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moldmakingtechnology.com 31 • Compact w/ Multiple Mounting Options • Greater Max Pressures & Stroke Range • Quality Control: Better Steel, Extra Seals, & 100% Pre-Tested • The Only Small Block Cylinders with Integrated Switches We Only Make MOld Cylinders injection Molding is in Our dna For Sales and Support in North America contact: Call: 909.941.0600 www.albaent.com Design custom cylinders and download 2D & 3D files, catalogs & tech manuals. Register Now at: VegaCylinder.com Configure Your CYlinders father, and today the company has 65 employees working in a 21,500-square- foot facility. Moldes Mendoza builds molds for the automotive, medical, closures, food container and dispensing industries. Mendoza says that his company has grown, on average, about 10 percent every year since it first opened. In addi- tion to building new molds, Moldes Mendoza also provides maintenance and repair services. When asked about the challenges in running a mold manufacturing busi- ness, Mendoza's response sounds like almost every other North American moldmaker's reply to the same inquiry. "Even with all the automotive manu- facturing going on in Mexico, it is slow now. The main reason is because com- petitors in China and Portugal offer prices that are lower than all of ours." One bigger and ongoing challenge, though, is finding and retaining skilled workers. "It is very difficult," he says. "We have to train people from the ground up who have hardly any education. The ones with degrees only want to develop apps or become a movie star." Mendoza adds that mold manufacturing companies like his are among the highest-paying compa- nies in Mexico. They offer a growth plan for employees, and many who came in off the streets have worked their way up and are now mold designers. Those who do not want to put in the hours and learn leave or are asked to leave. To help train the next generation of Mexican mold builders, Mendoza became an instructor. He also helped establish the Asociación Mexicana para la Manufactura de Moldes y Troqueles (AMMMT), the first national trade organization dedicated to representing moldmaking and die making in Mexico. "We have more than 50 member-companies that are working with the government to get educational institutions to implement programs for metalworking. Our other focus is on technology. We are investing in automation and a more efficient business structure," he says. Maquinados Industriales Ayala, SA de CV (Soledad de Graciano Sánchez, San Luis Potosí, Mexico) is a manufacturer of blow molds for industrial and auto- motive industry customers. Like Moldes Mendoza, Maquinados Industriales Ayala is an AMMMT member. Manuel Ayala Duran founded the family-owned business in 1985. According to Duran's son, Jorge, the director general, it was the dream of the former university professor to have his own business and to have his sons, Jorge and Manuel, working beside him. Today, Maquinados Industriales Ayala is housed in a 10,000-square-foot facility and has 44 employ- ees. Among them are 16 moldmakers, six engineers, eight apprentices and nine mold technicians. Jorge Ayala says his company has grown by more than 120 percent over the last five years, and he expects to see similar growth in the coming five years. He says local production and local service is a big advantage for customers, and those moldmakers who have pursued the opportunity to serve customers in Mexico have succeeded in most cases. "The mold industry in this country is needed mainly for mold maintenance and repair and engineering changes, and this is a large focus for our company," he says, citing that Mexico imports about $2.233 million USD in molds and dies from other countries, while internally less than 10 percent of the molds and dies in production are built in Mexico. Big tool shops from the United States, Canada, Portugal and Spain have been interested in installing facilities here to take a piece of the market.