Injection Molding is here to stay.
The promise of being able to get your plastic part/product to market with NO tooling costs is a powerful story that alternative manufacturing technologies tell, but in reality, it is a bit of a fallacy if you are looking for mass market penetration.
No tooling costs for mass market penetration may be coming in the future but for the majority of plastic parts/products in development today, tooling costs are a reality and should be factored into your product development plan. You simply cannot hit market price points, volumes, or lead times without Injection Molding (for most products). 3D Printing and CNC Machining can get you part way there, they can be a bridge while you are waiting on your tooling, but they usually cannot take you all the way there.
HLH CNC Machining - HLH 3D Printing
Explore alternative options but don’t buy into the “no injection molding tooling needed” story when it comes to launching your product. You likely need it. You likely need it sooner than you think. Which means you can’t ignore your funding needs for low-volume injection molding tooling or high-volume injection molding tooling.
At HLH, we make things for you. FreeQuote@HLHPrototypes.com