Capstone Project

Academic Year 2017-2018

Internship at Rex Enterprises

Reflection Paper

Varun Saketharam
Grade 12 Section 1204
Capstone Teacher: Mr. Andrew James
Filipczak
Capstone Mentor: Mr. Gopinath Subramanian
 Internship Overview

Date  Activities 

Day 1 (20/12/17)  Factory Overview 

Observations and within factory connections 

Day 2 (21/12/17)  Shipment Websites 

Shipment Invoice and Billing 
Day 3 (16/02/18) 

Day 4 (17/02/18)  Baglet Production from Latex 

Silicone-Nipple Production 
Ultrasonic Welding 
Plastic Injection  

Day 5 (24/02/18)  Bottle Printing 

Bottle Blowing 

Day 6 (01/03/18)  Quality Check 

Safety Measures 
Day 1: 20/12/17
Factory Departments
Rex Enterprises company produces and exports baby products nationally and
internationally. Within the factory, there are different departments that function individually
to ultimately achieve a common goal. All departments and people in charge are equally
important to the functioning of the company. Some of the departments are plastics and
silicone engineering, latex dipping, sonic welding, packing,screen printing, bottle blowing,
and Quality control . Departments with my direct interest are plastics / silicone engineering.
There are also divisions in the company that deal with customer communication, finance and
accountancy,graphic designing, personnel and shipment/logistics. On this day, I was taken
around the factory to get an overview of the factory.
Observation
When I was taken to the Plastics section, it mostly consisted of plastic injection &
plastic blowing machines. There were working automatically with people collecting the
produce from the machines. I noticed that plastic pellets were put inside the machine and it is
turned into a final product. Then, I was taken to the latex department. There is one huge
machine operating in this department. I was told the machine follows the principle of putting
the latex inside the stainless steel tank and heating and cooling it. There is also a bottle
blowing department. It follows similar principle like other plastic departments because it uses
heat to liquify the solids and then uses high air pressure to change the shape forming bottle
shapes. Then I went to the quality control department where all different elements of the
products of the company are tested. The big idea of this department is that this department
ensures that the product will be safe for customers use. Almost all of the machines in the
factory use the principle of molds to form products.
Connections within the factory
Under the decision of the factory manager, the heads of each department take orders
and inform the workers about the decision and plans. Different products or components of
products are made in respective departments. They are then inspected by the Quality control
dept. Once they pass the various tests, they will be sent to the packing/assembly department.
If not, they will be rejected and reworked till they pass acceptable standards. After packing,
the goods will be shipped out to customers.
People
 There are people of different origins: Thai, Burmese, Indians and a few others. There
are people working in the office and in the factory. People in the office are in charge of
money, customer service, product / packaging development, personnel management and
accounting. People working in the factory take care of the production process.
Day 2: 21/12/17 and Day 3: 16/02/18
Shipping out Products
Today, I was given the task to work as the person who prepares the shipment of
products: inputting information about the products into the shipping website. The two
websites I used for doing so are APL Logistics and DHL. I was taught to operate using these
websites. From operating, I learnt that these websites require information: product number,
product type, volume of products, weight of products, Destination country number and the
quantity of products. I was given the paper containing all this information and what I had to
do was input it in the website. This information serve as identification of products to be
shipped out and security purposes. The format in which the information about the product is
arranged in the website is crucial to avoid confusion.
The customer first places an order to the factory with his requirements. There are
many ways that a customer can order products from the company: Coming to the factory and
order, meet with factory representatives at trade fair/ exhibition and order, ordering by e-mail,
etc.. After the company has received the order, it is passed on to the production who puts it in
his production plans. The order is broken up into components and then production of each
part starts. After production is complete and all components are packed, the product is
shipped
through shipping containers and the invoice is sent by email to customers. Another activity
that I was asked to do is invoice and billing. Invoice is the proof or evidence that goods are
shipped and on the way to a customer. It acts almost like a bill that we obtain after eating in a
restaurant. Within it includes all the information regarding the ordered products: type,
quantity and prices. Its purpose is advising what type of product was bought, in what quantity
and its price.I was doing for this for an entire shipment to an Australian customer and thought
that this job is quite boring because it is very repetitive.
Day 4: 17/02/18
Baglet production from latex
In the baglet production, the first step is
boiling the latex with the help if hot water of 15
hours. This is to liquify latex and remove any
unwanted impurities in the latex. Next, latex is
cooled down to a temperature below 20 degree
celsius. Then the latex is kept inside a room with
a normal temperature of 25 degrees celsius.
Here, latex pH level is decreased from 10 to
around 9 because ammonia level in the latex
decreases. The latex is taken to the machine and poured into the dipping tanks in the machine.
The molds ( or formers ) moving along a conveyor stop on top of the tank and then dip into
the tank. As the molds are at a slightly higher temperature and they dip into the cooler latex a
kind of film coating is formed around the mold when it comes out of the tank. It is then cools
down and solidifies. After that, the baglet is covered with another layer of the latex. It is
automatically stripped off the machine and rinsed in the water to leach out the harmful
chemicals.

