Precision metal stamping starts with smart material selection. Well before a part reaches the stage of stamping, welding, or electrocoating, material selection ensures that final products are both top-notch quality and price-effective to ensure the best outcomes for both manufacturer and customer. These are a few of the top considerations for material selection within the metal stamping industry:
Performance
How raw materials perform during welding, stamping, forming, and shaping is always the utmost priority within metal stamping. Materials are chosen based on their ductility, resistance, and tolerance for peak efficiency. Specifically, materials must be able to undergo extreme temperatures, pressures, and conditions, so product engineers must make selections that can withstand these environments while still maintaining effectiveness over the course of their lifespan.
Lifecycle Costs
Another important component of material selection within the metal stamping industry is the total lifecycle costs of raw materials, not simply the upfront costs. Lower-cost materials, while efficient in the short-term, typically wear down faster, perform less effectively, and ultimately must be replaced sooner. Alternatively, higher quality materials like high-strength steel come with heftier upfront price tags, but perform better over the course of their lifecycle, therefore leading to long-term cost savings over time. Manufacturing teams therefore must balance long-term financial forecasting with short-term budgetary limitations.
Manufacturability
Metal stamping applications come with unique demands, such as how a material will hold up while going through the production process. Some materials, while high-quality in of themselves, are difficult to manufacture due to rigidity, lack of flexibility, or low wear resistance. This can become problematic when these types of materials cause excessive scrap waste and reworking to maintain efficiency. For this reason, manufacturers have to prioritize manufacturability when making material selections, choosing materials that can withstand extensive manufacturing processes without impacting production efficiency or repeatability.
Material selection is never a one-size-fits-all decision, and relies entirely on manufacturing and budgeting needs. Partnering with a one stop shop metal stamping supplier such as Bopp Busch ensures careful material selection that meets customer’s unique demands. The Bopp Busch team prides itself in collaborating with customers to determine the right material to optimize performance, boost cost savings, and streamline manufacturing production.
