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AUTOMATING DIE DESIGN--A CASE STUDY

By: Raymond Proeber

Ray Proeber is president of Accurate Die Design, Inc., New Berlin, WI; www.accuratediedesign.com.

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Saturday, August 1, 2015

Dan Erschen established Die Concepts, Inc. as a die-design business in 1988. Within a few years the company
branched out, performing custom machining along with providing dies for stampers and OEMs. By 2010 it was time
for a name change to better describe the business, so Die Concepts, Inc. became Wisconsin Metal Parts, Inc. Today,
the Waukesha, WI, company manufactures assemblies and metal parts, specializing in stamping, die making,
sheetmetal fabrication and CNC machining.

In 2003, having used AutoCAD along with an add-on die-

design software for several years, the company decided to
move into 3D die design. It purchased two seats of a 3D
die-design software package that employs direct-modeling
technology, and had two designers trained in its use. For
the next 10 years Erschen’s business used the software to
design many dies, but eventually moved back to 2D die-
design software for jobs not requiring 3D modeling. One
reason why, as die designer Bill Schwartz says: “We were
getting absolutely killed on design hours.”

In 2014, Wisconsin Metal Parts again switched, this time to

3D die-design software that uses parametric-modeling
technology, and six months later added a die-design add-
Fig. 1—With its new die-design software, Wisconsin Metal Parts on software package.
uses transparency to design more quickly and help prevent
mistakes, and then turn the model solid in a matter of seconds for This example represents the overall results: Schwartz
a design review. recently found himself needing to add 48 punches to a die
design, including spacers behind the punches, die buttons
and all related holes in the various plates in the die. After he set the parameters in the die-design software to perform
this task, but before clicking the okay button, Schwartz decided to time the process.

“I was amazed that 1 min. and 45 sec. was all the time it took for the software to perform all of this work,” he recalls.

Direc t M o d e l i n g Versus Parametr ic

The geometry created with direct-modeling software

can be referred to as “dumb” geometry because it
lacks the intelligence relating to other geometry in the
assembly, as is the case with parametric software.
This limits the level of automation achievable via
direct-modeling software.

Parametric software, on the other hand, allows for

relationships within the assembly from one part to the
next, forming what can be called intelligence. These
relationships are created by users who know their final Fig. 2—Three separate but similar die designs were required to produce
goals as they design dies. This is known as design the four parts shown above, with each die design having its own set of
intent. Both the parametric CAD software as well its solid models along with its own set of 2D drawings.
add-on software help manage the creation and editing
of these relationships. Simply put, many different parameters can be set in this software, and once the user sets
parameters for a project, he presses a button that allows the software to perform the heavy lifting.

Add-O n S o f t w a r e Tackles Specif ic Challenges

A 3D CAD package by itself, such as the SolidWorks software recently added by Wisconsin Metal Parts, is similar to
a family doctor in that just as a doctor sees many different patients and treats a variety of illnesses, so, too, is the
CAD software package used by people in a variety of industries designing vastly different things. But in the case of a
family doctor, he calls a specialist for something very specific and complex, such as a patient requiring heart surgery.

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10.12.2018 Articles - Automating Die Design--a Case Study | MetalForming Magazine
Likewise, 3D die-design software packages are specifically designed to address and streamline the nuances unique
to die design.

While Wisconsin Metal Parts saw many benefits over its previous software after using its new parametric CAD
software, the company saw the significant benefits of adding a specialized add-on, and chose to add Logopress3 die-
design software, from Accurate Die Design, Inc., to complement SolidWorks.

One benefit was the ability to use transparency to

design more quickly and help prevent mistakes, then
make the model solid in a matter of seconds for a
design review. As the creator, the die designer easily
can visualize and understand a transparent model, but
visualizing can be difficult for others unless the model is
made solid (Fig. 1).

I s Pa r a m e t r i c S oftware Really Mo re
Comp l e x ?

Parametric CAD software is viewed by some as being

more complex than its direct-modeling counterpart. But
Fig. 3—Each of these three die designs had differing stock widths complexity can make life easier, i.e., a car when
and progressions. The second and third designs were created by compared to a horse or a bicycle. Or consider a wire-
reusing data from the first design. EDM machine. Until the 1970s, tool and die makers
used band saws, mills and grinders to section die blocks and punches and so forth. While a wire-EDM machine costs
significantly more than a band saw, mill and grinders, and certainly is more complex, at the end of the day the wire-
EDM machine runs circles around the old-fashioned die-build method while, at the same, making die construction
easier and more accurate.

Just as with a wire-EDM machine, most designers realize that the added complexity of parametric die-design
software makes life much easier after the learning curve. Schwartz, for example finds significant benefits in the
history tree found in parametric software, along with all of the relations between features and parts that are
unavailable in direct-modeling software.

“That’s huge for me, being able to go back in time to make a change,” Schwartz says.

Schwartz also appreciates that all of the various parts in the die are individual part files existing inside of an assembly
file, rather than the entire die assembly existing as a single file, as with direct-modeling CAD software. This allows for
quicker and easier detailing, and each part file is ready for CAM without the need to separate the files from the single
assembly file, a time-consuming task that Schwartz previously had to perform.

Reusi n g C A D D ata Speeds the Process

Recently, Wisconsin Metal Parts received an order for three dies to make four separate parts (Fig. 2). Each of the
dies would share the common attributes of a station to coin the burr side of the material; guided strippers throughout,
along with stripper balancers; backup plates throughout the top and bottom of the die; and sensors detecting feed
length and stripper balance.

The first die would be interchangeable, used to produce two different parts. That die design (Fig. 1) features a
progression of 4.150 in. and a stock width of 6.250 in. The company designed and 100-percent detailed this die in 54
hr.

For the second die design used to produce the third part (Fig. 2), Schwartz used a Logopress3 command called
“Save as with new project name.” This command saves all part, assembly and drawing files with a new project
number, job number or tool number to differentiate it from the first design. This allows the designer to reuse as much
data as possible. After deleting the stock strip and related punches, the designer inserts the new strip layout and
adjusts the parametric dimensions. Because of the parametrics involved, the designer easily can change the
progression and stock strip width for this new die design. This second die design has a progression of 3.950 in. and a
stock width of 6.000 in., differing from the first die. Wisconsin Metal Parts designed and 100-percent detailed this
design in 18 hr.

The third die design, differing from the first two and the most complex, featured a pierced hole with the same
diameter as the material thickness, as well as 10 cold-formed extrusions on the die side with diameters equal to the
material thickness. This third die design, with a progression of 4.050 in. and a stock width of 7.000 in., was designed
and 100-percent detailed in 30 hr. Fig. 3 shows strip layouts from each of the three die designs, each with a different
stock width and progression.

Produ c t i v i t y I n c r eases Still Unfolding

These designs showcase the power of parametric software. While Erschen appreciates that his staff now designs and
details dies twice as quickly, he also sees additional benefits for the shop.

“We still create 2D detail drawings as before, but now our staff can open and work directly with the 3D models in our
existing CAM software,” he says.

Erschen also notes that that the new software results in fewer mistakes. Next up, Erschen plans to expand
communication across the shop through the die-design process by employing a free viewer and markup tool included
withthe software. MF

See also: Accurate Die Design Software, Inc., LOGOPRESS

Related Enterprise Zones: Software, Tool & Die

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