Hot Stamping

Hot stamping is a different method than the traditional cold stamping process we use for most of our programs. In a hot stamping application, we first heat the material to a temperature above the transformation temperature.  We then rapidly transfer the blank from the furnace to the die and stamp the part at this high temperature, simultaneously forming and heat treating the material. This process can be used to form higher strength materials for weight reduction applications by changing the material properties of the product through the heating and quenching processes.

Metals we hot stamp, include:

• Boron steel
• Usibor steel
• Ductibor steel
• Titanium
• Inconel®
• Waspaloy®
• Hastelloy®

Hot stamping changes the material properties of the metal, making it stronger, more reliable, and safer for your vehicle. This process is ideal for parts that are integral to the structure of the vehicle, such as B-pillar reinforcements. These parts protect passengers by taking much of the load during impact so using high strength materials improves the overall safety of the vehicle.

Our hot stamping cell is engineered to utilize fully robotic handling. This helps increase process repeatability and quality for our prototype and low volume production programs. Our equipment specifications include:

• Press bed size: 63” x 102”
• Tonnage: 600 metric tons
• Daylight opening: 79”
• Oven size (maximum blank size): 39” x 96”
• Temperatures up to 1,700°F

Our team members are highly trained, industry experts, qualified to understand and interpret testing results and make adjustments to the cell’s parameters (such as oven temperature and transfer time) as needed to achieve material properties within specification. This process helps to speed up the development cycle, getting parts to you quicker.

We are engineered to utilize a repeatable process that is ideal for low volume and prototype applications. The ability to run hot stamping simulations with a thermal component prior to manufacturing leads to more accurate simulation results, yielding better tooling and prediction of material performance.

How is our hot stamping process different?

• Robotic handling – Our fully integrated robotic handling system allows us to load and unload at the same location, increasing accuracy and repeatability. PLCs control the oven and robotics, creating a fully integrated system where parameters can be adjusted easily as needed.
• Onsite metallurgy lab – Hot stamping sheet metal changes the microstructure of the materials, making it stronger. Our onsite lab gives us the ability to quickly test material properties to ensure parts are meeting your specifications. This gives us real time results which we can use during process development.
• Speed – We manufacture our own press hardened steel tooling in-house to reduce program start-up time. Material testing onsite reduces the amount of time needed to verify material properties. This allows us to control program timing internally and reduces the overall length of the process.
• Vertical integration – We have the ability to manufacture our own tooling, perform material testing, laser cutting, and quality checks onsite. Performing all operations internally gives us much better control over the final product, as well as a quicker delivery.

Our robotic hot stamp cell, metallurgy lab, and ability to perform all operations internally allows us to ensure you receive the quality parts you have come to expect from us while achieving the desired program timing.

We have many testing and validation standards in place to ensure the highest quality product. We utilize world-class quality systems to ensure our processes are delivering optimal results. Our metallurgy laboratory is used for R&D, hot stamping material inspection, product validation, and weld failure analysis. When metals are heated for hot stamping sheet metal, the microstructure of the material changes. If a part doesn’t meet material specifications during testing, there are a number of things we can do, including adjusting the temperature of oven or the speed of transfer from the oven to the press. Once we have achieved the desired material properties, we can begin to process the order, having ensured the final quality of your product. In our state-of-the-art lab, we test tensile strength, as well as perform hardness testing and microstructure analysis. Our lab capabilities ensures the speed-to-market and quality you have come to expect from us.