A leading automotive equipment manufacturer came to Presrite because they wanted a more cost-effective forging solution to work with multiple ring gears for their drive axles. The customer requested multiple combination forgings at the project start, to yield seven different gear ratios instead of the initial single gear, per forging option.
After testing the combination forgings during performance situations and well into production, the customer approached Presrite for options to reduce costs. Between the Presrite engineering support and the customer’s programming-manufacturing group, it was determined that the “all-purpose” forging slowed down the overall machining process significantly.
The machining simulations showed that seven different forgings, while requiring more tooling expense, would significantly reduce cycle times and cost by up to 67% and reduce machining time per part, from 3.5 minutes to just 1 minute per part.
After consulting with the manufacturer’s team, and understanding their needs, Presrite’s engineering team began designing seven different dies for each unique gear forging. The teams reviewed the 3D CAD and modeling simulations to assess the number of times each forged gear would have turned during the machining process. The decision was then made to move forward with the Presrite options.
The Presrite engineering team reduced the machine stock condition of each forging whereas the finish gears required significantly less raw material. Moving forward, each forging requires only one pass of the machine to have the gears meet the size requirements during the machining process.
Additionally, the manufacturer has been able to limit outsourcing processes that included turning operations. This process elimination reduces the overall touch time and expenses associated with outside processing, shipping and handling. By reducing their cycle times, the manufacturer was able to significantly increase their capacity to take on additional new projects.
In addition, the manufacturer has moved their turning service in-house, saving even more money on the project.
Forging solution saves machining time, labor, tool life, setup/teardown time and overall cost