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Extrusion Tooling Resources to "Die" for
12-17-02
Tooling that is properly designed, manufactured, and maintained will assist in maintaining the highest quality extrusions while achieving maximum productivity and yields. Recognizing the importance of this area, the Aluminum Extruders Council offers a variety of technical resources for the extrusion professional.
A publication that serves as both a starting point as well as concise summary is the recently issued Extrusion Dies and Tooling Manual: Recommended Handling and Maintenance. A project of the Aluminum Extruders Council's Die Committee, the manual serves as a guide to extruders for the proper and most efficient use of tooling. The manual is in a handy, 5.5" x 8.5" paperbound pamphlet format that facilitates use of the floor as well as in the office. Probably most important to know is that this manual represents the collective experience of committee members composed of extruders and tooling company representatives, and hence benefits greatly from the practical "lessons learned" of the industry.
Three major sections comprise this publication. The first, entitled "AEC Recommended Handling and Maintenance of Extrusion Dies and Tools", has seventeen sections on a range of relevant topics. Each section contains brief descriptive and, in many cases, quantitative data supported by tables and figures. A listing of the topics helps to appreciate the scope covered:
- Tool foundation
- Press alignment
- Tool alignment
- Dummy blocks
- Dies
- Protective coatings for dies
- Die cleaning
- Die correction
- Support tooling
- Preheating dies and support tools
- Container, liner, & stem
- Sealing of container/liner and die assembly
- Temperature factor in extruding
- Nitriding of dies
- The use of nitrogen in extrusion
- Die steels
- Tool failure characteristics and preventative measures
The second major section is the Die Problem Checklist, a troubleshooting resource in tabular form that addresses some 36 different problems from the perspective of the extruded product or operational parameters. For each problem area, potential causes are listed in areas of the die, profile, and equipment. Correction techniques, based on the probable cause, are then described. Finally, the advantages and disadvantages of the specific corrective approach are outlined.
A final section of the Extrusion Dies and Tooling Manual is a 16-page glossary defining relevant terms, including those related to the equipment, the process, and the aluminum industry in general. For the modest cost of $15 each for AEC members and $20 for non-members, this publication is a very worthwhile one to use in both training and day-to-day production.
The specific area of die correction is considered a vital "craft" in the extrusion industry, and thus AEC directs substantial attention toward training here. Two publications are available in this area, titled the Solid Die Correction Training Program and Hollow Die Correction Training Program. Both programs are provided in an instructor-ready format, with color slides, trainer's notes, cued script, and professionally narrated audiotape. The Solid Die Correction Training Program consists of three parts: extrusion dies and support tooling, receiving inspection of extrusion tooling, and sampling at the press; inspection of samples and die correction; and handling and maintenance of extrusion dies and tools. The Hollow Die Correction Training Program is presented in five sections of fundamentals, die configuration, feed & flow, bearings, and external factors. While the Extrusion Dies and Tooling Manual offers a synopsis, these resources provide the unabridged story. Further opportunity for training in this area is provided through the AEC Die Clinic, a roughly biannual seminar that is expected to be offered again in the spring of 2003.
All of the resources described above are available from the Aluminum Extruders Council either online at www.aec.org or by calling (847) 526-2010.
Article courtesy of Secat, Inc. - Research Resource for the Aluminum Industry
www.secat.net
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