Toolform Case study:
Laser and Sheet Processes Group

Forging Tool Repair

Illustration of typical forging Operation (Image courtesy GFM)

The Toolform programme, joint funded by the DTI, Yorkshire Forward and Objective 1, has assisted in the repair of rotary forging tools at a Sheffield based international forging company. In the UK forging industry, the costs of manufacture and repair of forging dies and tools can account for around 10% of overall costs. Consequently, any improvement that can be made to reduce wear and extend tool life can have an immediate effect on profitability. This can translate into lower prices, leading to potential increased business for the forging company and improved job security for the workforce.

A South Yorkshire based SME working in the metals forging industry has recently purchased an additional forging machine with the intention of increasing their capacity and moving into a new market sector. Introduction of the new machine is expected to increase the company's turnover by around £500k per year. Forging tools for this machine are very highly stressed due to the high forging forces and high temperature they operate under. They consequently suffer considerable wear and damage to the operating faces. The company was very interested in finding the most effective method of repairing their forging tools for the new machine. TWI was in a position to be able to provide assistance with this type of project. TWI's expertise in welding and metal deposition was utilised in order to investigate the available options.

Working with the forging company, and using Toolform funding accessible through AMTI 2, TWI was able to design a project to examine a number of suitable techniques that could be used to repair the forging tools. Deposition trials onto sample material supplied by the company were undertaken to assess the options. Two alternative procedures were then chosen as offering the best compromise between repair cost and wear resistance.

Examples of forged products (Photo courtesy GFM)

Examples of worn forging tools were supplied by the company and were then repaired by TWI using the two techniques. The repair involved machining away the damaged and worn areas caused by previous forging operations and rebuilding the surface by metal deposition using the welding procedures developed in the previous trials. These tools have now been returned and are currently in use and being closely monitored to assess their performance. The benefits available from improved tool performance include reduced repair costs, reduced downtime for tool changes, improved dimensional accuracy and better metallurgical structure of the forged material. Cost savings of between £40k and £50k per year could be achieved with a 30% increase in tool life.

For further details on this work, please contact Roger Fairclough (email: roger.fairclough@twi.co.uk).

This support, provided to GFM, was made possible through the Toolform Strand of the Advanced Metals Technology Initiative (AMTI) funded by the DTI, Yorkshire Forward and the European Union through the South Yorkshire Objective 1 programme. The AMTI project is managed by NAMTEC, the National Metals Technology Centre.