Research for tomorrow’s production
Development creates innovation. Particularly in industrial production, induction and conduction heating can open up new possibilities in the new development or optimization of manufacturing processes. We would like to give impulses with fresh ideas and thereby make our contribution to economic progress.
MEGATHERM Elektromaschinenbau GmbH specializes in the manufacture, repair and sale of electroheating equipment and its components. We find production-optimal solutions when it comes to implementing ideas. Our goal is to create the conditions for our partner companies to implement ideas with customized peripheral equipment in order to advance innovative technology.
Faster than you think: Innovation in the focus of ERDF funding
Increasing contact efficiency in punching high-strength sheet metal by conductive heating in indexed tools
The project is motivated by the ambitious emission reduction targets of the Federal Republic of Germany and the European Union, as well as intense global competition, which is increasingly presenting stamping operations in NRW with major challenges. As a result of climate protection efforts, current new developments, e.g. in automotive engineering, are characterized by increasing demands on the sheet materials used. In terms of lightweight construction, material volumes are decreasing while strength is increasing. Production technology, and in particular stamping technology, is now called upon to respond with new manufacturing concepts tailored to material development.
The following conventional process routes exist:
Stamping of soft steels and subsequent hardening – energy-intensive, cost-intensive
Stamping of high-strength steels and machining to produce the required cut qualities – additional machine tools required, high tool wear, not economical
The “KonTakt” research project is now concerned with increasing the flowability of high-strength sheet materials by conductive heating in the progressive die. During hot stamping, the cut qualities increase and the process forces decrease. Increased cut qualities eliminate cost-intensive rework as well as tool wear.
Megatherm, a special machine manufacturer in the field of electrical heating technology, will develop a conductive heating system for stamping processes for the first time in the project.
Project participants:
- Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology
- Megatherm Elektromaschinenbau GmbH
- HERU-Toolmaking GmbH & Co.KG
- ViewSystems GmbH
Project executing organization:
- Project Management Jülich
- Lead market AGENCY. NRW
- Fund for regional development (EFRE)
Research and development
Project ” Material composite”- spray compacted gradient materials
Participants in this project are the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, Zollern BHW, the Schaeffler Group, Wieland Werke AG, the Institute for Materials Technology, PEAK Werkstoff GmbH and Megatherm GmbH.
Target:
- Further development of the spray compatibilization process
- Improvement of material properties
- Shortening of production routes, delivery times and manufacturing costs
Solution
- Spray compacting with two melts and a ring substrate
- Simulation of cooling rates
Results
- Spray-compacted gradient rings
- Insights into the forming behavior
- Simulation program for predicting cooling rates
- Insights into up- and down-scaling of the process
- Characteristics for series production
Application examples – rolling bearings
Compared with conventional casting processes, spray compacting produces a fine-grained microstructure with low segregation due to the 2-3 times faster cooling of the melt in the droplet phase. This results in improved material properties, e.g. in terms of strength and formability.
Based on the successful experimental results, the producing companies are planning to build one or more spray compacting plants in order to be able to produce bearing materials faster, cheaper and with better quality. Due to strong international competition and constantly rising raw material prices, innovative, flexible and sustainable manufacturing technologies are becoming increasingly important in order to secure the business areas with appropriate innovations in the future.