Automation specialist Servomold is increasingly focusing on medical technology

In direkter Nachbarschaft zum bestehenden Standort von Servomold gelegen, bietet die neu erworbene Immobilie viel zusätzlichen Raum für den Ausbau der zukunftsgerichteten Aktivitäten des Unternehmens. © Servomold / Located in the direct neighborhood of Servomold's existing site, the newly acquired property offers plenty of additional space for the expansion of the company's future-oriented activities. © Servomold

Zwei Generationen mit Gespür für die Zukunft des Werkzeugbaus: v.l.n.r.: Lucas, Bianca und Thomas Meister, vor der neu installierten 5-Achs- Präzisionsfräsmaschine in der vollklimatisierten Fertigungszelle. © Servomold / Two generations with a feel for the future of toolmaking: from left to right: Lucas, Bianca and Thomas Meister, in front of the newly installed 5-axis precision milling machine in the fully air-conditioned production cell. © Servomold

Die neue, µm-genaue SLY Kernzugeinheit, hier komplett montiert © Servomold / The new, µm-precise SLY core puller, shown here fully assembled © Servomold

Servomold, a global specialist in the automation of injection moulds, is increasingly focusing its activities on the medical technology sector. To this end, the company has invested almost €5 million in the local expansion of its site, which was only completed in 2018, to a total of 1650 m², 750 m² of which is production space. The associated extensive measures, which were implemented within just 6 months, included the installation of a fully air-conditioned production cell and the acquisition of a high-precision 5-axis milling machine for the production of components with accuracies in the µm range. Servomold has expanded quality assurance by integrating a separately air-conditioned measuring room with state-of-the-art measuring and testing technology. The company currently employs 35 highly qualified employees in development, production and administration, 10 more than at the beginning of 2024.

The current order situation at Servomold confirms the course that has been set. At the turn of the year 2024/25, the share of the medical technology application area was already reaching 60%, with an upward trend. The remaining 40% is mainly divided between pharmaceutical, packaging and fluid technology and, to a lesser extent, automotive technology and miscellaneous industries. The space now available for production and quality assurance, as well as purchasing and warehousing, provides the perfect conditions for solving customer-specific tasks and manufacturing standard products.

With innovative strength and strategic partnership

Managing director Thomas Meister refers to the market success of the SLY servo-electric core pullers launched at Fakuma 2024 as the basis for this bold step. Thanks to their extremely high production accuracy, they are able to position slides and cores in the injection mould with µm precision and significantly simplify the production effort for mould making. Their servo-electric drive and minimum quantity lubrication of the guides and spindles are specifically designed to be used in clean rooms. Both are fundamental requirements for manufacturers of sleeve-shaped components such as housings and cartridge holders for auto-injection systems. The full savings potential of these new units can be realised when the entire mould concept is designed accordingly - Servomold offers comprehensive conceptual support for this.

Ypsomed was one of the first manufacturers in the industry to recognise the potential of this concept and contributed its expertise to the project at an early stage. Meister comments: “The medical technology manufacturer produces injectors in quantities of several hundred million and uses a correspondingly large number of moulds for this. The agreement to work closely together beyond the development phase, and the prospect of equipping these moulds with our core pulling units, was the driving force behind our decision to expand and invest to this extent.” Thanks to these measures to increase vertical integration, Servomold is now able to manufacture its high-precision core pulling units entirely in-house. This enables the company to guarantee expected productivity and at the same time - system for system - the high precision as the overall responsible party. Meister continues: “By the end of 2025, we will be able to deliver more than 1,000 ready-to-install units per year.”

Perfectly positioned

Over the past two years, Servomold has emphasised its expertise with a number of successful developments. In addition to the SLY core pulling units, these include the SLA servo linear actuators, which are also suitable for cleanrooms, and the compact servo screw actuators of the SSA series, which move slides, cores or plates in injection moulds powerfully and at high speed.

Meister: “With our products, we fulfil the high demands of our customers in medical technology and other demanding industries. State-of-the-art machinery and our excellently trained and highly motivated employees are the best prerequisites for continuing to play a leading role in the automation of injection moulds in the future.”