On the Cutting Edge of Building Dies for Large Structural Parts
General Die & Engineering, located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, has been building innovative plastic injection molds and die-cast dies for over fifty years. Our employees have a combined total of more than 25 decades of experience designing and building die-cast dies and plastic injection molds.
Large Package Die-Cast Dies and Plastic Injection Molds Capability
General Die & Engineering builds middle-to-large die-cast dies and plastic injection molds. Most shops handle tooling up to the 20,000-pound range. General Die & Engineering can handle tools up to 160,000 lbs. We can also work with large multi-tool packages.
Our niche is plastic injection molds, die-cast dies, coining/straightening dies. We work with demanding specifications, such as those required in the lighting industry. We are experts in decorative and high-finish parts.
On-time Delivery
At General Die & Engineering, we're well known for building the most difficult parts, on time.
"In the last 28 months, we have had 100% on-time delivery."
– Chuck Kukulis, President, General Die & Engineering
Molds and Dies to 8,000-Ton Press Sizes
- Die-Cast Dies
- Coining Dies
- Trim Dies
- Plastic Injection Molds
- Offshore Receiving
- Mold and Die Servicing and Repair
- Aerospace Hot Form
- CNC Machining
- In-house Mold and Part CMM Certification
Full Program Management
- Part Design
- Rapid Prototyping
- Production Molds
- Mold and Part CMM Certification
Founded in 1971, General Die and Engineering is a privately held, financially stable company. We are constantly searching for ways to better serve our customers.
History
General Die & Engineering, circa 1986General Die & Engineering began building molds in a small “garage shop” in Grand Rapids. The business quickly grew.
1979 - Impact Industries Purchased General Die & Engineering
In 1979 Impact Industries, a die-cast company located in Sandwich, Illinois, purchased General Die & Engineering. The business soon moved to a new 15,000-square-foot facility in the Grand Rapids suburb of Wyoming, Michigan, where it continued operations for almost 20 years.
1996 - Purchased Arbor Mold & Engineering
In 1996, General Die & Engineering purchased Arbor Mold & Engineering, Inc., which owned a 25,000-square-foot facility in Grand Rapids. The acquisition of this second facility significantly expanded General Die & Engineering's capabilities, allowing us to manufacture molds and dies up to 80,000 lbs.
2000 - Merging Two Operations into One
By the year 2000, with both facilities nearing capacity, plans were made to expand and merge the two operations into one. Ultimately, the consolidation would streamline operations and allow us to be more competitive. When the expansion was completed in 2001, General Die & Engineering had a 68,000-square-foot manufacturing space.
Our success in an industry that demands excellence is no small achievement. Due to global competition, manufacturers have been forced to raise the quality of their goods while simultaneously lowering costs. Along every step of the way, General Die & Engineering has met that challenge.
Today - Giga Press Tooling
Always looking toward the future, General Die & Engineering is investing resources in tooling for the Giga Press. Giga Press die casting is the most recent advance in aluminum die casting. Currently, Tesla has invested in four Giga Press machines manufactured by IDRA Group for their Model Y automobile.
These massive die-casting machines range in size from 5,600 tons to 8,000 tons. They are the largest high-pressure die-casting machines in the world. A single machine weighs almost one million pounds. These machines take a 180-pound shot of molten aluminum and cycle into a complete part in 90 seconds. A single machine can produce up to 1,000 aluminum castings per day. (Source: Wikipedia)
Die-Casting Machine #2 (DCM2) Giga Press during assembly at Tesla Factory in Fremont, California. The open space in the middle between the compression platens holds the die-casting mold halves, and separates apart to allow removal of the completed casting using a robot.
Photo Credit: Gabeincal, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Continuous Investment in People
General Die & Engineering continues to grow because of ongoing investments in people, equipment, and software. As a testament to our innovative thinking and teamwork, this continuous investment has allowed General Die & Engineering to expand into new tooling fields.
We pride ourselves on serving every customer with virtually 100 percent on-time delivery and providing the best quality at competitive prices. Our company is ISO9001:2015 certified.
We at General Die & Engineering are committed to meeting rigorous delivery schedules while producing only the finest-quality plastic injection molds, die cast dies, and coining/straightening dies.
Why?
Because at General Die & Engineering, we believe "There Is a Difference."