HandbookofMetal InjectionMolding
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DonaldF.Heaney
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3.4DifferentMIMpowderfabricationtechniques
4Powder-binderformulationandcompoundmanufacture inmetalinjectionmolding(MIM)57
R.K.Enneti,V.P.Onbattuvelli,O.Gulsoy,K.H.Kate,S.V.Atre
4.1Introduction:Theroleofbinders
4.2Binderchemistryandconstituents
4.3Binderandpowderpropertiesandtheireffectsonfeedstock
D.F.Heaney,C.D.Greene
7Debindingandsinteringofmetalinjectionmolding(MIM)
S.Banerjee,C.J.Joens
7.1Introduction
11Modelingandsimulationofmetalinjectionmolding(MIM)219
T.G.Kang,S.Ahn,S.H.Chung,S.T.Chung,Y.S.Kwon,S.J.Park, R.M.German
12Commondefectsinmetalinjectionmolding(MIM)253
13Qualificationofmetalinjectionmolding(MIM)271
D.F.Heaney
14Controlofcarboncontentinmetalinjectionmolding281 GemmaHerranz
PartFourMetalinjectionmoldingofspecificmaterials407
19Metalinjectionmolding(MIM)oftitaniumandtitaniumalloys431
20Metalinjectionmolding(MIM)ofthermalmanagementmaterialsin microelectronics461 J.L.Johnson
21Metalinjectionmolding(MIM)ofsoftmagneticmaterials499 H.Miura
22Metalinjectionmolding(MIM)ofhigh-speedtoolsteels525 N.S.Myers,D.F.Heaney
23Metalinjectionmolding(MIM)ofheavyalloys,refractory metals,andhardmetals535 J.L.Johnson,D.F.Heaney,N.S.Myers
23.1Introduction
23.6Hardmetals
24Metalinjectionmolding(MIM)ofnickel-basesuperalloys575 K.Horke,A.Meyer,R.F.Singer
24.1Introduction
25Metalinjectionmolding(MIM)ofpreciousmetals609 J.T.Strauss
25.1IntroductionpreciousmetalMIM:Preciousmetalsandpowder
Contributors
S.Ahn PusanNationalUniversity,Busan,SouthKorea
S.V.Atre UniversityofLouisville,Louisville,KY,UnitedStates
S.Banerjee DSHTechnologiesLLC,CedarGrove,NJ;HoloInc.,Oakland,CA, UnitedStates
C.Binet AdvancedPowderProducts,Inc.,Philipsburg,PA,UnitedStates
S.H.Chung HyundaiSteelCo.,Incheon,SouthKorea
S.T.Chung CetaTechInc.,Sacheon,SouthKorea
T.Ebel Helmholtz-ZentrumGeesthacht,Geesthacht,Germany
R.K.Enneti GlobalTungstenandPowders,Towanda,PA,UnitedStates
R.M.German SanDiegoStateUniversity,SanDiego,CA,UnitedStates
C.D.Greene TreemenIndustries,Inc.,Boardman,OH,UnitedStates
O.Gulsoy MarmaraUniversity,Istanbul,Turkey
D.F.Heaney AdvancedPowderProducts,Inc.,Philipsburg,PA,UnitedStates
GemmaHerranz UniversityofCastillaLaMancha,INEI-ETSII,CiudadReal,Spain
J.Hidalgo DelftUniversityofTechnology,Delft,TheNetherlands
K.Horke JointInstituteofAdvancedMaterialsandProcesses,Friedrich-Alexander Universit€ atErlangen-N€ urnberg,Germany
K.S.Hwang NationalTaiwanUniversity,Taipei,Taiwan,ROC
C.J.Joens ElnikSystemsLLC,CedarGrove,NJ,UnitedStates
J.L.Johnson ElmetTechnologiesLLC,Lewiston,ME,UnitedStates
T.G.Kang KoreaAerospaceUniversity,Goyang,SouthKorea
K.H.Kate UniversityofLouisville,Louisville,KY,UnitedStates
Y.S.Kwon CetaTechInc.,Sacheon,SouthKorea
H.Lobo DatapointLabs,Ithaca,NY,UnitedStates
M.Martens FormatecCeramics,DVGoirle,TheNetherlands
A.Meyer JointInstituteofAdvancedMaterialsandProcesses,Friedrich-Alexander Universit€ atErlangen-Nurnberg,Germany
H.Miura KyushuUniversity,Fukuoka,Japan
N.S.Myers Kennametal,Inc.,Pittsburgh,PA,UnitedStates
K.Nishiyabu KindaiUniversity,Higashiosaka,Japan
