Case Study 8

Part name: Lower arm shaft

Material: Low-carbon steel

Thickness: .5 by .5 square bar

Challenge: To produce this large formed steel part in moderate quantities at the minimum possible overall cost to the customer

Solution: Tooling investment had to be minimized here because of the relatively small quantity (25,000 pieces), in order to minimize the total investment. We machined these parts in house on a screw machine, producing a straight shaft, and then we had these annealed.

The parts were then formed on one secondary die in two steps - the first step formed the 90 degree angle; the part was then rotated 90 degrees and placed in the other half of the die, where the 45 degree angle was formed. Forming this massive square shaft required a 40-ton press with a spring-supported bed.

The parts were then zinc plated and drop-shipped directly to the customer.