Silicone-nipple production
In the nipple production, the process is not at all
complex. The machine called the silicone injector does all the
work. First, two groups of liquid silicone: A and B are
injected inside the machine. Both groups are silicone but
have slightly different chemical composition. A hydraulic
pump injects the silicone into the nipple mold inside the
machine. After the silicone is cured inside it is then
automatically pushed out of the machine with pins and comes
out in the form of nipples.
Ultrasonic welding machine
Ultrasonic welding is an industrial technique whereby
high-frequency ultrasonic acoustic vibrations are locally applied to
workpieces being held together under pressure to create a
solid-state weld. It is commonly used for plastics, and especially
for joining dissimilar materials. The factory uses the ultrasonic
welding machines to weld the multiple parts of baby products such
as the bottle cap. This
machine, however, produces extremely loud and high-pitched
sound so workers need to wear earplugs for their protection and
safety. The machine is powered by electricity.

Plastic Injection
In the plastic injection process, a combination of machines and people do the work.
However, machines do most of the work. This main constituents of this machine are: Heating
elements, screws, coolant bores, and ejecting pins. Injection machines can be divided into
two types based on their category: Hydraulic and toggle. Plastic injection is for creating a
plastic product of desired imprints.

First, the plastic pallets are inserted

in the machine through the hopper. The
plastic can be any types of plastic:
polypropylene, polyethylene, and
polystyrene. However, the most common
plastics used here is polypropylene. The
plastic is passed through the machine
barrel with the help of the pushing screws into the heating elements. Heating element is the
part of the machine that melts plastic. It is made of high-melting point metal and is usually
heated up to 200 degrees celsius. The screw spins, pushing the liquid plastic forward into the
imprint. While the screw is pushing the plastic, the mold on the other side of the machine
moves to receive the plastic. The mold moves back and forth with the help of the pump. The
screws pushing the plastic has to be pressed against with the walls of the mold. In this step,
the plastic takes the shape of the imprint or mold. Next, the coolant bores that is attached with
the mold cools down the plastic. After the plastic is solidified, the imprint moves out and the
ejecting spring ejects the produced plastic out of the machine. Sometimes, the workers have
to manually take out the plastic if the ejecting spring is broken.
For the hydraulic injection machine, the arms of the pump that the imprint is attached
to move back and forth directly. For the toggle injection machine, the arms of the pump act
like human arms. It has a joint that rotates in order to push the imprint. Therefore, both
functions for the same purpose, but has different ways of doing it.
The product from the machine may contain some errors. For example, the silicone
nipple made from the machine may have minor unwanted plastic projections( or flash )
sticking out. This flash can only be cut with help of the workers in the factory. After the
injection, the product is passed on the QC for review and check.
Day 5: 24/02/18
Bottles Printing
In the bottle printing department, the type of prints and what the design/decoration on
the product comes the customer orders. The order will state the artwork and exact quantified
color composition of the print. There are three types of printing: heat transfer, pad printing,
and screen printing.
The heat transfer type of printing uses the tape that has the design with the desired
picture or image. The machine spins the tape around the bottle. With the help of the heat, the
image is transferred from the tape to the bottle. The advantage of using this printing method
is that the cost of production is less. Less effort and money is put into making this process
complete. However, the disadvantage of this method of bottle printing is that the rate of
production is less. Another type of printing is known as screen printing. This type of printing
too has quite low production rate. This is because It prints only one color at a time. Bottle has
to be repositioned every time after each color print. Finally, pad printing type is the most
common type of printing because it has the most rate of production compared to other types.
With most rate of production, the factory relied largely on this machine to quickly ship out
products. This machine can print multiple colors at a time. It is characterized by the rotating
plate of bottle placements that are one by one printed by the rubber pad. This rubber is special
because it is made from combination of latex and oil with specific amount, that it is able to
absorb the color and completely transfer it to the bottle. This type of printing has a high
