Calculator Bodies for Kangaroo

One mould. Two models. Zero waste. Hongyi JIG governed the tooling strategy that let a market leader deliver two premium calculator variants — without doubling the tooling cost.

Two calculator models. One tooling budget.

Kangaroo, a market leader in office products, came to Hongyi JIG with a clear challenge. They needed high-precision injection-moulded bodies for two calculator variants — the Premium and the Executive. The question was not whether the moulds could be built. The question was whether two distinct models could be produced without two separate sets of tooling — and without compromising quality on either.

Kangaroo — Calculator family

Family mould strategy — 1 mould, 2 variants

Family mould — two models, one tool, no compromise.

Hongyi JIG's tooling strategy was the key decision: design a family mould that could produce both the Premium and Executive calculator bodies from the same tool. This eliminated redundant tooling entirely. A further innovation — the rubber key insert was combined directly into the family mould, removing the need for a separate insert tool. This alone saved significant cost that would otherwise have been invisible to the customer until the final bill arrived.

Swappable inserts. Multi-colour keycaps. One sprue.

The tooling design included swappable inserts that allowed multi-colour keycap production from a single sprue. This gave Kangaroo production flexibility without additional tooling investment — different keycap colours could be achieved simply by changing inserts, not changing moulds. The mould design also guaranteed precise top-to-bottom alignment across both model variants, ensuring that the Premium and Executive bodies met the same dimensional standards.

Tooling design highlights

One mould. Two models. The rubber insert — combined in the same tool. What looked like a cost saving was actually a governance decision made before steel was cut.

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This case study is published with the knowledge and consent of Kangaroo. Product and programme details are represented accurately. Production volumes and commercial terms have been omitted at the client's request.