Custom Forging

Custom forging is typically associated with the open die forging process and refers to forging metals for custom parts. Custom forging is often used for short runs, prototypes, and very large specialized equipment including massive crankshafts, in which strength and fatigue resistance is desirable.

Custom Forging Manufacturers

• With over 35 years of custom metal service experience, Deeco Metals offers you reliability and quality for high-performance custom machined forgings. As a global supplier for OEMs, they can create custom machined forgings that meet your specification requirements, in a wide variety of metal materials.
• Great Lakes Forge is an open die forging company offering custom forging. Great Lakes Forge can manufacture precision custom forgings in low carbon, alloy, and stainless steel. With large quantities of the most common billet stock on hand, Great Lakes Forge can produce custom forgings with short turnarounds even when other forging companies are quoting lead times of many months. Contact Great Lakes Forge when you need an open die forging manufacturer who can deliver on spec and on time.

Custom Forging Advantages

Custom forging is typically used for the many advantages offered by the forging process. Some of these include:

• Greater strength: custom forgings yield metal or metal parts that are stronger than machined or cast parts.
• Greater Fatigue Resistance: custom forgings also offer better resistance to metal fatigue, making them preferable for applications in which a longer lifespan for the forged part is desirable.
• Greater Impact Strength: the custom forging process imparts a greater impact strength to the forged metal parts.

Often forging is the preferred manufacturing process for parts that require great strength and are exposed to the elements. Many parts -- including crankshafts -- that were once made via machining or casting processes are now moving to forging for the greater strength and overall greater lifespan that forging offers. Some forging processes can be automated, allowing an assembly-line style production of forged parts. Custom forging specifically refers to parts that do not follow the production-like style, and instead are each created one at a time (though often making use of sophisticated machinery to assist in the forging). Custom forging is common in very large machinery, including presses and crankshafts, which are too large for automated forging, and are not produced in sufficient quantities to make automation cost effective. This includes the oil and gas industry which relies heavily on custom forging for oil pumps, and even includes the massive crankshafts of submarines. Due to the custom nature and the very close tolerances often required by modern machinery, custom forging manufacturers must employ extremely skilled and experienced operators. Custom forging is a skilled craft requiring great craftsmanship from its operators.