Molding certifications

[u/beresjdb]

Fellow process engineer/technician here (I’ve only recently gotten into the engineering side) I’m curious, when applying for these positions is there any certification that will clearly stand out and make it known that the individual is proficient/advanced in the field?

For context: I have 6 I believe, all from paulson.
Molding fundamentals
Technology of injection molding 1
Technology of injection molding 2
Technology of injection molding 3
Part problem and solutions
Pro-molder 1

All with a 90% or better passing grade.

I am having a really really hard time trying to find any solution to my immediate problem and am just looking for insight from the community. Are these not of sufficient accreditation? I know that plastics community is small…. Figured I’d ask idk.

[u/z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z-]

Don’t be afraid to reach for the stars.
Apply… that’s how I got this job.
Get in there. No fear.

[u/beresjdb → u/z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z-]

Dude I would loveeeeeeee to come work for Engle…..

[u/Great_Swan5985]

I have been in the industry of plastics for about 12 years now no certs no degrees just all on the job training my biggest word of advice to you is once you learn the way material behaves and the way a molds design is implemented and you put those two together is what makes you an engineer don’t worry about degrees or certs employers only care about your ability to make it work yeah I’m sure some employers might ask or want to see something but not all. You have a lot of experience and you’re having trouble finding work that will continue to give you the experience just be careful and don’t go somewhere telling them you can do it all and then cost the company a lot of money because then when you go looking for another job they usually call your past employment and ask about you and if you’re worth the risk of hiring get in somewhere find the guy that’s been there the longest build a relationship with them and soak up as much as you can so you can get an idea of how that molding factory runs because everywhere is different good luck and hope you find something soon that you want

[u/evanbuildsai]

Paulson is solid theory, but RJG Master Molder is the one a lot of hiring managers actually recognize. For diagnostic cartridges I would care more about whether you can run a decoupled molding study, read a cavity pressure curve, and validate a tool than how many certificates you stack. Certs get you screened in, molding trials get you hired.

[u/W1ck3dxc2own]

Not sure what stands out, my current company has us do Paulson, math for molders, systematic, RJG master molders 1 and AIM molding 1. I've been told RJG master molders stands out as the gold standard for injection molding.

[u/beresjdb → u/W1ck3dxc2own]

That’s what I’m hearing as well that master molder one is the “gold standard”

[u/SignatureFast9608]

I have a B.S. in Plastics and Polymer Engineering, I have taken all the Paulson classes as well as RJG's Master Molder I and II. At the end of the day, it's all the same: Decoupled II Scientific Injection Molding (Decoupled III with the right equipment).

Most companies require a degree for an engineering level role when reviewing outside applications. However, I have seen companies promote internally from technician to engineer due to experience/ knowledge.

Personally, when reviewing applications for open technician roles, certs are a "good to have" but we look for wording and verbiage that allude to the individual being able to set a tool then build a process from scratch that is repeatable and makes dimensionally stable parts.

Beyond hands on experience we look for the usual: tooling, troubleshooting, documentation, robot, maintenance & machine experience etc.

IMO - while training and certs are a plus, experience is most preferred.

I hope this helps and you find what you are looking for soon!

[u/beresjdb → u/SignatureFast9608]

I’ve always wanted someone to properly teach me the DIII process correct me if I’m wrong but there is no v-p in a DIII process is there? Instead your basing your fill off of cavity pressures?? I’ve wanted to try to learn this and wanted to fiddle around with it, but the shops I’ve been at, none of them have had cavity pressures transducers.

[u/spinwizard69]

Certifications are one thing but if your want an engineering role, even as a technician, you need to work on a suitable technical degree or get the equivalent military training. For most technical jobs that would start out with a 2 year technical degree from a decent organization. Industrial / process engineering really benefits from a 4 year degree, especially if you cover design of experiments and other classes that lead to really strong process control skills.

As for Paulson, never heard of them. I know locally one captive molder spent considerable R&D effort on characterizing a plastic with regression analyze that it got to the point that they knew more about the plastic than the manufacture. Real process engineering can be very math intensive.

[u/computerhater]

Hit the road as a field service engineer with any brand you’d feel comfortable representing.