Cold work
High quality dies
In order to withstand high speeds and enormous stresses, the tool steels used in cold processing metal require high performance in edge retention, fatigue resistance, wear resistance and impact resistance and high heat checking resistance.
Aubert & Duval’s offering
Modern methods for cold processing metals and alloys require the use of increasingly high-performance tooling. Current production constraints demand ever higher speeds and increasingly fragmented production runs to reduce production costs and total tool cost. This affects all cold working methods, from cutting and drawing to cold heading and cold forging. Aubert & Duval’s wide range of grades will enable you to meet all these demands. The choice of grade is an integral part of design optimization, enabling costs to be brought down by reducing tool maintenance and operating costs. By offering alloys that are ideally suited to specific processing techniques, we help you to increase tool performance and reduce production costs; the total cost of the tooling has to be borne in mind.
Cold Work tool steel grade selection
Selecting the right grade depends on the conditions for the tool’s use: it results from a compromise between the following four main properties, depending on the processes used and the stresses encountered:
- Machinability
- Wear resistance
- Resistance to spalling, cracking and breaking
- Resistance to distortion and sinking.
- TA2: martensitic steel with high yield stress, excellent toughness and high hardenability
- SMI: cold work alloy tool steel suitable for drop-stamp dies and shear blades. It presents good ductility suitable for parts subjected to impact, good dimensional stability and good cutting properties.
Applications
- Cutting
- Drawing
- Cold heading
- Flow forming
Metal Powders for additive manufacturing
Aubert & Duval provides metal powder for 3D printing of tooling parts, find out more
For specific grades, dimensions or applications contact us