toolmakers faqs
Are there specific tooling design considerations which customers should be aware of?
Yes. As compared to conventional setup, Deepform setup requires some additional moving parts. A higher stroke length is needed to allow for the folding operation, and our tools are setup on standard gas springs. We anticipate that the press force is lower than conventional as the process occurs in pure shear deformation.
Are there any specific process limitations or feasibility boundaries regarding product design, material grade etc which we should understand?
Yes. There are similar failure modes with thinning/thickening and springback. In terms of material, aluminium 0.3-3mm and steels of 1.2 and 1.6 mm have been tested and are feasible in simulation world.
What are the typical lead times for designing and manufacturing new stamping tools, and how do they compare to conventional tooling lead times?
We anticipate that it will have comparable lead times as conventional tools – we use standard die components.
How are the tooling costs defined for this new approach, and are they more costly or more complicated to develop?
As part on ongoing project with a European OEM, their stamper had investigated the impact of costs and concluded that:
- Manufacturing costs are cheaper to conventional – because we had one reduced operation.
- Maintenance costs are similar costs to conventional.
Is the development process more difficult to design, manufacture, and maintain compared to a classic stamping tool design for a similar part?
The process is more complex during initial design and manufacturing process, but DeepForm provide guidance to help overcome any challenges and make it seamless.
Are you able to showcase studies or data demonstrating the long-term robustness and performance of parts produced with this new process.
Yes, we have examples which are available on request.
What kind of training or specialised skills are required for customers to operate and maintain the new tooling effectively?
DeepForm elements are standard die components, so we do not anticipate any expert skills to be required to maintain them. Inspection of the forming surface requires knowledge of the process but should not require any special skills.
Which market sectors are providing the most opportunities to deliver impact and change current processes?
Automotive OEMs are interested in the improved material utilisation. More recently, the beverage can sector have shown interest when they learnt about the step change in process line.
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