The simultaneous retention of seat back map pocket assemblies and carpet finisher trims on a newly-launched British made compact family saloon is the latest application to benefit from the speed and cost-effectiveness of plastic hot air staking technology.

PHASA Developments has recently won an order for custom-engineered assembly equipment and tooling, which features automatic parts sensing and a novel, inverted assembly process.

Unlike most fastening operations, components are loaded into the machine with their finished or ‘A’ faces uppermost. On initiation of the automatic cycle, pegs on the polypropylene map pocket assembly and seat back moulding are heated from beneath the workpiece area by precisely controlled jets of air at up to 400 degrees Celsius. When the stakes reach their plastic state, purpose-designed mould tools clamp the components together, before re-shaping the pegs into rivet heads, which subsequently cool and solidify to produce permanent, low-cost, fixings without the need for additional clips or threaded fasteners. The equipment’s configuration ensures that gaps between assembled components are eliminated and that the resultant vibration and tamper resistant assemblies are produced without risk of damage to the mouldings’ all-important top faces.

Nine off 7 mm hollow pegs are employed to secure the map pockets, while a further three off hollow 6 mm pegs are used to secure the carpet trim, all within a single, 20 second machine cycle.

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