Our experience with forging: Workpiece weight and waste reduction
Oscar Seneci, 16/11/2018
Forging constitutes one of the oldest manufacturing techniques and still today it represents one of the main building blocks of industrial manufacturing. The applications of forged products are many and extremely various in nature. All of these products share the common denominator of high material strength. In an age of quick technological progress, forging companies are looking at improving their businesses. Very often this coincides with three main aspects: waste reduction, consistent product quality and quick lead time.
This post focuses on the possibility for companies to reduce the material used for production and the waste due to avoidable post-processing operations. With smart solutions it is possible to improve the performance of a product whilst reducing its environmental impact and manufacturing cost. Usually, the production waste is collected by forging companies and delivered to companies that produce metal rods or ingot for recycling, which results in additional transportation and energy consumption for the waste reconversion. Ultimately, minimising the waste production would minimise the subsequent chain, making it a greener product.
Most of the production waste in forged products is derived from three main design and practical aspects:
– Workpiece burrs
– Post-processing
– Excess of material
Here are reported three examples of our smart solutions for the design of forged product to address these aspects.
Reducing Burrs – No burr forging
Some of the products we forge every day can be designed to minimise the burrs created in the process, often it is even possible to prevent burrs from happening entirely saving up to 5% of the material mass. To achieve this, the design of the product and of the mould has to consider how the material deforms in the mould. It is in fact possible to force the material to flow in a way that does not lead to the formation of burrs as inferior pressure is exerted to the mould closing line. Our company has experts, with long experience in minimising the waste produced throughout the process, creating innovative solutions to constrain the raw material within the mould without creating burrs. Depending on the billet size, mould geometry, billet position within the mould and on the machine, it is possible to produce workpieces without burrs. Here below is an example of an eccentric that is produced in the traditional way with burrs and with our practice it can be produced without burrs.
Reducing post-processing – Hollow workpieces
When reducing post-producing, it is possible to include in the forging process features that would later on be produced with a different method, for example machining. Often forged product is used in hydraulic applications, therefore products often require through holes. These are generally not produced during forging and drilled with subsequent operations at a second stage. Instead of the holes, forged workpieces generally have two cylindrical cavities separated by a solid core. Our experts developed ways to use forging machines to produce extruded-forged workpieces that are provided with a through hole directly during forging and avoiding entirely to create shavings. This results in the overall workpiece weight reduction and in reduced waste production during post-processing. Once the hot billet has been positioned in the mould, with our bespoke mould tooling, it is possible to use one plunger to start the piecing process of the hot billet, while guiding the material with the help of the opposite plunger and the mould itself. The material flow is contained within the mould, hence producing a burr-less workpiece with a through hole. The material properties of workpieces produces in such a way, are the same as traditionally forged produce with the added benefit of reduced production cost and environmental impact. Here below is an example some compression fittings forged with through holes.
Reducing the workpiece material – Lightweight Ball Valves and drainage system
A ball valve is a valve in which the core of the valve is a spheroid with a through horizontal hole. When this channel is aligned with the pipe and the valve direction (open), the valve minimises the pressure drop, given that the valve is full bore. Furthermore, the valve only requires 90° of rotation from the open to the closed position which contributes to the valve’s seal lifetime as less wear is present. When the product design phase begins, it is possible to include solutions that reduce the overall material required to make the product. Reducing the weight also reduces the overall product cost and its environmental impact. An example of this approach is represented by the ball valve. Often this valve is produced as a solid part, resulting in increased weight and cost. Our team designed and patented in 1995, an innovative way to produce a much lighter product with the same performance. This is possible by making use of extruded-forging to produce a mainly hollow double cylinder that has a central core. A successive pressing operation would then curve the external walls onto the internal ones, creating a sphere while creating internal hollow cavities. The photo below shows a drawing of a traditional solid sphere compared to the samples of a hollow sphere . The robustness of the valve is extremely high since the internal walls and the remaining inner core-ring, once the central hole is drilled, provide exceptional torsional resistance and resistance to the fluid pressure. Furthermore, this design solution offers up to 35% weight reduction compared to a solid sphere and at present it represents one of the forging standards worldwide to produce ball valves.
Another example is the sink drainage system and its cap. Our team designed and patented an improved drainage system that addresses multiple limitations simultaneously. The drain-cap pair uses up to 20% less material and it is produced in extruded-forging without burrs. As visible from the picture below, since the cap relies on smaller pillars than in the standard design, the fluid flow results much increased allowing for faster drainage. Furthermore, since less surfaces are available and the flow is faster, dirt would less likely get trapped in the elements of the drain-cap system.
All these examples show how with smart design and improved forging practice it is possible to create a better product which is more ecological and has better performance. If you are interested in learning more about our experience and know-how feel free to contact us.