V.P.Onbattuvelli IntelCorporation,SantaClara,CA,UnitedStates
S.J.Park POSTECH,Pohang,SouthKorea
V.Piotter KarlsruheInstituteofTechnology(KIT),Karlsruhe,Germany
G.Schlieper GammatecEngineeringGmbH,Radevormwald,Germany
R.F.Singer NeueMaterialienFurthGmbH,Germany
J.T.Strauss HJECompany,Inc.,Queensbury,NY,UnitedStates
P.Suri HeraeusMaterialsTechnologyLLC,Singapore,Singapore
J.M.Torralba InstituteIMDEAMaterials,UniversidadCarlosIIIdeMadrid, Madrid,Spain
P.Vervoort EisenmannThermalSolutions,Bovenden,Germany
1.3Industrystructure
TheMIMindustrystructureandinteractionsshowsgenerallythatthefirmsfallintoa fewkeyfocalpoints.Everythingrevolvesaroundthecustomfabricators,firmsthat formcomponentstosatisfythespecificationsoftheusercommunity—theusers aregenerallywell-knownfirmssuchasinfirearms(Glock,Colt,Remington),computers(HewlettPackard,Dell,Apple,Seagate),cellulartelephones(Motorola, Samsung,Apple),handtools(Sears,Leatherman,Snap-onTools),industrialcomponents(Swagelok,Pall,LG),andautomotive(Mercedes-Benz,Borg-Warner,Honda, BMW,Toyota,Chrysler).TheleadingconferencefocusedonMIMstartedin1990 andcontinuestoday,whereparticipantsgathertoshareinformationontechnology advances.Attheseconferencestheactorsintheindustrygenerallycomefromone ofthefollowingsectors:
l ingredientsuppliers—polymers,powders,andingredientsforeitherselfmixingorcommercialfeedstockproduction;globallythereareapproximately40firmsthatprovidemostofthe MIMpowders,althoughabout400firmssupplymetalpowdersofvariouschemistries,particlesizes,particleshapes,andpurities;forexample,intitaniumaboutfourcompaniesoutof 40suppliersmakethepowdersusedforMIM;
l feedstockproductionfirms—purchaserawingredientsandformulatemixturesforsalesto moldingfirms;globallythereareusuallyabout12feedstocksuppliers;
l moldingfirms—bothcustomandcaptivemoldersthattotalnearly300MIMoperations; aboutone-thirdarecaptiveandmakepartsforthemselves,butmanyofthecaptivefirms alsoperformcustomfabrication;83%ofallpartsproductioniscategorizedascustom manufacturing;
l thermalprocessingfirms—ownsinteringfurnacesanddebindingequipmentthatprovidetoll services;currentlyonlyahalf-dozenfirmsareactiveinthisareaandmostareassociatedwith furnacesfabricators;afewfirmsprovidetollhotisostaticpressingtoforce100%density whenrequiredinmedicaloraerospacefields;
l designers—largelysystemsdesignfirmsassociatedwithlargemultinationalfirmsthatintersectwiththeMIMindustry;afewindependentdesignersareavailabletohandleadhoc projects;
l equipmentsuppliers—firmsthatdesignandfabricatecustomfurnaces,molders,mixers, debindingsystems,roboticsystems,andothercapitaldevicessuchastestingdevices;the majorityofmoldingmachinesalesarefromsixfirms,furnacesalesarefromeightfirms, mixersalesarefromfourfirms,soabout20firmsconstitutethekeyequipmentsuppliers; Metalpowderinjectionmolding(MIM):Keytrendsandmarkets3
4HandbookofMetalInjectionMolding
l consumablessuppliers—supplyprocessatmospheres,chemicals,molds,polishingcompounds,machininginserts,packagingmaterials,heatingelements,andsinteringsubstrates;
l adjuncts—includingresearchers,instructors,consultants,designadvisors,conferenceorganizers,tradeassociationpersonnel,magazineeditors,andpatentattorneys.
