Increasing The Speed And Quality Of Sheet Metal Parts With Metal Stamping
Posted on: 5 May 2021
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Metal stamping can be an effective way to make many parts and repeat the dimensions and quality of the parts from light metal materials or sheet metal, but the process needs to be set up correctly for it to work. Companies that specialize in metal stamping often provide their services for smaller companies and can stamp many different materials for their customers.
Metal Forming
Metal stamping can be used in several different ways. Metal forming is one of those options and involves creating a die set installed in a hydraulic press, and then the metal or stock is inserted between the dies. The press is closed, and the metal is forced into the shape of the die by the pressure.
Metal stamping materials this way can produce an item that is the same over and over. The material being stamped can range from thin sheet metal, or if the press is large enough, it could be steel stock that is nearly three inches thick when it goes into the press.
Copper, brass, aluminum, and many alloys can be used in the metal stamping process, and the applications that the stamped metal can be used is extremely varied. In some cases, metal stamping may produce a product used just as it comes out of the press, like license plates or metal signs. Other times the metal stamping process produces something like a substrate or frame for something to be added to. The applications are nearly unlimited.
Die Cutting
Metal stamping can cut parts out of metal stock like steel and aluminum to create pieces for other use. The process is very similar, but the dies used are designed so that they punch shapes out of the base material when the press closes, and when they die is created correctly, the cut lines are as crisp and clean as laser cutting, but the press works much faster.
The bottom die is often used to support the material during the metal stamping process, while the upper die punches through the steel or other metal, creating the part blank used in another process. Often the die is designed to be able to cut out several pieces at the same time and limit the waste of the stock in the process.
The metal stamping service will typically recycle the scrap left over after punching out the parts, reducing the overhead they have and making it easier to offer lower prices to clients while still performing the job within the profit margin they require.
To learn more, contact a local metal stamping company.