Edge fracturing stamped out: Design & Engineering
Extending tool life is always a welcome improvement. Even before wear became visible, stamping tools, such as arbors and die plates, from voestalpine Rotec GmbH had to be replaced because of minor fracturing at the edges.
Extending tool life is always a welcome improvement. Even before wear became visible, stamping tools, such as arbors and die plates, from voestalpine Rotec GmbH had to be replaced because of minor fracturing at the edges.
Headquartered in Krieglach, Austria, the company is part of the metal forming division and designs and builds equipment for manufacturing pipe and tube components, as well as belt tensioning tubes for the automotive industry. Overall, voestalpine Rotec has 11 manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe and Asia.
“To be able to make our products at internationally competitive cost, our company is utilizing continuous improvement processes,” said Hannes Winkler, assistant to the plant manager.
He said burr formation on production parts indicated that a tool was worn before edge fracturing became apparent. Worn edges on stamping tools frequently were reworked by hand with a diamond file to remove wear and radius the edges, but this operation seldom was able to extend tool life.
“As this is not a repeatable process,” Winkler said, “nobody is able to produce a uniform radius by hand.”
Because of its quest for process optimization, the company sought an automated, repeatable edge radiusing method to prolong the service life of tools. Voestalpine Rotec contacted three suppliers of drag finishing equipment to run processing trials. The mass finishing process enables precise, targeted surface finishing of high-value, complex workpieces. In addition, being able to define process parameters provides repeatable results.
One supplier was Rösler Oberflächentechnik GmbH in Untermerzbach, Germany. (Rosler Metal Finishing USA LLC is based in Battle Creek, Michigan.)
“From my previous occupation at a supplier of motor sport components, I knew that Rösler Oberflächentechnik builds such equipment,” Winkler said. “That is why I contacted Rösler first.”
Based on test results, voestalpine Rotec chose the R 4/700 SF drag finisher from Rösler Oberflächentechnik in spring 2020. Unlike the other two suppliers, Rösler Oberflächentechnik offered a dry finishing process, which eliminates the process water cleaning system.
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