s tool design specification and involved Algram’s Engineering Manager being present at the completion of the tools and T1 mould trials.

Components produced in China were used for the initial build programmes, following full first article inspection report submission, which included the qualification / test stages.

Once the initial qualification / demonstration components have been delivered, follow-up production quantities will be required out to 2017.

This news business has highlighted the partnership between Algram and its customer in ensuring the development, design stages and initial pre-production components was a success and the future production orders will help in securing Algram’s long term business within the very competitive technical plastics industry sector over the coming years.