ir-Core is a process developed by Mercury Plastics, Inc. which is a private company located in Middlefield, Ohio. This company has remarkable potential when it comes to being innovative and coming up with new technologies and ideas. In spite of not being an extensively large or spread out company, Mercury Plastics, Inc. has managed to add giant corporations with world famous names to their customer list.

With Air-Core, designs that were once impossible to achieve using conventional blow molding are now viable. The Air-Core process allows Mercury Plastics, Inc. to do everything from adding a blow molded detail in the middle of a tube to making 3D shapes with multiple angles not possible with traditional blow molding and with much less capital expenditure.

Air-Core also makes it possible to incorporate components that are made of other materials including metal brackets, studs and nuts.

As evident as the expanded design possibilities are, that is not the whole ball game. This company had managed to continuously improve their internal efficiency. Their current internal scrap rate is at 0.100 %, with everyone driving to push it down even further. This may also explain some of the benefits listed below:

* Lower tooling costs
* Lower prototype and production costs
* Compatible with all thermoplastics
* Enhanced dimensional stability
* Minimal redesign costs
* Eliminates parting lines and improves part integrity
* Tight radii made possible
* Accommodates 3D shapes not possible with blow molding
* Appropriate for flexible and rigid materials
* Improves burst performance over blow molding
* Less capital expenditure than suction blow molding