Metal stamping sector bolsters customization

Meeting typical to high-precision requirements for various electronics applications stays a key objective in this service industry.

Continuous manufacturing improvements have widened China makers' customization range for stamped metal parts for the electronics industry. The standard now covers products as thin as 0.05mm to as thick as 10mm, from 0.1 to 8mm in past years. Common tolerance remains at 0.02 to 0.05mm, while high-precision releases can have as tight as 0.002mm.

Heju Precision Electronics Co. Ltd can achieve 0.003mm and Shenzhen 95fine Technology Co. Ltd 0.004mm. Dongguan Tangxia Shuangxin Hardware Products Fty keeps tolerance within 0.005 to 0.02mm.

In general, local suppliers can meet any requirement, including materials, surface treatment and dimensions, besides tolerance. They emphasize equipment to handle this. Dongguan Tangxia Shuangxin operates 10 stamping machines with press capacity of 10 to 80 tons.

Dongguan Qiangfa Metal Product Co. Ltd has more than 40 units in 10 to 250 tons. It will install seven or eight more to boost production capacity by 30 to 50 percent in coming months, anticipating more projects. The manufacturer targets to achieve 15 percent higher sales in 2016.

Dongguan Shengjia Hardware Products Co. Ltd added two 120/160-ton stamping equipment in August 2015. Heju Precision acquired three and raised its daily capacity of 20 million pieces by 20 percent.

Besides stamping machines, interviewed manufacturers have in-house facilities for mold design and making. The other commonly used tooling equipment include CNC machining center and lathes, EDMs, and milling, grinding, drilling and wire-cutting machines.

To implement strict QC, China companies employ 2.5D measurement and inspection equipment, universal precision projectors, metallographic analysis instruments, and hardness, salt-spray and coating-thickness testing machines.

As for materials, manufacturers usually adopt metal from the domestic supply, and source from foreign providers in Germany, Japan and the US on request.

The electronics industry, covering the communications, computer and consumer electronics or 3C sector, is a key demand driver. Stamped metal parts for such applications represent about 40 percent of Dongguan Tangxia Shuangxin's output, 30 to 40 percent at Shenzhen 95fine, and 30 percent at Dongguan Qiangfa and Dongguan Shengjia.

Suppliers also cater to the automotive segment, which is the category's largest market. Household appliances, furniture, industrial equipment, and military and aerospace applications are the rest.

Stamped metal parts have more than 30,000 makers in China, according to the Confederation of Chinese Metalforming Industry. The collective yield surpasses 50 million tons. The major production hubs are in the provinces of Jiangsu, Guangdong, Zhejiang and Shandong, and Chongqing municipality.

The line is expected to maintain stable growth, with sales registering about 10 percent increase annually.

See a comparison table of stamped metal parts suppliers on GlobalSources.com