Componentproductionisthecentralactivity.Itissplitbetweeninternalandexternal products,referredtoascaptiveandcustommolders.Likewiseitissupportedbytwo parallelsupplyroutes,dependingonthedecisiontoselfmixortopurchasepremixed feedstock.AnexamplecaptivemolderwouldbeafirearmcompanythatusesMIMto fabricatesomeofthesafety,trigger,orsightcomponents.Ontheotherhand,custom moldersalsocanmakethesesamecomponents,butjustaslikelymaybeinvolvedin severalapplicationareasasdeterminedbytheircustomerbase.
Asoutsourcingincreasesformultinationalfirms,customfabricationgrows. Accordingly,MIMfromfacilitiesownedbylargefirmssuchasRocketdyne,IBM, AMP,andGTEasearlyadopters,shiftedtopurchasingcomponentsfromcaptive moldersfocusedonavarietyofapplicationareas.Someoftheearlycaptiveapplicationsincludedthefollowingexamples:
l dentalorthodonticbracketsmadeoutofstainlesssteelorcobalt-chromiumalloys;
l businessmachinecomponentsforpostagemetersandtypewriters;
l watchcomponentsincludingweights,bezels,cases,bands,andclasps;
l cameracomponentsthatincludedswitchesandbuttons;
l firearmsteelpartssuchastriggerguards,sights,gunbodies,andsafeties;
l carbideandtoolsteelcuttingtoolssuchaswoodrouterbits,endmills,andmetalcutting inserts;
l electronicpackagesforelectronicsystemsusingglass-metalsealingalloys;
l personalcareitemssuchashairtrimmersusingtoolsteel;
l medicalhandtoolsforspecialsurgicaloperations;
l rocketenginesusingspecialtymaterialssuchasniobium;
l automotiveairbagactuatorcomponentsusinghardenablestainlesssteels;
l specialammunitionthatincludedbirdshot,armorpiercingandfrangiblebullets;
l turbochargerrotorsfortrucksandautomobilesformedfromhigh-temperaturestainless steelsornickelsuperalloys.
SinceeachoftheseMIMoperationshadasinglefieldoffocus,littlewasdonetogrow thatportionoftheindustry.However,inmorerecentyearsgrowthinMIMhascome withtheshifttocustommoldingwhichservicesawidevarietyofapplications.The custommoldingfirmshavejoinedtogetherineffortstoadvancetheindustry,viacollaborativemarketingefforts,promotionofmaterialstandards,publicitythrough annualawards,andsharingofbusinessdata.Althoughdeclining,captivemoldingstill remainsanimportantpartoftheMIMindustry.Althoughthesalesgrowthvariesyear toyear,inmostrecenttimes,theglobalsalesgainhasbeensustainedat14%peryear.
1.4Statisticalhighlights
MeasuresoftheMIMgrowtharepossiblethroughseveralparameters,includingthe following.
l Patents:SincethestartofMIMthetotalpatentgenerationislarge,exceeding300bytheyear 2000,butinmorerecentyearstherateofpatentgenerationhasslowedandtherearetoday about200currentlyactivepatents.
l Powdersales:In2010,morethan8000tonsofmetalpowderwereconsumedgloballyby MIM,withagrowthrateinpowdertonnageuseapproachingabout20%peryear,but duetopricereductionthevalueincreasesabout14%peryear.
l Feedstockpurchase:Thetwooptionsofself-mixingorpurchasingfeedstockseemtobeof equalmerit.Ofthetopfirms,71%formtheirownfeedstock,whichisalmostthesameratio forallcompaniesindependentofsize,suggestingpurchasedfeedstockisneitheranadvantagenordisadvantage;however,self-mixingdoesprovidegreatermanufacturingflexibility.
l Mixing:Forthosefirmsmixingtheirownfeedstock,in2011,theygenerate $1.8millionin salespermixer,butthetop20firmsthatmixtheirownfeedstockareat $7millioninsalesper mixerperyear.
