What is Forging?

Forging is the manufacturing process of hammering, pressing, or rolling metal into shape. This is either delivered from a hammer, press, or die. It is essentially the art of heating and working hot metal to design or shape that is fit for a specific purpose or use. By working the material, it increases many of its properties, including structure, conductivity, and longevity.

Forging offers a very useful and diverse medium for many industries, with the process being economically sound and achieving specific mechanical properties. Forging is often categorised according to the temperature at which it is performed: cold, warm, or hot forging.

Materials which can be forged include carbon steel, alloy steel, tool steel, aluminium, stainless steel, duplex steel, copper, and brass. The forging procedure will differ according to many factors; for instance, titanium forging will have a different forging route compared to that of stainless steel forging. When the material is heated up to high temperatures in the region of 1200/1300 degrees centigrade, steel can be shaped into many different sizes of products.

From your small 1kg items to 100-tonne size forgings. During the industrial forging process, the grains of the metal become elongated in the direction of flow. As a result, the toughness of the metal is substantially improved. A good forging design will ensure that the flow lines in the finished part lie where the component will come under maximum stress.

Forging has evolved massively from the days of blacksmiths using a hammer and an anvil to produce horseshoes. With advancements in equipment, from computers to robotics, the forging process is now highly sophisticated, resulting in a more durable, efficient, and faster engineering option. Nowadays, industrial forging companies can produce forged parts in an array of materials, shapes, sizes, and finishes.