SIMUFACT FORMING
CAE tool for Manufacturing Metalworking Industry
OVERVIEW
Simufact Forming is an established software solution for the simulation of forming manufacturing processes.
The software covers all essential areas of forming technology: forging, cold forming, sheet metal forming, all rolling processes, open die forging and mechanical joining, to name only the most important processes.
Simufact Forming provides support in microstructure simulation, calculation of die load, material flow and prediction of material properties in the course of conventional and inductive heat treatment. Furthermore, thermo-mechanical joining methods of pressure welding are also supported.
Simufact Forming is used as a modern simulation tool in the construction department, method planning or in the process development. In the hands of a manufacturing practitioner or a design engineer Simufact Forming leads to a better understanding of the process.
It furthermore helps to reduce the number of expensive and complex tests. Optimized manufacturing processes by an increased product quality, shorter development cycles through a faster process development, faster performed feasibility studies, all this reveal the benefits of process simulation with Simufact Forming.
SIMUFACT FORMING - CAPABILITIES
• Increase the efficiency of metal forming- and joining processes
• Find the right process chain depending on manufacturing technique, batch sizes, and existing manufacturing plants
• Shorten process development time (time-to-market-issue)
• Reduce your costs, due to alternative manufacturing processes
• Deepen your knowledge about the manufacturing processes at an early design phase (feasibility)
• Build up valuable knowledge (apart from personnel fluctuation and retirements)
• Meet the quality and performance requirements of your customers’ specifications
Transfer of simulation results to subsequent processes
The process specific application modules allow you to simulate single production steps. If you combine the module across applications and products, it enables you to connect various manufacturing steps to entire process chains and to simulate these as a whole. Results of previous manufacturing processes are passed to subsequent processes and lead to considerably more precise simulation results. It is even possible to export the simulation results to third-party products, for example for fatigue and crash simulations.
APPLICATION MODULES
Cold Forming
Forming processes significantly below the recrystallization temperature of the material. These processes include typical upsetting and extrusion processes (e.g. for the production of bolts, nuts and rivets), but also coining, cold hobbing, thread rolling and last but not least drawing processes (e.g. wire drawing, tube drawing and profile drawing).
Hot Forging
Forming processes above the recrystallization temperature of the material. A typical process is hot forging, including closed die hot forging, auxiliary processes such as heating and cooling, cutting processes and preform operations (e.g. upsetting, bending, forge rolling and cross wedge rolling) as well as extrusion processes.
Sheet Metal Forming
Forming of sheet metal. Sheet metal forming includes: Drawing processes (e.g. deep drawing, reverse drawing, collaring, tapering and stretching), wall ironing, blanking, stamping and bending, fine blanking, coining, roll forming, draw bending, molding, pressure forming, roller spinning, pull-through drawing and more.
Open Die Forging
Forming processes in which the shape of the workpiece is changed incrementally (i.e. step-by-step) by repeated, local forming using geometrically simple dies which move typically relative to the workpiece. Open-die forging includes among others cogging, radial forging, rotary swaging, shell forging and rotational partial forging.
Rolling
Forming processes in which the material is formed between two or more rotating dies (rollers). Examples of rolling processes include; flat and profile rolling, cross rolling, spinning, flow forming and reduction rolling.
Ring Rolling
Special rolling method for the manufacturing of seamless rings with related sub-processes such as; radial ring rolling, radial-axial ring rolling and axial closed die rolling.
Heat Treatment
Processes in which metallic workpieces (mainly steel pieces) are temporarily heated for the targeted improvement of the material’s properties.
Mechanical Joining
Forming process that causes a mechanical interlock between the pieces. Mechanical joining includes riveting methods such as; punch riveting, self-piercing riveting and blind riveting, as well as clinching technologies such as pressure joining, clinching and toxing.
Pressure Welding
Pressure welding is a joining process in which components are joined by heating and compression. Heat can be generated either via current (resistance welding) or by using friction (friction welding).
BENEFITS
Reach better product quality by minimizing forming folds and scraps in tools
Reduce your costs in tool design by shorter development time
Reduce production cost by optimizing your die load
Optimize your processes by reducing the number of forming operations
Optimize multiple sheet metal forming operations with precise and expensive tools
Identify the best joint depending on high variety of material properties and thicknesses of sheet bodies
Identify typical issues as surface defects or scrap and rework due to instable rolling processes