l Salespermolder:Inmanycountries,especiallywhenanoperationisatahighutilization,the moldingmachinegeneratesatleast $1millioninsalesperyear.Acrosstheindustrythemean salespermolderis $536,000,whiletheleadingfirmshave $1.5millioninsalespermolder peryear.
l Salesperfurnace:Furnacescomeinmanydifferentsizesanddesigns,butacrosstheindustry salesaverageabout $1millionperfurnaceperyear;forthetopMIMoperations(withlarger andcontinuousfurnaces)thesalesaverage $3.2millionperfurnaceperyear.
l Continuousfurnaces:In2011,theinstalledcapacityofhigh-volumecontinuoussintering furnacesreached4500tonsofproductsperyear;theseareinstalledwithabreakdownof 38%Asia,47%Europe,and15%NorthAmerica.
l Captiveversuscustomproduction:Aboutathirdofthefirmsarecaptive,butonly21%ofthe firmshavemorethan50%oftheirsalesinternally.Thebestestimateisthat17%oftheproductionvaluein2011isforinternaluse.
l Salesperkg:AcrosstheMIMindustrytheaverageisabout $125insalesperkgofpowder consumed,rangingfromhighsof $10,000perkgforjewelry,cuttingtips,andprecisionwire bondingtoolsto $16perkgforcastingrefractories.Thelargestceramicapplicationisin aerospacecastingcores,andthetypicalis $1000perkg.Likewise,formetals,thestainless steelorthodonticbracketcontributesnearly $100millioninannualsalesatanaveragenear $650perkg.Thelowtolerancetungstencellphoneeccentricweightssellforaverylow price,inthe $60perkgrange.
l Salesperpart:Acrosstheindustry,thetypicalpartsalepriceisbetween $1and $2each,but valuesrangefrom5centcellphonevibratorweightsto $35solenoidbodiesand $400knee implants.
l Componentsize:ThemosttypicalMIMpartmassisinthe6–10grange.Themassrangeis frombelow0.02gtoover300g,butthemeanisunder10g.ThelargestMIMpartsareheat dissipatersforthecontrolsystemsinhybridelectricvehiclesat1.3kgandsomeaerospace superalloybodiesthathavesimilarmassanddimensionsreach200mm.Agrowingaspectof MIMisthemicrominiaturecomponentswherefeaturesareinthemicrometerrangeandthis approached $68millionperyearinsalesfor2010.
l Employment:Nearly8000peopleareemployedinPIMglobally,ofwhichnearly7000peopleareemployedinMIM,givinganaverageof21peopleperoperationandamedianofjust 16peopleperMIMfacility.Thelargerfirmsreachupwardsto300–800people;thelargest ceramicinjectionmoldingfirmoncereachedemploymentnear800people.
Historically,about80%ofthePIMfieldisformetalliccomponents,orMIM.Inrecent times,thathasincreasedtonearly90%metallic.Ofthe366firmsthatcurrently Metalpowderinjectionmolding(MIM):Keytrendsandmarkets5
6HandbookofMetalInjectionMolding
Table1.1 SummarystatisticsonPIM
PercentageofPIMfirmsinNorthAmerica31
PercentageofPIMfirmsinEurope28
PercentageofPIMfirmsinAsia37
PercentageofPIMfirmsinrestofworld4
LargestconcentrationoffirmsUSA,China,Germany,Japan
Percentageoffirmsprimarilycaptive33
LargestPIMfirmsIndia,USA,Germany,Japan
TotalPIMsales2010
$1.1billion
TotalPIMfirms366
TotalPIMemployment8000
TypicalR&Dstaff2
Typicalprofitas%ofsales11
Salesperfull-timeemployee
Salespermoldingmachine
Salesperproductionfurnace
$126,000
$538,000
$980,000
Percentoffirmsself-mixing72
Totalinstallednumberofmixers380
Totalinstallednumberofmoldingmachines1750
Totalinstallednumberoffurnaces850
Percentofindustryusingthermaldebinding49
Percentofindustryusingsolventdebinding26
Percentofindustryusingcatalyticdebinding14
Percentofindustryusingotherdebinding11
Medianpartsize(g)6
practicePIM,themajorityislocatedinAsia.TheleadingcountriesintermsofPIM weretheUSAwith106operations,Chinawith69(althoughexpansionisrapidin China),Germanywith41,Japanwith38,Taiwanwith17,Koreawith14,andSwitzerlandwith12.Thenumberofoperationsisnotnecessarilyindicativeoffinancial size,sinceoneofthelargestMIMfacilitiesisinIndia,acountrywhichonlyhasfive MIMoperations,whiletheUSAhasthemostfirms,buttheytendtobesmaller. Table1.1 providesasummaryofthePIMactivities.TheUSAandChinahavethe mostfirmswhilethelargestfacilityisinIndia.
