The making of punches, forming tools, dies and other tools is typically described as a process of brutal force. This allows the piece to be cut, pierced, shaped, or any other form. They are commonly described as "chipless" methods of machining. The buyers of today's tool/die as well as machine operators must be more knowledgeable than the basic properties of the steel that forms the blank. They must be aware of the interplay with the entire system: tooling design and making raw materials for the tool, processing & heating, coating properties, material being machinable, the cycle time requirements, the time for machine shutdown, the process of heating and processing for tooling.

Coating Benefits of Punches and Dies

Based on the purpose, ACS offers a range of PVD coatings which add value and lower costs for punches and dies. Combining low friction coefficients with high film hardness gives rise to the desirable properties of:

less friction in sliding

Resistance to wear and tear from abrasive substances

reduced punch & die retraction forces

Tougher and harder surface.

upgraded tablet tablet release by tablet punches

Reducing galling, adhesive wear, and material pick-up

Eliminating material reaction due to chemical inertness

The improvements have to be made in a way that does not compromise the critical dimensions, tolerances and punches that dies as well as forming instruments require when using them. This is the reason PVD is so beneficial in the creation of functional surfaces.

EXTEND YOUR LIFEESPAN OF DIES PUNCHES, FORMING TOOLS

Die-cutters, punches, and forming tools can experience significantly improved lifetimes when coated with PVD thin film coatings. The Platit Arc-Deposition systems are operated at temperatures ranging from 160oC to 490oC. These temperatures are well suited for a wide range of water, oil or air hardening steels, such as S1, S7 A2, D3, W1 & W2, O1 & O2, M1 & M2 T1, M4420SS, other alloys and powdered metals which are employed for the manufacture of die components and other forming tools, plus metals like tungsten carbide.

PVD VS CVD COATING

PVD is preferable over CVD for coating punches, dies and the tools for forming. This is because PVD uses less heat during processing to protect heat-treated hardness and austenitizing temperature of the forming tool's substrate materials.

TIGHTER TOLERANCE

Because PVD provides coating thicknesses in the 1-5 um range (0.00004" to 0.00020") The components are able to be manufactured to final dimensions prior to coating which allows for the clearances that are required for close tolerance die and punch applications.

Increased wear resistance

"Wear" can be defined as a way to quantify the effects of abrasion and corrosion during the contact with other materials, grit, or tools. A punch, die or making tool's resistance to breaking, cracking or chipping can be described as "toughness". Each material used to fabricate punches will have distinctive wear and toughness levels. Those material choices range as follows:

Low wear resistance and High toughness

ADVANCED wear resistance and toughness

HIGH wear resistance with LOW durability

Which tool material is best suited for the specific application will depend on the forming process it is. So, wear resistance could be impacted by the hardness of the tool, and any coating that is added.