Metal Press Tool

Aluminium can build up on a punch or forming insert after repeated contact. Once that happens, the surface condition changes and later parts may show drag marks, scratches or dimensional variation.

Simply polishing the insert again is not enough if the contact pressure, radius or lubrication condition remains unchanged.

The stamped header continues into another manufacturing process. Pierced and trimmed edges are therefore checked for burr direction, deformation and local damage according to the drawing and downstream requirements.

Compensation is based on actual sample results. One general aluminium springback value is not applied to every bend or forming station.

The 220 mm strip envelope has to hold the part, pilots, carrier bridges and scrap areas. As material disappears through piercing and trimming, the remaining carrier still needs enough stiffness to travel through the later stations without twisting.

The progression is not controlled by the feeder alone. Pilot entry, guide condition and carrier rigidity all affect the final strip position.

If several features shift in the feed direction at once, strip positioning is checked before working components in the Metal Press Tool are modified.

Intermediate stations make it easier to see whether a hole, bend or local profile begins to change during piercing, forming or later springback.

The 2900 mm tool length falls within Changdong's 3-meter gantry CNC machining range. Large plates and major structures can therefore remain inside the same tooling schedule instead of being split into unrelated machining work.

Six WEDM machines support cutting inserts and precision profiles while CNC machining, drilling and fitting continue on other tool components.

Large plates often contain many assembly, guide and service holes. High-speed drilling keeps this work from occupying large CNC machining time unnecessarily.

This project specifies a 400T press. Changdong has a 400T press available for tryout, together with feeder equipment for relevant progressive tooling.

Low-speed cycling makes pilot entry, strip lift and carrier movement easier to see. If the strip is not reaching a repeatable position, dimensional correction comes later.

The team checks when pickup or scratching first appears. That station becomes the starting point for reviewing surface finish, radius and lubrication.

Hole position, bend angle, local profile and edge condition are compared with the drawing. Intermediate strip pieces are retained where they help trace a later deviation back to an earlier operation.

Once feeding and part condition are under control, press speed can be increased and the same items checked again. A stable Metal Press Tool needs to repeat the result, not produce one good part under slow manual conditions.

Final OK samples are released after the agreed dimensional, burr and surface requirements have passed the defined inspection criteria.

Critical dimensions can be reported against the customer drawing so engineering and quality teams are reviewing the same sample condition.

Feed stability, part dropping off, scrap removal, common wear areas and service access are reviewed before the tool is prepared for shipment.

Tryout notes and agreed correction results provide a useful reference if the customer needs to trace a tooling issue after the die enters production.