What to Expect When You Partner With Exothermic: Your Onboarding Roadmap

You've chosen Exothermic as your RIM molding partner. Now what?

Whether you're bringing us existing tooling that's seen better days, parts that need reverse engineering, or a clean-sheet design, the path from contract signing to production parts follows a clear process. We've refined this approach over 35 years and thousands of projects. Here's what happens next.

The First Conversation: Understanding Your Starting Point

Within 48 hours of contract execution, your dedicated project engineer contacts you. This isn't a courtesy call. It's a technical discovery session.

We need to understand three things: what you're starting with, what you need to achieve, and what constraints we're working within. The conversation differs depending on your scenario.

If you're bringing existing tooling, we want to know its history. How many cycles has it run? What material was it designed for? Are you seeing specific defects or quality issues? Has it been modified since original build? Your tooling might have 10,000 more parts in it, or it might need a complete rebuild. We can't answer that until we see it.

If you need reverse engineering, we discuss the parts themselves. Do you have CAD data, or are we working from physical samples only? What tolerances matter most? Are there internal features we can't see? What's the intended use case and performance requirements? The answers shape our metrology approach.

If you're starting with a new design, we focus on manufacturability. What drove you to RIM instead of other processes? Where is design flexibility helpful, and where are dimensions locked? What surface finish and appearance requirements exist? These early conversations often prevent expensive revisions later.

This initial discussion also covers material selection. Most customers arrive knowing which Poly-DCPD formulation they need based on their application requirements. If you're uncertain, we recommend specific formulations based on your part's mechanical properties, chemical resistance, temperature exposure, or other performance requirements. Material selection happens now, not later in the process, because it affects tooling design decisions.

Your procurement team joins this kickoff call. They need delivery milestones and decision points mapped out. We provide both.

Tooling Assessment: The 72-Hour Window

If you're shipping us existing molds, our tooling team inspects them within 72 hours of arrival.

We start with a visual assessment. Surface damage, wear patterns, and previous repairs tell us a lot. Then we move to measurements. Critical dimensions, parting line condition, gate placement, and venting all get documented.

The inspection report includes photos, measurements, and a recommendation: repair, refurbish, or replace. We explain our reasoning in engineering terms, not sales language.

Repair means the mold is structurally sound but needs attention. Common repairs include gate refurbishment, vent cleaning, surface polishing, or small cosmetic fixes. Timeline: typically 2-3 weeks.

Refurbishment means more extensive work. We might be welding and remachining worn areas, replacing inserts, upgrading cooling or venting systems, or addressing core shift issues. The mold comes out performing like new, but the base tool is salvageable. Timeline: 4-8 weeks depending on scope.

Replacement happens when the economics don't support refurbishment. Deep corrosion, core structural damage, or obsolete construction methods sometimes make a new mold the better investment. We provide cost comparisons so you can make an informed decision.

We don't upsell new tooling. If your mold can be saved cost-effectively, we tell you. Some of our longest-running production programs use refurbished tooling that's now 15 years into its second life.

When you're transferring tooling from another supplier, send us a golden sample part along with the mold. This reference part establishes what "acceptable" looks like and gives us an immediate quality benchmark when we run our first shots.

Reverse Engineering: Precision Without Guesswork

When you need parts replicated without original CAD data, we use laser scanning and metrology to capture geometry within 0.005 inches.

The process starts with part preparation. We need clean, representative samples - ideally multiple parts if you're seeing variation in your current supply. Surface coatings or textures can affect scan accuracy, so we discuss any prep work needed.

Our laser scanner captures millions of data points across the part surface. The resulting point cloud gets processed into a 3D mesh, then converted to solid CAD geometry. This isn't an automatic process. Our engineers review the scan data against physical measurements, identify critical features, and build the CAD model with proper design intent.

Here's what matters: we don't just copy what we scan. We engineer it.

If the original part has draft angles that were compromised by tool wear, we correct them. If wall thicknesses vary in ways that will cause molding problems, we address that. If gate locations could be optimized, we discuss it with you.

You receive complete CAD files in your preferred format, along with a dimensional report showing how our model compares to your original parts. Tolerances get called out based on your functional requirements, not arbitrary precision.

The reverse engineering process typically takes 2-3 weeks from receipt of sample parts to delivery of approved CAD models. If you need faster turnaround, we can prioritize critical features and deliver preliminary models for your review in under a week.

Design for Manufacturing: The Engineering Review

Whether we're working from your CAD files, our reverse-engineered models, or a combination, every design goes through a DFM review before tooling begins.

Our engineers evaluate wall thickness, draft angles, undercuts, parting line location, gate placement, and venting strategy. We're looking for anything that will cause molding problems, quality issues, or unnecessary tool complexity.

This review happens in collaboration with your engineering team. We mark up the CAD with observations and recommendations, then schedule a call to walk through our findings. Some items are hard requirements based on material properties and process physics. Others are suggestions that improve quality or reduce cost.

You make the final decisions. We've had customers override our recommendations for valid reasons - existing assembly constraints, aesthetic priorities, or interface requirements we didn't know about. That's fine. We just want you making those choices with full information about the manufacturing implications.