ThePIMfieldisapproximatelyone-thirdcaptiveandtwo-thirdscustomproduction.Examplecaptiveoperationsincludeceramiccastingcoreproduction,orthodontics,surgicaltools,medicalimplants,andfirearms.
PIMincludesmetals,ceramics,andcarbides.Togetherthesematerialsamountto salesfor2010thatreached $1.1billion,withabout $1billioninmetalcomponents. Table1.2 providesasummaryontheglobalsalesperformance.In2011,ofthe366 firmspracticingPIM,somedomultiplematerials.Acrosstheindustryover80%of
Table1.2 SummaryofPIMglobalsales
Metalpowderinjectionmolding(MIM):Keytrendsandmarkets7
Table1.3 TypicalunitmanufacturingcellinmetalPIM Mixers1 Molders4 Debindingreactors2
Sinteringfurnaces2
Typicalnumberofemployeespercell20
Table1.4 Typicalproductivityratios
Meansalesperemployee
$125,000
Medianemployeespermoldingmachine5
Meanemployeespermoldingmachine4.2
Meanemployeesperproductionfurnace9
Medianemployeesperproductionfurnace6.7
Meansalespermoldingmachine
Mediansalespermoldingmachine
Meansalesperfurnace
Mediansalesperfurnace
Meansalespermixer(ifinstalled)
Mediansalespermixer(ifinstalled)
$536,000
$400,000
$976,000
$667,000
$1.8million
$1.0million
Mediangrowthpercentageinsales11
thefirmsproducemetalliccomponents,20%practiceceramicPIM,4%practice cementedcarbideinjectionmolding,andlessthan1%practicecompositeproduction (mostlyinjection-moldedsiliconcarbidethatisinfiltratedwithaluminumtoform Al-SiC).Obviously,about5%ofthefirmssupplyamixtureofmaterialtypes.
AMIMorPIMfacilitybasicallyrequiresmixing,molding,debinding,andsintering capabilities.Overtheyears,atypicalratiooftheseproductiondeviceshasemerged. Someoftheindustryunitmanufacturingcellratiosarecapturedin Table1.3.Notethat eachdeviceisaninteger(oneortwoorthreemixers)soforthemeanthevaluecanbe noninteger,butforthemedianonlyintegervaluesareallowed.
Anothermetriccomesfromtheproductivity,usuallymeasuredintermsofsalesor peremployee. Table1.4 givesseveralstatisticalproductivitymeasuresfortheglobal PIMindustry.Inthistable,theemploymentcountisbasedonfull-timeequivalent (FTE),sinceseveralfirmshavesignificantpart-timeemployment.Hence,thetypical PIMindustry(metals,ceramics,carbides,andcomposites)seemstobeastabulated.
1.5Industryshifts
ThekeytrendsinMIMonaglobalbasisareevidentbycomparingyear2000withyear 2010.Formanyyears,theMIMfieldsustainedcompoundannualsalesgrowthat22% peryearwitha34%peryearincreaseinthenumberofoperations.Inrecentyears,the
growthrateshavebecomemoremodestandhavestabilizednear8%peryearinNorth America,butcontinueata30%peryearpaceinAsia.Globallytheoverallaverageis 14%peryearforrecentyears.
Onthebasisofsomeimportantstatistics,herearethechangesfromyear2000to year2010forMIM:
l numberofMIMoperationsdecreased34%;
l globalsalesincreased100%;
l employmentincreased100%;
l installedmoldingcapacityincreased79%;
l installedsinteringcapacityincreased86%.