Our experience in forging: Workpiece weight and waste reduction
Oscar Seneci, 16/11/2018
Forging constitutes one of the oldest manufacturing techniques and still today it represents one of the main building blocks of industrial manufacturing. The applications of forged products are many and extremely various in nature. All of these products share the common denominator of high material strength. In an age of quick technological progress, forging companies are looking at improving their businesses. Very often this coincides with three main aspects: waste reduction, consistent product quality and quick lead time.
This post focuses on the possibility for companies to reduce the material used for production and the waste due to avoidable post-processing operations. With smart solutions it is possible to improve the performance of a product whilst reducing its environmental impact and manufacturing cost. Usually, the production waste is collected by forging companies and delivered to companies that produce metal rods or ingot for recycling, which results in additional transportation and energy consumption for the waste reconversion. Ultimately, minimising the waste production would minimise the subsequent chain, making it a greener product.
Most of the production waste in forged products is derived from three main design and practical aspects:
– Workpiece burrs
– Post-processing
– Excess of material
Here are reported three examples of our smart solutions for the design of forged product to address these aspects.
Reducing Burrs – No burr forging
Some of the products we forge every day can be designed to minimise the burrs created in the process, often it is even possible to prevent burrs from happening entirely saving up to 5% of the material mass. To achieve this, the design of the product and of the mould has to consider how the material deforms in the mould. It is in fact possible to force the material to flow in a way that does not lead to the formation of burrs as inferior pressure is exerted to the mould closing line. Our company has experts, with long experience in minimising the waste produced throughout the process, creating innovative solutions to constrain the raw material within the mould without creating burrs. Depending on the billet size, mould geometry, billet position within the mould and on the machine, it is possible to produce workpieces without burrs. Here below is an example of an eccentric that is produced in the traditional way with burrs and with our practice it can be produced without burrs.
Reducing post-processing – Hollow workpieces
When reducing post-producing, it is possible to include in the forging process features that would later on be produced with a different method, for example machining. Often forged product is used in hydraulic applications, therefore products often require through holes. These are generally not produced during forging and drilled with subsequent operations at a second stage. Instead of the holes, forged workpieces generally have two cylindrical cavities separated by a solid core. Our experts developed ways to use forging machines to produce extruded-forged workpieces that are provided with a through hole directly during forging and avoiding entirely to create shavings. This results in the overall workpiece weight reduction and in reduced waste production during post-processing. Once the hot billet has been positioned in the mould, with our bespoke mould tooling, it is possible to use one plunger to start the piecing process of the hot billet, while guiding the material with the help of the opposite plunger and the mould itself. The material flow is contained within the mould, hence producing a burr-less workpiece with a through hole. The material properties of the workpieces produced in such a way, are the same as traditionally forged produce with the added benefit of reduced production cost and environmental impact. Here below is an example some compression fittings forged with through holes.
Reducing the workpiece material – Lightweight Ball Valves and drainage system
A ball valve is a valve in which the core of the valve is a spheroid with a through horizontal hole. When this channel is aligned with the pipe and the valve direction (open), the valve minimises the pressure drop, given that the valve is full bore. Furthermore, the valve only requires 90° of rotation from the open to the closed position which contributes to the valve’s seal lifetime as less wear is present. When the product design phase begins, it is possible to include solutions that reduce the overall material required to make the product. Reducing the weight also reduces the overall product cost and its environmental impact. An example of this approach is represented by the ball valve. Often this valve is produced as a solid part, resulting in increased weight and cost. Our team designed and patented in 1995, an innovative way to produce a much lighter product with the same performance. This is possible by making use of extruded-forging to produce a mainly hollow double cylinder that has a central core. A successive pressing operation would then curve the external walls onto the internal ones, creating a sphere while creating internal hollow cavities. The photo below shows a drawing of a traditional solid sphere compared to the samples of a hollow sphere . The robustness of the valve is extremely high since the internal walls and the remaining inner core-ring, once the central hole is drilled, provide exceptional torsional resistance and resistance to the fluid pressure. Furthermore, this design solution offers up to 35% weight reduction compared to a solid sphere and at present it represents one of the forging standards worldwide to produce ball valves.
Another example is the sink drainage system and its cap. Our team designed and patented an improved drainage system that addresses multiple limitations simultaneously. The drain-cap pair uses up to 20% less material and it is produced in extruded-forging without burrs. As visible from the picture below, since the cap relies on smaller pillars than in the standard design, the fluid flow results much increased allowing for faster drainage. Furthermore, since less surfaces are available and the flow is faster, dirt would less likely get trapped in the elements of the drain-cap system.
All these examples show how with smart design and improved forging practice it is possible to create a better product which is more ecological and has better performance. If you are interested in learning more about our experience and know-how feel free to contact us.