Have spare parts manufactured cost-effectively by laser cutting & sheet metal bending

In general, the production of sheet metal parts for automotive engineering has hardly changed over the last 100 years. The shape of the part is punched out of a flat sheet of metal using a punch and then shaped in one or more steps using a deep-drawing press. For this purpose, several specially manufactured tools are needed for each part. This is not a problem in series production, where the cost of operating huge press machines is recouped by the number of series produced.

But what about when, decades later, a few pieces of this part are to be reproduced and the punches and dies are no longer available?

In the case of this engine mount for an Enduro, a combination of modern and classic manufacturing techniques, as well as computer-aided design, brought success. After digitizing the original part, a suitable replacement part can be designed in the software. On the one hand, the expected loads on the spare part, on the other hand, the mounting points and the available installation space must be taken into account.

In addition, it must conform to the guidelines of the subsequent manufacturing process. In order to save costs, the geometry of the spare part must be modified so that fewer work steps are required during manufacturing. CAD software again helps here. Here, not only can the bending process be simulated, but the part can also be digitally measured to determine the extent to which the reproduced part will deviate from the original part. If in doubt, a prototype can also be produced quickly and inexpensively using FDM 3D printing and tested on the vehicle.

Unwound onto a plane, the contour of the part can be produced fully automatically by laser cutting from an aluminum sheet. It is then formed into its final shape in 3 steps using bending tools. None of these processes require special machines and the manual effort is minimal. Thus, compared to all other options, a cost-efficient part can be produced, which incidentally also weighs only half of the original, as well as meeting all technical requirements.

Even though many spare parts can already be produced inexpensively using 3D printing, there are also special cases like this in which a combination of several manufacturing techniques is more efficient. You can find out more about 3D printing in our blog.

We would be happy to support you with your next project, whether metal parts, rubber parts or plastic parts. Feel free to send us a reconstruction request!