Thesestatisticsindirectlyindicateincreasedconcentrationofthebusinessintothe handsoffewerfirms.AlthoughalargenumberofcompaniesareactiveinMIM,at anyonetimesomearesimplyinanevaluationmode,andthiswasespeciallytrue in2000.Thesecharacteristicallyconsistofasmallteam(twoorthreepeople)and oneortwomoldingmachines,usuallypurchasedfeedstock,andmightevenrely ontollsintering.Afterinitialexploration,manysucheffortsareterminatedorproductionistransferredtoanoutsidevendor.Thisisevidentbythedecreaseinnumberof MIMfirmsfrom2000to2010whiletheoverallfieldgrew.Today,largeactorsconsist ofwellover20moldingmachines.
1.6Salessituation
Salesstatisticswerefirstgatheredinthemiddle1980s.Significantgrowthhasproducedindustrymaturation.ThemetalPIMprocessisnowacceptedbyseveralsophisticatedcustomers,suchasBosh,Siemens,Chrysler,Honeywell,Volkswagen, MercedesBenz,BMW,Chanel,AppleComputer,PrattandWhitney,Samsung,Texas Instruments,GeneralElectric,Nokia,Motorola,RollsRoyce,Continental,Stryker, LG,Sony,Philips,Seagate,Toshiba,Ford,GeneralMotors,IBM,Hewlett-Packard, Seiko,Citizen,Swatch,andsimilarfirms.
MostofthecommonengineeringmaterialsareavailableinMIM,butasillustrated in Fig.1.1,basedonsales,stainlesssteelsaredominant.Theglobalmaterialsales (value,nottonnage)areasfollows—53%stainlesssteels,27%steels,10%tungsten alloys,7%iron-nickelalloys(mostlymagneticalloys),4%titaniumalloys,3%copper,3%cobalt-chromium,2%toolsteels,2%nickelalloys(superalloys),and1%electronicalloys(KovarandInvar).Onatonnagebasis,thestainlesssteelportionof powderconsumptionislarger,reachingupwardsto60%–65%ofpowderconsumption,andbecauseofthatlargeconsumptionthepowderpriceislower,furtherfueling theuseofstainlesssteel.Someofthemetalpowdersaremuchhigherpriced,suchas titanium,sothesalespartitionbasedontonnageversusdollarsisskewedduetoawide rangeinmaterialcosts.
ThemetalPIMsalesfor2010wereintheneighborhoodof $1billiondollars.Independentreportsfor2010giveestimatesfrom $955to $984million.Somedifficulty existsingatheringaccurateinformationsinceamajorityofthefirmsareprivatelyheld anddonotmakeannualreports.Further,currencyexchangerateschangeovertheyear
leadingtoinaccurateestimates.For2010,thebestestimateonPIMsalesis $1.1billion andMIMsalesis $955million.ThePIMestimatefor2009was $920million,soPIM grewfrom2009to2010byalmost20%,largelyinMIM,andwasaheadofthegeneral economicrecovery.
Fig.1.2 plotssalesgrowthgloballysincefirstrecordedat $9millionfor1986.This plotshowsthattheceramicbusinesscontractedwhileMIMexpanded,largelydueto theaerospaceslowdowns.
Fig.1.1 MIMsalesgloballybymainmaterialcategory.Thisplotisbasedpercentofglobal sales,whileotherstudiesreportbasedontonnageofpowderconsumed.
Fig.1.2 Annualsales,inmillionsofUSdollars,forMIMasthelowercurveandallofPIMas theuppercurveplottedagainstyear. Metalpowderinjectionmolding(MIM):Keytrendsandmarkets9
10HandbookofMetalInjectionMolding
Table1.5 SummaryglobalMIMstatistics
2009totalMIMsales
2010totalMIMsales
$860million
$955million
Typicalprofitas%ofsales9 %MIMsalesfromself-mixing63
InstallednumberofMIMmixers290
InstallednumberofMIMmoldingmachines1450
1.7Marketstatistics
ThelargestmarketforMIMhashistoricallybeenindustrialcomponents,including pumphousings,solenoids,handles,plumbingfixtures,andfitting.Thisstillamounts to20%ofglobalsales(moreinJapanandlessinEurope).Thisisbasedoncomponent sales,notnumberofpartsorfirmsortonsofpowder,asisreportedinotherstudies. AutomotivecomponentsarethesecondlargestmarketforMIMat14%ofglobalvalue (ontonnagebasisitismuchhigherinEuropeandlowerinNorthAmerica).Consumer productsarethethirdlargestmarketat11%oftheMIMsales,andthesearedominated byAsia(cellphone,consumer,andcomputerparts).Nextarethedental,medical, electronic,andfirearmapplications,eachat7%–9%oftheglobalMIMproductvalue, withNorthAmericabeingthelargestactor.Othercontributionscomefromcomputers,handtools,luggagetrimmings,cosmeticcases,robots,sportingdevices, andwatchcomponents.
