Plastics are usually processed by molding of a plastic melt which solidifies according to the respective molecular structure. Subsequent forming processes - so-called further processing procedures such as thermoforming or welding, or new generative processes (3D printing) such as laser sintering of plastic powder - also play a role in processing technology.
The various plastic processing methods strongly differ in their thermodynamic and flow-dynamic conditions such as heating, pressure, flow velocity and cooling speed. The key to appropriate plastics processing and to a suitable plastic product is knowledge of the correlation of these properties, including the processability, the material structure during solidification and the resulting component properties. The simulation of these processes, the virtual design, helps predict weaknesses during processing in order to assess and correct them in advance.