EDM drills holes in press tools at high speeds

A high-speed hole EDM is cutting cycle times substantially at leading UK deep drawn presswork component company that has taken press tooling manufacture back in-house.

When deep drawn precision component specialist, Presspart Mfg, wanted an EDM hole-drilling machine to help it create press tooling at its Blackburn manufacturing site, the company began to consider suitable suppliers.

It was the ability of Sodi-Tech EDM to demonstrate quick and efficient hold production in a wide range of tooling materials that secured the order for a Sodick K1C high-speed hole EDM.

Presspart, which is a member company of the Heitkamp and Thumann Group of metal and plastics processing companies, was established in 1970 and today employs some 220 people at Blackburn.

It specialises in producing deep drawn precision parts for the automotive, pharmaceutical and medical industries.

With a healthy order book the company recently reviewed its in-house capability to manufacture press tooling, concluding that a new EDM method for producing holes was required.

"While we looked at four or five hole EDMs," explains Toolroom Manager David Clarke, "only the Sodick K1C could handle the variety of tooling materials we presented to it, such as D2 tool steel, tungsten carbide and titanium carbide." The Sodick K1C can produce very small holes quickly and efficiently.

It is particularly suited to the production of holes measuring from 0.25mm to 3.0mm in diameter, especially in materials that cannot be machined using traditional methods.

A further benefit is the elimination of tooling costs.

The K1C can accommodate workpieces measuring up to 250mm by 350mm by 300mm, up to 100kg in weight.

Installed in March 2005, the Sodick K1C has since been put to work manufacturing various items of press tooling.

According to Clarke this can include anything from producing start holes ready for wire EDM processes or the creation of venting holes that allow air to escape during the deep drawing process.

Materials processed by deep drawing at Presspart include aluminium, stainless steel, carbon steel, brass, nickel and inconel.

As a QS 9000 and ISO 14001 approved supplier, Presspart supplies some of the world's largest automotive companies and has particular expertise in the manufacture of safety critical components.

For the pharmaceutical sector, Presspart is one of the leading manufacturers in the world of aerosol cans for metered dose inhalers.

Most of the components produced on the K1C are low batch, typically between 1- and 10-off, and although the machine is not in constant use, it is used daily and has cut considerable time from the process of producing holes by EDM.

"Previously all of our hole requirements had to go on our die sink EDM, which is painfully slow for this kind of operation," explains Clarke.

"I would estimate that the Sodick K1C is faster by a magnitude of approximately 10".

"The amount of cycle time we have saved is phenomenal".

"Though it depends on material type, thickness and hole size, some holes only take seconds to produce: the machine is exceptionally quick".

"Considering Presspart has never purchased a Sodick machine previously, everyone is very impressed".

"The operator only required a half-day training session and he was producing holes." Clarke also praises the machine's rigidity and accuracy, as many of the holes produced have tight positional tolerances; in fact he cannot recall a single reject since installation".

""Investment is an ethos within the HeitKamp and Thurmann Group," he concludes, "As it leads to improved productivity and greater quality".

"The Sodick K1C has more than lives up to this ethos".

"And though the cycle time savings are the biggest benefit I would also say it has provided Presspart with the capability and capacity to do things we would previously have avoided.".

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