The DFM review typically identifies 3-7 items worth discussing. About half result in design changes. The rest are documented as known constraints we'll manage during production.

This phase takes 1-2 weeks depending on design complexity and iteration cycles. Changes made now cost hours. Changes made after tooling costs weeks and real money. That's why we're thorough here.

Once the design review is complete and you've incorporated any recommended changes, you provide final engineering drawings and CAD models. We don't start machining tools until we have drawings at the latest revision. This ensures every dimension, tolerance, and feature we cut into the mold matches your approved design exactly.

Tooling Design and Build: Transparency on Timeline

Once the part design is locked and final drawings are in hand, tooling design begins.

We start with mold layout: cavity arrangement, runner system, gate type and location, cooling strategy, venting plan, and draft angles. You receive these layouts for review. If you have proprietary requirements for gate location or parting line position, this is when we incorporate them.

For new molds, the build process includes CNC machining of mold bases and cavities, electrical discharge machining for complex details, surface finishing to your specified texture or gloss level, and assembly with proper alignment and shut-off. Timeline: 8-12 weeks for typical geometries, longer for large or complex tooling.

For refurbished molds, we provide a detailed scope of work before starting. You know exactly what operations we're performing and why. We photograph major repairs as we go. Timeline varies by scope but typically 4-8 weeks.

We don't wait until tooling is complete to communicate. You get weekly updates on progress and immediate notification if we encounter unexpected issues that might affect timeline or cost.

First Shots: Validation Before Volume

When tooling is complete, we run first articles for your approval.

Your tooling cost includes three unpainted sample parts. These samples let you verify fit, function, and overall quality. Many customers find this sufficient - they check fitment with mating components, validate performance requirements, and approve the parts for production.

If you need more comprehensive validation, we offer full dimensional inspection using 3D scanning and metrology. This service provides a complete dimensional report comparing actual parts against your CAD model, with deviations called out for every critical feature. Full metrology is an additional cost beyond the included samples, but it provides the highest level of verification for programs where dimensional accuracy is critical.

The first parts off any mold rarely require geometric changes. Our design review process is thorough specifically to prevent tooling modifications. When we complete DFM review and finalize your drawings, we're confident the geometry will mold correctly.

What we do expect to adjust are process parameters - injection pressure, shot time, cure temperature, and mold temperature. We calculate starting points for these variables, but fine-tuning them to optimize part quality is normal. Even during production runs, we may adjust these parameters as ambient conditions change or as we learn more about how your specific part behaves.

Most projects achieve specification compliance with the first set of sample parts. When you've worked with us through design review and provided final approved drawings, the parts come out right. Iteration is the exception, not the rule.

If geometric issues do surface - and only when absolutely necessary - we address them before moving to production. But our engineering process is designed to catch these problems on paper, not in steel.

Quality Standards: Your Requirements Drive Inspection

Before production begins, we need to understand what's critical to quality for your application.

Inspection plans are customer-driven. You tell us which dimensions, features, or properties matter most, and we inspect to those requirements. Some customers need full dimensional reports on every production run. Others focus on key characteristics and rely on process control for the rest. Both approaches work - it depends on your quality system and risk tolerance.

If you have existing inspection protocols from a previous supplier, we can match them. If you're developing new requirements, we help you identify which features warrant regular inspection based on process capability and part function.

All inspections follow your instructions. We document what we measure, how often we measure it, and what acceptance criteria we're using. This becomes part of your production quality plan and ensures consistency across every order.

Production Launch: The Handoff to Operations

With approved first articles and established quality requirements, your project transitions from engineering to production operations.

You're assigned a production coordinator who manages scheduling, quality assurance, and shipment logistics. Your project engineer remains available for technical support, but day-to-day execution shifts to operations.

We maintain the process parameters established during development. Any proposed changes - material substitutions, process modifications, or design revisions - get reviewed and approved by engineering before implementation.

You receive certificates of compliance with each shipment, along with any inspection data specified in your quality agreement.

What Makes This Process Work

The onboarding roadmap works because it's built on clear communication and defined decision points.

You're never waiting for information. We tell you what's happening, what's next, and what we need from you. When we encounter problems, you hear about them immediately along with our proposed solution.

You make the decisions that matter - design changes, tooling investment, material selection, inspection requirements - with complete technical information. We make the manufacturing decisions within the parameters you've established.

The timeline from contract signing to first production parts depends on your starting point. Reverse engineering and new tool builds take longer than refurbishing existing molds. Complex geometries take longer than simple shapes. Custom materials take longer than standard formulations.

But the process is the same regardless. Technical discovery with material selection, tooling assessment or development, design validation with final drawings, first articles with included samples, customer-defined quality standards, and production launch. Each phase has clear deliverables and defined success criteria.

When you reach the end of onboarding, you're not guessing whether parts will meet spec or hoping the process is repeatable. You have approved first articles, final documentation, and established quality controls. Production becomes execution of a proven process, not ongoing development.