Case Study: 120 ml IML Yogurt Cup Mold

92,000 pieces per day: how one machine delivered the output of three

H T Mould | Senior Sales Engineer

Product	120 ml thin-wall PP yogurt cup	Mold specifications	8 cavities, in-mold labeling
Compatible models	400T injection molding machine	Molding cycle	7.5 seconds
Daily output	92,000 pieces	Mold life	5 million shots+

1. Customer Profile: When High Volume Meets Thin Margins

In early 2024, a regional dairy packaging leader in East China approached us. They have long been supplying 120ml cups to three well-known yogurt brands, with an annual demand of more than 25 million cups. But the problem is also very typical:

Original equipment: It uses a 1-out-4-cavity ordinary hot runner mold with a cycle time of 11 seconds and a daily output of about 39,000 pieces/unit;
Capacity gap: During the peak season, three 400T machines need to be operated at the same time to barely meet orders;
Cost pressure: rising electricity costs, difficulty in recruiting workers, independent outsourcing of the labeling process, and the overall unit cost has not been reduced.

The customer made a "seemingly impossible" request: add only one new machine, but increase the daily output of 120ml yogurt cups to more than 90,000, and reduce the overall cost per unit by more than 15%.

The answer we gave: H T Mould has an 8-cavity thin-walled in-mold labeling mold, matched with a 400T machine, with a cycle time of 7.5 seconds and a daily production of 92,000 pieces.

2. Technical Solution: Turning Every Second into Output

1. Cycle time: 7.5 seconds, stable and consistent

The customer was initially worried that 120ml was larger than 56ml and the cycle would be significantly longer. However, by optimizing the gate design, enlarging the flow channel diameter, and using a high-response hot nozzle, we finally achieved a stable mass production cycle of 7.5 seconds, which is the same as the 56ml solution.

Daily production capacity calculation:

8 cavities, 7.5-second cycle time
Modules per hour = 3600 ÷ 7.5 = 480 modules
Production per hour = 480 × 8 = 3840 pieces
Theoretical output 24 hours a day = 3840 × 24 = 92,160 pieces

Customer on-site measurement: 24-hour continuous production, average daily output of 91,500~92,500 pieces, achievement rate 100%.

2. Bigger cup, the secret of the same speed

The projected area and wall thickness of the 120ml cup are larger than those of the 56ml cup, making it more difficult to fill. We made three key designs:

Hot runner system upgrade: 8-point independent temperature control is adopted, and the needle valve opening time and speed of each hot nozzle can be adjusted independently to ensure that 8 cavities are filled at the same time, and the weight deviation is ≤0.6%;
Three-dimensional layout of the cooling water channel: the mold size is 620×960×600mm, with independent water channels arranged at the cup body, cup bottom and cup mouth. The cooling water temperature is 18-22℃, the pressure is 0.5-0.6MPa, the temperature of the molded cup body is ≤45℃, and it can be directly stacked and packed;
Enhanced ejection system: It adopts a composite structure of air ejector + mechanical ejector, which ensures uniform ejection force and no deformation of the cup mouth. This also guarantees the accuracy of in-mold labeling positioning.

3. In-mold labeling: Save one process and make more money

Traditional process: injection molding → cooling → removal → secondary labeling → inspection → packaging
In-mold labeling: During injection molding, the label is fused to the cup body at the same time → the finished product is taken out

This eliminates the need for labeling machines, labeling labor, and label alignment waste. The customer did some calculation: the labeling process outsourcing cost alone would cost nearly $28,937.93 a year.

3. Mold Life and Maintenance: 3 Million Promised, 5.6 Million Achieved

We promise to our customers: there will be no major overhaul of the main structure within 3 million mold cycles. However, after the first set of molds was actually operated at the customer site according to the standard maintenance rhythm, it has exceeded 5.6 million cycles and still Maintenances a yield rate of over 99%.

Frequency	Maintenance item	Downtime
Daily	Add lubricating oil (guide rail, ejection plate, slider)	5 minutes
Every 100,000 cycles	Clean the exhaust slot to prevent trapped air from burning	30 minutes
Every 1 million cycles	Check the hot nozzle, spring, gas ejector pin, and wear block	Half a day
Every 3 million cycles	Replace springs and seals and perform comprehensive maintenance	One day

Customer comments: It is easier to serve than the ordinary molds in their factory.

4. Cost Analysis: How Profit Changes When One Machine Replaces Three

We compared the customer's original 1-cavity ordinary mold (cycle 11 seconds) with H T Mould's 1-cavity IML mold (cycle 7.5 seconds), based on a daily output of 92,000 qualified products, an annual production of 300 days, and an annual output of 27.6 million pieces.

Comparison 1: Equipment occupation

Item	Old setup	H T Mould solution
Single machine daily output	About 39,000	About 92,000
Number of machines required	3 units	1 unit
Save machine	—	Save 2 400T machines

Comparison 2: Electricity bill

Old setup: USD 3,888/day. H T Mould setup: USD 1,296/day.
That saves USD 2,592 in electricity per day, or about USD 778,000 per year.

Comparison 3: labor

The old plan requires 9 people, while the H T Mould plan only requires 3 people.
Save 6 people and $78,132.42 annually

Comparison 4: Mold amortization (5 million molds)

Save $0.207 per 1,000 pieces, $5,642.9 per year

Comparison 5: Labeling costs

Save $0.0004 each, $12,009.24 annually

5. Total Savings: Equivalent to One and a Half Mold Sets per Year

Item	Annual savings ($1,446.9)
Equipment investment (buy 2 less machines)	Save 600,000+ at one time
Electricity bill	77.8
Labor	54
Labeling process	8.3
Mold amortization	3.9
Total (excluding equipment)	144

A set of molds worth $50,641.38, net savings of $208,353.12 in the first year!
Including equipment savings of USD 600,000, the total income exceeds USD 2 million!

"In the third month after this set of molds was put into production, I canceled the order for the second new machine."
——Customer boss

6. Customer FAQs

Q: How thick is the 120 ml cup wall? Is it more prone to distortion than a smaller cup?
A: Minimum wall thickness is 0.35 mm; rim ovality ≤0.12 mm; stacks are stable on automatic filling lines.

Q: At a 7.5 s cycle, does the mold overheat?
A: No. Inlet/outlet water ΔT stays ≤3 °C; steady production holds about 40–45 °C on the tool.

Q: Will IML labels shift in production?
A: Locating features plus vacuum hold keep deviation ≤0.3 mm—well inside a typical 0.5 mm brand limit.

7. Closing Note: Thin-Wall Packaging Profit Is Hidden in Every Second

The 120ml yogurt cup is one of the most "volatile" sizes in dairy packaging. Brands lower prices every year, raw material prices fluctuate, electricity and labor costs only rise but not fall - the only thing that can squeeze out profits is production efficiency.

This 8-cavity in-mold labeling mold from H T Mould helps customers solve three practical problems:

Use one machine to produce the output of three machines - saving equipment, electricity bills, and labor;
Use in-mold labeling to eliminate a process - saving time, space, and outsourcing costs;
Extend the amortization cycle with a mold life of 5 million times - one set of molds can be used as two sets.

92,000 pieces per day, 7.5 second cycle, 99% yield, 3 million cycles guaranteed.

Welcome to contact H T Mould to obtain exclusive investment return analysis and mold trial verification!

Let every mold generate profit.

Note: The above data comes from the statistics of actual customer cases of H T Mould. Due to differences in on-site working conditions, the specific results are subject to actual mold testing.