What You Need to Know About Designing Custom Extrusion Dies

Aluminium profile sampleIf you are making plans to design your own custom extrusion dies, there are some things you need to know. There is practically no limit as to the different types of forms that your custom aluminum extrusion can take. While standard extrusions are pretty basic and straight-forward, sticking to angles, tubes, squares and rectangular shapes, custom designs can take on just about any shape and form that you could imagine. Extrusion allows for a lot of flexibility in the design and helps make it easy for you to add a lot of function into the component to reduce the need for secondary operations, increase lead times and improve the overall performance of the finished piece. There are many benefits of aluminum products that can be maximized to their full potential through the use of custom extrusion.

What are the Limits?
There are limits to just about any type of design. When it comes to custom aluminum extrusion, there are some designs that are just very challenging to create. However, sometimes all it takes is just a minor change to the original design to help make it work. Benefits associated with these changes can make it easier and less costly to create the piece or product, improve the results of the extrusion as a whole, and increase the lead time.

When you choose to work with a professional organization like Silver City Aluminum, you don’t just get high quality products and results. You also gain the experience, knowledge and support of our entire team of designers, engineers and technicians. We can help you create your project from the initial concept phase all the way through completion, showing you how custom profiles can improve upon standard extrusions and helping you to overcome any issues with your design. Our engineers can assist in the optimization of your custom extrusion dies to boost function and cost-effectiveness for overall better results.

Some of the limits associated with custom aluminum extrusion can lie in the basic design of the custom extrusion die itself. Depending on the shape and structure, the die itself might make the extrusion process extremely difficult or, in some cases, downright impossible. A little bit of knowledge and insight into the common sizes and measurements that have been successful with custom aluminum extrusion can be a huge advantage. It is important to do all you can in the design phase to take advantage of the benefits of aluminum products.

The More You Know…
Taking time to work with designers and engineers can help you to overcome common issues that often plague designers to create better finished results. For example, understanding the CCD or circumscribing circle diameter. This measurement refers to the size of the extrusion itself, particularly the diameter of the smallest circle that will most closely enclose the entire cross-section completely. The average profile, either in the form of standard extrusions or custom extrusion dies, is less than 12-inches in diameter. Very few shapes will have a diameter larger than 32-inches CCD.

Another measurement that can be helpful is the Weight-per-Foot or Wt/Ft, as it is referred to in custom aluminum extrusion design. The weight is important because it can possibly cause issues with the press operation if it is too heavy or too light. These factors can change the size of the press required to create a quality profile. If you aren’t sure about the Weight-per-Foot of your standard and custom extrusion dies, or how they will affect your custom aluminum extrusion, make sure to speak with the engineer or one of our technicians. The design of a product will be greatly improved if the profile CCD is well under 8-inches and the wt/ft is three pounds or less.

Contact Silver City Aluminum
If you are interested in learning more about the benefits of aluminum products, or if you want to work with our designers, engineers and technicians to create your own custom extrusion dies, contact Silver City Aluminum by dialing 508-824-8631. We can help you with a wide variety of services, including standard extrusions and custom aluminum extrusion. We also provide all of our own secondary operations, including fabrication and finishing, in-house at our facility in Taunton, Massachusetts. Call today for a FREE estimate on your next project or to speak with one of our technicians.