Experience (n) – Practical contact with and observation of facts or events
Expertise (n) – Expert skill or knowledge in a particular field
Caplugs (n) – The team with the experience and expertise in custom molding you can trust.
At Caplugs, we’ve been the global leader in the manufacturing of quality caps, plugs and other protection components for over 75 years, allowing us to identify the right option or develop a new solution for nearly any product concern.
This especially shines when it comes to our custom capabilities. Our team members bring over 100 years of combined expertise to each project, allowing us to find a custom solution with speed and efficiency.
We recently sat down with two Caplugs team members to gain a deeper understanding of our custom process, as well as custom projects they’ve worked on of late.
While Caplugs offers over 50,000 catalog parts, there are times where only a custom part will do.
“Our mindset is always if it makes sense, we’ll consider a catalog item, but there are times we’ll look at an initial design and know we need to go down a custom path,” said sales engineer Paul Sauer.
From there, our team coordinates with our on-site engineering experts and the customer’s stakeholders to ensure project accuracy.
“We typically talk directly to the engineers at our customer’s location, especially in the automotive space,” stated Sauer. “A lot of times, you lose detail through translation if things go from the customer to a salesperson and then to me.”
To get things kicked off, the engineer will usually reach out with an application that our team has to find a resolution for.
“It could be a drawing or a STEP file that’s showing the mating surface,” said Sauer. “From there, we’ll walk through what the parameters are for the part, figure out if it’s being exposed to heat, going through a wash or being exposed to fluids, things like that.”
After initial research and communication is complete, our team will work on a quote or to produce initial samples for the consumer to review.
“If we’re working on a project that is a long way off that doesn’t have mating parts yet, we may just come up with a quote,” Sauer noted. “If it’s more current, we can print something off and send it to the customer to have them try it out for functionality.”
While initial quoting and sampling is a straightforward process, there are times where challenges may arise.
“With samples, they may be a little softer or slightly stiffer than what you will get with a finalized part, so there are always challenges,” said Sauer. “However, with a 3D print for example, we can provide a reasonable concept for the customer.”
From there, our team will work with the customer through testing and changes and get a sign off to begin the tooling and production process for the injection molded part.
When a customer is building an engine, transmission, EV drive or other powertrain equipment, and they need to close off components that will be exposed to air, we can assist with injection molded protective parts.
“For custom projects, that could be a metal shaft, it could be an electrical connector, an oil cooler port –– really anything,” said Sauer.
Assisting with powertrain protection is only some of what Caplugs can do in the automotive space.
“When it comes to assembly, we can help with door jambs, front of dash, floors – we really have a tremendous product line,” added Sauer. “Our biggest item for these solutions would be our body plugs (BPFE Series).”
While we offer a wide selection of cataloged body plugs, they can be customized for form and function. We sell millions of these plugs to the automotive industry. Along with that, we sell a substantial number of custom designs that do the same thing.
“I'm working on some plugs right now and we have a couple more in the queue for ‘27 and ‘28 models,” noted Sauer. “We're basically quoting to a drawing of the mating part to get the process started.”
Once the quoting is complete and the customer provides any further information needed for the engineering team, the prototyping and sampling process begins.
From there, we ensure we can design the part and accommodate the material required for that application. For automotive protection products, Caplugs will typically use low- or high-density polyethylene (LDPE or HDPE) or thermoplastic elastomer (TPE).
“The good news is if they are getting a custom design on a body plug and it is a standard material,” said Sauer. “It will typically fit into one of our standard mold bases, so we will only need to charge for an insert set.”
This not only saves the customer money upfront but can shorten lead times and improve overall production time for long-term savings.
Custom Tethered Plugs for Electrical Connectors
“One of the more unique parts we’ve designed recently is a plug made to fit over two electrical connectors on a case,” said Sauer. “The plug prevents dust and debris from entering the connector during shipment to an assembly plant.”
A tether joins the two plugs together, simplifying the need for two different parts. With this design, the operator is installing one part instead of two separate plugs. This reduces overall tool cost and saves time during installation. The pull tabs also aid in installation and removal.
Sales engineer Jonathan Zippiroli recently completed work on a custom perforating frac gun plug. The project required a custom plug to be made that would protect the threads of the frac gun components, which were molded with HDPE.
“We had some issues with finishing the tool, and some quality issues with the part we needed to make adjustments on because of the threading,” said Zippiroli. “This is a good example of a custom project that required a little more back-and-forth.”
Zippiroli and the tool room team worked out all issues by communicating with the customer directly. While this took a bit more time on the tooling, we now have a part that can be repeated thousands of times, saving the customer a great deal in the future.
Zippiroli is currently assisting with the production of pipe caps for a customer where the top rib on each cap needs to be just right. He’s focusing on lead time to get samples in the customer's hands.
“We’re kicking off the production tools now, basically duplicating parts,” said Zippiroli. “We're taking it one step at a time and focusing on getting them samples of our tool to approve.”
The project timeline is right on track, but delays can always happen. “If they want to change their design, or we need to revise our tools, we’ll let the customer know there can be additional lead time,” added Zippiroli.
As the project moves forward, open communication and flexibility will be essential to ensure a high-quality part is created for the customer.
At Caplugs, we set ourselves apart by being there for our customers from the initial discussions to manufacturing, shipment and beyond. Our in-house team takes pride in each project and the relationships we forge with customers.
“We're truly full service in the sense that we design the part, we design the tooling, we build the tooling and we run the tooling,” Sauer noted. “For the lion's share of what's happening for a custom project, we control that process, and that’s still an important capability.”
With a belief in the cradle-to-grave model, if there are parts a team member worked on in 2002 that are still in production today, and something changes, they’ll still be responsible for that part.
Our engineers and tooling team are not only dedicated to the customer but are focused on carrying a project to the end. This ensures timely production of parts and makes sure they’re being made the right way.
With over 75 years of experience handling tooling and manufacturing needs for customers across the United States and the globe, Caplugs is equipped to meet nearly all custom injection molding requests and deadlines.
When your business requires custom parts at scale to protect valuable equipment, we are your supplier of choice. With cost-efficient and in-house injection molding at our Buffalo, N.Y. and Erie, Pa. facilities, reducing lead times and meeting form and function requirements no longer needs to be a stressful process.