FOCUS ON PRODUCTIVITY
Half Specimen Dome Test samples to determine edge-cracking behaviour during flanging in metal sheets .
Determination of fatigue resistance through a fatigue test , based on damage mechanics , to reduce testing time from days to two hours , requiring just three specimens using conventional equipment .
Participating companies have found solutions to existing problems not solved using standardised methodologies
Validating R & D with industry
Fourteen key industrial companies in the sheet metal forming industry value chain have validated the effectiveness and reliability of the novel testing methods developed . These methods have helped industrial companies to optimise the production of Advanced High- Strength Steels ( AHSS ); Al-alloys ; multi-layer sheet metals and cold-rolled steels , as well as to predict component formability and in-service behaviour .
Case study results have proved FormPlanet experimental characterisation methodologies and modelling approaches . Participating companies have found solutions to existing problems not solved using standardised methodologies when addressing manufacturing problems in high-strength sheet metals or complex parts for lightweighting solutions and high-performance requirements .
A case in point is Aludium , a leading European supplier of aluminium solutions . The company needed to determine the performance of a new aluminium alloy on edge-cracking and compare it to a standard version . By relying on an innovative method to assess fracture toughness in a simpler and more economical way to predict edge-cracking
in high-strength metal sheets , “ we could understand the cracking behaviour and develop an improved Al-alloy with purer chemical composition and special thermomechanical route , improving edge-cracking resistance ,” according to Catalina Fernandez , R & D director at Aludium .
ArcelorMittal has also successfully tested FormPlanet methodologies . Serving as a validator of the methodologies to predict crashworthiness in cold- and hot-forming grades , the company assessed several steel grades for automotive part crash performance with the testing technologies developed by FormPlanet . At the same time , it compared the results to ArcelorMittal in-house crash tests .
Pascal Dietsch , Research Engineer , ArcelorMittal Maizières Research , explained : “ We have studied the effectiveness and reliability of novel testing methodologies to characterise crash performance and found a good correlation between results concerning absorbed energy during axial impact resistance tests .”
The future of the European industry fundamentally depends on its technological capacity to manufacture value-added products , maintain or reduce production costs and ensure their quality . Advanced materials , developed to meet growing demands for lightweighting , bring new challenges that the industry must face to maintain its position in the market . In that sense , FormPlanet offers proven reliable solutions that give hope to companies in the sheet metal forming industry when addressing problems where traditional approaches cannot be used to estimate highstrength part formability challenges .
FormPlanet ’ s set of techniques and optimised methods provide solutions to ease companies ’ technological uptake along all steps of the development of innovative sheet metal forming parts and products . They enable a detailed evaluation of sheet properties , prediction of part performance and prevention of production losses , contributing to improved competitiveness in the sheet metal forming sector . n
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24 | sheetmetalplus . com | ISMR March 2022