Tools

Light alloy injection

Press forging materials
The manufacture of tool steels for press forging is one of Aubert & Duval’s specialties. Thanks to decades of experience and in close collaboration with our customers (smelters, press forging machine manufacturers), we adapt our products to meet requirements such as:

high resistance to wear,
high resistance to high temperatures,
extremely high toughness at high temperatures,
high resistance to fatigue and temperature,
low tendency to stick.

ADC88™, a new steel grade with a high potential
Our most recent tool steel, ADC88™ is the result of cooperation with customers seeking better durability for their light alloy injection moulds. As the lifespan of pressure cast parts is highly dependent on the material’s behaviour under thermal fatigue, we have therefore created a grade with improved resistance and that retains high abrasion-resistance properties at high temperatures.

There are also other steel grades

ADC3: this grade offers a good compromise between resistance to thermal cracking, toughness and wear resistance; it is recommended in particular for large scale pressure casting die presses.
SMV®3: premium quality H11 steel for an optimum performance in all hotwork applications, with a guaranteed microstructure; it is also available in a superior quality (SMV®3W).

Forging

LES ANCIZES

Long experience in manufacturing steel for hotwork
Our perfect knowledge of our processes allows us to deliver products in very strict composition ranges. This guarantees the reproducibility of the performances during the use of inserts and dies, thus minimizing the adjustment time or modification costs.

Our expertise in metallurgy and design
Starting with special steels, superalloys, aluminium alloys and titanium alloys, Aubert & Duval designs, manufactures and creates metallurgic products in the form of bars, billets, semi-finished products and forged or stamped parts. The first step consists in developing materials that meet its customers’ technical specifications. Thanks to the globally recognized expertise of our metallurgists, the production processes are then developed, modelled and optimized in order to guarantee their reliability and reproducibility.

Our tool steel grades for forged and stamped parts

SMV®3: premium H11 steel for an optimum performance in all hotwork applications, with a guaranteed microstructure; also available in a superior quality (SMV®3W).
Nickel-based superalloys: intended for special applications when resistance to high temperatures and wear prove necessary.
MPN: superalloy resulting from powder metallurgy (CIC/HIP parts).

Our main applications

Die blocks and stamping inserts
Quick forging
Semi-hot forging
Embossing
Forging
Stamping

Transformation & extrusion

Some aluminum construction profile objects. 3D illustration

Tooling steels for high-quality dies
The rise in use of plastic materials and the constant developments in hot treatment technologies require the use of highly resistant steels and alloys when producing high performance moulds. Intended for polishing, embossing or extrusion, our products offer high resistance to abrasion and corrosion, guaranteeing the tool a long life; they offer:

high resistance to thermal cracking,
excellent wear resistance,
high toughness in use,
high resistance to mechanical stresses. .

Aubert & Duval therefore offers a range of specific tool steels for each application.

Our tool steel grades

SMV®3: premium H11 steel for optimum performance in all hotwork applications, with a guaranteed microstructure; also available in a superior quality (SMV®3W).
ADC3: offers a good compromise between resistance to hot cracking, good resilience and wear resistance; it is recommended in particular for large scale pressure casting dies.

In comparison to the traditional 5% Cr steel grades, the Aubert & Duval extrusion steel grades offer the best balance between resilience, heat conductivity, and resistance to tempering and thermal shocks. .

Our main applications

Injection
Compression
Injection and extrusion-blowing
Extrusion

Glasswork

Sheets of Factory manufacturing tempered clear float glass panels cut to size.

High quality dies
The quest for quality and productivity in the glassmaking industry requires manufacturers to use dies that combine a mirror polished surface with resistance to thermal cracking, wear resistance and high rust resistance.

Our tool steel offer
Aubert & Duval offers the most complete range of tool steels on the market for the glassmaking industry. We adapt our products to meet requirements such as:

a mirror polished surface,
high resistance to thermal cracking,
wear resistance,
rust resistance,
resistance to mechanical stress.

Our tool steel grade

APX®V: martensitic stainless steel that, with a corrosion resistance between that of 13% chromium steels and that of type 18-8 stainless steels, a high resistance to organic acids, certain mineral acids and environments polluted by chlorides, good mechanical properties and resistance to hot oxidization.
MPY: nickel-based superalloy hardened by precipitation, with excellent corrosion resistance and excellent mechanical properties up to 950°C.

Our main applications

Tableware
Vitroceramic tables
Optical lenses

Coldwork

Detailed close up of a machine with numerous bolts. Ideal for industrial and engineering concepts.

Highly resistant dies
In order to resist a fast pace and high stresses, the tool steels used in metal coldwork require high performance cutting properties in conjunction with a high resistance to fatigue and wear. Lastly, they must offer good resilience and high resistance to thermal cracking.

Our offer
Current production restrictions require a pace that is ever faster, and production sequences that are more and more fragmented in order to reduce production costs and the overall cost of the tool. All cold machining processes are concerned, from cutting and drawing, to cold punching and cold forging.
The wide range of grades from Aubert & Duval allows you to meet all of these restrictions. The choice of grade is an integral part of optimizing the design, allowing for reducing costs by reducing tool maintenance and operating costs.

Our tool steel grades
The choice of the suitable grade is made in accordance with the conditions of use for the tool: it stems from a compromise between the following four main properties, depending on the processes used and the restrictions encountered: