If I Need Rotary Tooling, Why Should I Get a Steel Rule Die?
While material costs are always the biggest determinant of overall cost, rotary tooling is another key expense. The rotary cutting process is much faster and typically requires less labor than traditional die cutting processes. This is why, for large volume of orders, rotary cutting is a logical answer to help our clients save time and money. However, rotary tooling can cost up to 7-10 times that of traditional steel rule die tooling because there are more complex and there are multiples–a series of hardened steel dies that cut first the interior and then finally the exterior cuts. This cost is usually amortized over the large quantity of parts and is therefore not typically a constraining factor in the overall cost of a project.
Except if you get it wrong.
When you invest in rotary tooling, you want to know that what you’re producing will work. One way to ensure this is to invest in some hardened steel rule die tooling (typically associated with traditional flat die cutting processes) to test that the part itself will work within the context of the particular production process that will be used. GEC has found that when developing the part for the first time, engineers (understandably) tend to make a lot of changes in an effort to get it just right. Often the most fiscally prudent course of action is to invest in that additional tooling upfront to ensure that the proposed production process will accept the part being created and that all works smoothly. Spending a little extra money today on tooling can save a ton of money, time, and aggravation down the road.
This is another example of how GEC partners with its customers to make sure they’re getting it right–giving the customer not just what they ask for but verifying with them that it is meeting their needs. As one GEC expert put it, “what’s the point of getting one 10,000 piece order and having all of those pieces be all wrong and having them go somewhere else. We want to build long-term relationships with our customers and be trusted advisor for the long term.
If you would like help with a rotary project, check out our rotary services page or give us a call at 816-363-8333.