production cost.
For the pad printing, the components of the
printer are control panel, pump, pump adjustment, color,
and printing plate. The control panel is used to adjust
control the movement of the pump. The pump is made
of a rubber and silicone oil. This composition of the
pump allows the the property of completely absorbing
colors and completely transferring it to the bottle. The
pump adjustment is the part that allows the movement of
the pump. Finally, the plate is where the color is placed on.
The colors used by these machines are special colors with specific values. In terms of
chemical composition, all colors are made of thinner and the original colors to increase the
fluidity of the colors. The metal plate is imprinted on the surface the desired picture to be
printed on the bottle. This way, when the pump absorbs the color, it does in the form of the
picture imprinted.
Bottle blowing Process
The bottle blowing department receives the component from the plastic injection
department. The plastic bottle from the plastic injection department is incomplete. It is also
known as preform bottle. The preform is small in shape. In order to convert it into a bottle it
needs to be blown or expanded.
First the preforms are heated to a temperature of approx40 degree celsius so that the
plastic becomes more soft, meaning that it can change shape. This is done with the help of the
heater. The heater features the preform handler that rotates. It can be known that the bottle is
heated enough by touching the bottle. There can be other ways of checking the heat but this is
what the workers in the factory are used to doing. After heating, the preform bottle is put into
the imprint or molds inside the machine. The machine blows the air inside the preform bottle,
causing it to change shape. The air pressure from the machine causes the bottle to take the
shape of the container, which in this case is the imprint. After its done, the bottle is taken out
and put into a basket.
Day 6: 01/03/18
Quality Control department
The quality control department receives all
products from various departments. Its main
purpose is to ensure quality of the products
produced in the factory is good enough as in the
requirement stated by customer. Some basic
product testings are done within the factory while
some more advanced testings need to be done
outside at independant laboratories. There are
different tests carried out by the QC dept to make
sure that silicone nipple, bottle, and products parts
in general comply to industry standards and
customer requirements.
Silicone nipples are tested for flow rate.
However, not every piece produced is tested. Using
statistical models, samples are derived from
produced goods so that sample size is representative of the entire production lot. We made
use of the sample statistics to approximate that there are no flaws in any of the products. Only
about 10 pieces are tested from each sets of silicone nipples produced. The flow rate values
depends the size of the holes on the nipple In terms of testing, it tests how much water is able
to pass through the nipple under a certain amount of time. Flow rate tested for each silicone
nipple has to match the values requested by customer and per industry standards. Some
nipples are produced differently from others because of different flow rate. In order to test,
the nipple is attached to the bottle of the water and positioned upside down. The water
coming out of the bottle fills a cup that is placed on the weighing machine. The weighing
machine gives the values of the amount of water in milliliters. While testing, the timer is set
on the measure how fast the water passes. If there are flaws in the flow rate, the person in
charge of the department has to report it to the manager for corrective action.
Bottles are tested for printing stability. This is to ensure that the prints from the bottle
do not get removed under extreme environment. The volume label on the bottle is also
printed and it is very important to ensure that it does not wear out. To test, the bottle is put
inside the boiling water. Then the printed area on the bottle undergoes a tape test wherein a
tape of a certain specified grade is placed on the printed part of bottle and pulled out. If the
print comes off with the tape, then it shows that printing adhesion is not [Link] ability to
retain its properties under high temperature indicates that it is highly resistant to harsh
environmental conditions.
For products in general, it is tested for small parts that can be detached. This is
dangerous because small parts that are detachable can be swallowed inside children’s
windpipe. The small parts of the product are compared with the size of the model that
represents children’s windpipe, Therefore, this department ensures that the parts that are
detachable are large enough that it cannot be swallowed or the small parts are not detachable.

Safety Assurance within the factory

Safety of all people working in the factory is the priority in this company. With safety
assurance, the people can work without any concerns. The factory has a safety board in order
to record the number of accidents, last occured accidents and the causes.
Firstly, every floor is equipped with fire extinguisher. Fire extinguisher should not be
longer than 20m apart from each point. This way, in the event of a fire accident, it is more
likely that someone can reach out to the extinguisher and stop the fire easily. There are two
types of fire extinguisher: green and red, each for different purposes. The red fire
extinguisher is designed to stop normal fire on the floor. However, the green fire extinguisher
us to stop the fire on computers and any electronics. These types differ in chemical
compositions slightly.
The factory also assigns some workers to be in charge in the event of a fire. Each
floor has assigned workers. Each floor is also equipped with water pipes in case of fire.
Some departments like plastic injection and bottle blowing requires workers to wear
special gloves that prevent their hand from contact with extreme heat. Also, in the ultrasonic
welding department, earplugs are provided to machine operators. The amplitude and the
frequency of the sound waves are so high that it can cause hearing disability if exposed
regularly.
Thus, it is necessary to take all precautions in the workplace environment to protect health
and safety of workers.
ESLOs:
Strategic Learner: Internship requires me to work and stay in a different environment.
Recognizing what is important to learn while working is a must to a successful internship.
For example, while doing the invoice, I recognized that elements essential to shipping
product is a proper format of information: product type, quantity and destination.
Innovative Thinker: I learnt to use the websites for shipping and creating invoice
using computer softwares. This is a type of using technology to create high quality products.
Articulate communicator: Asking questions and discussing on unfamiliar topics helps
me in terms of growth in personality. I also explain to other people not to only spread
information but confirm my understanding on the subjects.
Morally Intelligent Person: Within the factory there are certain rules that should be
followed to ensure safety. This is my first time visiting a factory and learning the rules
followed. Therefore, I have to obey the rules and act like I am in the same community as the
other people.
Altruistic Global Citizens: From having observed the people working in the factory,
they belong to different cultures and had different origins. I observe people working and
collaborating. This has inspired me to be more open-minded about accepting the differences
in cultures when working with people. Therefore, this improves the quality of altruistic global
citizen.
Internship Summary
From this internship, I have accumulated experience that I have not experienced
anywhere else. I was assigned work that I have not done before and seen things I have not
before. Generally, I learnt how workers in the factory work in the factory and what
contribution their work is to the company. I also learnt the basic connections of different
departments in the company. I know that this knowledge cannot be generalized to all the
companies in the world but I feel it is essential to understanding the structure of any
company. For example, the the work from the plastic injection department creates the
preform bottle that is further processed by other departments. Also, the quality control
department receives product from all department and report the results to the manager. The
manager takes care of communication with the customers and product management:
shipment, production and buy materials.
General big idea learnt from different departments is that most of the products made
from plastics follows the principle of using imprint with the help of the machine. Each
product needs to be checked for minor plastic projections.
In terms of actually working and creating products, I experienced what it is like to be
the person who prepares the shipment and invoice. I learnt that it takes patience and passion
for job to work as the person who takes care of these things. However, as a first time doing, I
learnt the different elements required for successful product shipping in a company: booking
space in the container, and creating invoice.
In terms of personality, I have learnt to become more patient in working because I
was assigned to work on a task I had no background for and idea on what the purpose is.
With different people lecturing me, some people are not so skillful in explaining to make me
understand. I have learnt to accept differences in people and cannot expect the same outcome
of work from everyone.