Page 23 - MetalForming December 2014

2014 Award Winners
Winners were honored with a special plaque, commemora- tive flag and a cash prize.
Higgins-Caditz Design Award
Trans-Matic Manufacturing Company, Holland, MI
Ulbrich Product Development Award
Trans-Matic Manufacturing Company, Holland, MI
Pitcher Insurance Agency Safety Award
Pentaflex, Inc., Springfield, OH
A.R. Hedberg Training & Education Award
Pentaflex, Inc., Springfield, OH
Zierick Manufacturing Corporation Productivity Award
Metal Flow Corporation, Holland, MI
Clips & Clamps Industries Educational Institution Award
Workshops for Warriors, San Diego, CA
PMA also presents awards in these two categories, for which there were no winners in 2014:
The Quality Award, sponsored by Waukesha Metal Products, Sussex, WI, recognizing outstanding achievement by a manu- facturing company in the development and implementation of a company-wide quality system that effectively uses continuous improvement.
Excellence in Process Control, sponsored by Link Systems, Nashville, TN, promoting the application of electronic-analog closed-loop process controls in the metalforming process by rec- ognizing innovative electronic solutions implemented by a North American manufacturing company, which have resulted in signifi- cant quality, cost reduction and/or productivity improvements.
originally tested was a typical low-carbon alloy steel; ulti- mately, the best combination became a straight shell 0.090 in. thick, while bumping up the carbon content of the alloy to improve strength. The work-hardening from the deep-draw process provided more than enough strength to meet the LCN performance and cost requirements, and proved to be as strong as the 0.125-in. machined spring tube.
Trans-Matic now manufactures the spring tube and cap in a 16-station transfer die using a 600-ton Minster transfer press, and manufactures the end plug in a 13-station trans- fer die using a 300-ton Waterbury transfer press.
The new parts in production today are less costly than the original parts. Trans-Matic also adds a screw-adjustor assembly to the spring tube, providing additional savings to Allegion.
The project created several benefits to Allegion, including an overall 27-percent cost reduction. The redesigned spring tube and end plug also reduced assembly weight and mate- rial consumption by 22 percent compared to the original machined designs. And, incorporating the tube cap into the stamped spring tube reduced the number of components in the door closer to two deep-drawn parts rather than three machined parts.
Created by the Worcester Pressed Steel Co., Worcester, MA,
and sponsored by The Quarterly Club, the Design Award recognizes a manufacturing company for outstanding achievement in developing an innovative product design. Trans-Matic received a $1500 cash prize.
Excellence in Product Development
Trans-Matic Manufacturing Company also received the 2014 Ulbrich Award for Excellence in Product Development, for developing a deep-drawn titanium housing for a premi- um-value air wrench. The air tool previously comprised an investment-cast titanium housing that was machined and required drilling and threading of mounting holes.
To reduce the cost of the housing, Ingersoll Rand approached Trans-Matic to investigate and develop a pro- duction process to deep-draw the titanium housing and assemble it to a new steel insert. The savings would come from reduced processing and machining
costs by using a work-hardened deep-drawn Grade 2 titani-
um shell 0.062 in. thick.
The Trans-Matic engineering team ran multiple forming simulations with
the company’s
proprietary soft-
ware/database to
define material properties,
determine forming feasi-
bility and validate tooling
designs and reduction
ratios for each tool station.
The deep-draw prototyp-
ing process for the titani-
um parts (0.062 in. thick,
and3by3by3-in.part
size) required a 300-ton stamping press, and the hand trans- fer of flat blanks and subsequent formed parts through sev- eral punch/die stations. After the prototype shells were formed, edges were trimmed square.
To assemble the housing to the steel insert, Trans-Matic developed two concepts, one using a structural adhesive and the other a unique mechanical interlock design accom- plished using side swaging. Both processes met all pull-test requirements.
The end result was a high-value titanium deep-drawn housing assembly made in the most cost-effective way pos- sible. Along with developing the deep-draw process to tackle the difficult-to-form titanium material, Trans-Matic also developed an anti-galling raw-material surface pretreatment; wound up with a new low-friction lubricant formulated specifically for deep drawing of titanium with interim annealing; and engineered a way to provide temperature control and cooling of the tooling and parts during forming. Among the
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