ThestatisticalprofileforMIMfirmsshowsthatabouthalfoftheglobalactorsare tiny,beingunder $1millioninannualMIMsales;sometimesthesearelocatedaspilot effortsinlargecompaniesormorecommonlyreflectingprivateownership. Table1.5 givesanindustrysummaryforMIM.About32%oftheoperationshavecaptiveproducts,butonly18%oftheindustrysalesareprimarilycaptive.FollowingthePrado Principle,inMIMthelargest20%offirmscontrol80%ofsales.Moreover,the top10%ofMIMfirmscontrolover60%ofsales,average $25millionperyearturnoverandrunwith20ormoremoldingmachinesandanaverageof120employees.The top10%oftheMIMindustryaveragefiveemployeesforeachmolder,ninepeopleper furnace,turnover $1.5millionpermoldingmachineeachyear, $3.2millionperfurnaceeachyear,and70%self-mix.
1.8MetalPIMmarketbyregion
Asshownin Fig.1.3,theprimarysalesandgrowthinMIMisinAsia,buttheUSA remainsoneofthelargestusersandproducersofceramicPIMcomponents. Table1.6 summarizestheregionalstatisticsforPIMinmillionsofdollarsfor2009,thelastyear whereconsolidateddataarereported.Forreference,NorthAmericanMIMwas $186 millionin2009outofthe $316milliontotal.Ofthat $32millionwascaptiveMIM.In NorthAmerica,captiveMIMisfrequentlyusedfororthodonticbracketsandfirearms,
Metalpowderinjectionmolding(MIM):Keytrendsandmarkets11
Fig.1.3 Salespartitionbasedonmajor geographicregion.
Table1.6 SummaryofregionalsalesforPIM
RegionTotalPIM($ million)
butisalsousedformedicalapplications.Thevaluationofthoseproductsisdifficult, sincethedistributedcost(whenthebracketissoldtothedentist)isprobably $100 million,butthetradecost(bulkinternaltransfercost)ismoremodest.For2009,in Europe,thedominantcaptiveMIMapplicationswerewatchesandsimilardecorative componentssuchasspecialtyluggagefasteners.In2009,theSwisswatchindustrydid about $12billioninwatchsales,atanaveragetransactionof $566perwatch.Notall watchesuseMIM,butthosethatdohaveatypicalMIMcontentinthe $1–$8range,so the21millionwatcheswouldfitwiththe $32millioncaptiveEuropesales.InAsia,the captiveMIMismostlyforthe“3Cs”—productsforcomputers,cellulartelephones, andconsumerelectronics—attheassemblyhousessuchasFoxconn.
1.9MetalPIMmarketbyapplication
Inpriorreportsfromsomeofthetradeassociations,suchastheMetalPowderInjectionMoldingAssociationin2006,themedicalcomponentsalesconstituted36%of MIM,theautomotivecomponentwas14%ofsales,andhardwarewas20%ofsales. Inthe2007survey,theMIMmarketwaspartitionedasgivenin Table1.7 interms ofpercentageofsalesineachgeographicregion.Morerecently,anexpandedsetof applicationgroupsisusedtoreflectaddedeffortsinsporting,jewelry,handtools, aerospace,andsuch.Further,consumerproductswereseparatedfromwatchessince watchproductionwasnotgrowing,butusesforlatches,eyeglasses,andluggage claspswasgrowing.Accordingly,the2010industrypartitionedbyapplicationarea
