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LightManufacturing Inc. Offers Low-Cost (and Sustainable) Plastic Molding Under New Contract Manufacturing Program
‘Why are you paying for fuel?’
[Central Coast, California, 1/28/2025] – LightManufacturing Inc. now offers low–cost plastic molding to other businesses and brands via the firm’s Contract Molding program. The company’s Solar Rotational Molding (SRM) process has a 10-year track record of making high-quality parts for commercial and military applications – with zero use of fossil fuels in the molding process. LightManufacturing’s contract manufacturing initiative opens doors for businesses who seek lower costs through eliminating fuel expense, improved environmental impact, and improved sustainability.
The firm reports typical cost savings of 7-15% vs traditional US rotomolding, depending on product details. The process saves even more in markets with lower labor and higher energy costs than the US.
SRM uses standard rotomolding tooling – steel or aluminum – without permanent modifications. Current SRM systems offer swing radii up to 49″ x 68″ with larger sizes in the pipeline. Multiple tools can be mounted on an arm simultaneously. Cooling is achieved with forced air without any need for water spray.
Rotational molding is a 60-year-old process used around the globe to make durable products like water tanks, boats, furniture, coolers, storage boxes, toys, and much more. In rotomolding, a hollow mold is loaded with plastic and heated – normally by burning natural gas – while turned in two axes. The plastic melts and sticks to the inside of the mold. The mold is cooled by fans and sometimes water, hardening the plastic, at which point the mold is opened and the finished part removed.
While rotomolding is a great way to make useful, long-lasting products it has a downside; rotomolding consumes significant amounts of natural gas or other fossil fuels for heating, and emits over a pound of greenhouse gasses for every pound of product molded. LightManufacturing’s patented technology solves this problem – the firm’s SRM process uses concentrated solar heat, entirely eliminating the expense and emissions associated with burning fossil fuels.
LightManufacturing’s patented process uses an array of heliostats – computer-controlled mirrors – to track the sun and focus its rays onto the molds. By combining heat from many heliostats the firm can achieve any temperature needed. Molding systems now in operation deliver more than 100,000 watts of energy to a target, while next-generation SRM4 machines will capture over 200,000 watts. LightManufacturing’s system reduces the carbon footprint of the molding process to zero, while eliminating the cost of fossil fuel energy.
The firm’s advanced mold rotation systems speed up and slow down the tool as it passes through the heat beam, allowing the system to mold thicker or thinner areas as desired. For example, a water tank mold can be formed with thinner top sections where tank pressure is low, and thicker lower sections to handle pressure and ground contact. “We can optimize plastic distribution through our process in ways impossible with normal molding systems’ says LightManufacturing Lead Engineer Ben Presley.
The firm’s systems differ from traditional molding in other important ways: they are built into modified shipping containers for fast deployment near customers, and can set-up on bare land without any infrastructure, utilities, or even a permanent building. “We can deploy high–quality molding anywhere with good sun in about two weeks” reports Presley, “and reduce transport costs and emissions by molding close to where products are needed”.
LightManufacturing invites firms seeking to improve the sustainability of their supply chain to reach out and explore how LM can help. The company has supplied technology and high-quality molded products to partner firms since 2014, including Fortune 500 firms, defense contractors, and many others. “We’re excited to extend the benefits of our technology more broadly”, says Presley.
About LightManufacturing Inc.:
LightManufacturing Inc. is a pioneer in sustainable manufacturing technologies, specializing in solar-thermal rotational molding and other vertical markets. Committed to innovation and environmental responsibility, the firm offers solutions that meet the needs of a changing world. More information can be found at https://lm.solar
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