Fundamentals of Choosing a Toolmaker
What and why should you know before choosing a toolmaker?
If you, as a customer, now feel that you do not even want to spend this much time dealing with this subject, that is precisely why you should read this article:
It will help you ask the right questions.
- A tool is not simply an object to be purchased, but a complex component of a complex system involving multiple parties.
As a customer, you do not need to know this system in detail. However, it is all the more important to be aware of some basic aspects so that you can choose the right partners and thereby receive a solution that meets your goals in the form of the tool you have ordered.
- Just as a stable house can only be built on a solid foundation, stable production can only be built on solid foundations. With a tool, you will ultimately have a complex technical solution in which the tool itself is not the primary value, but rather the support provided by the partners, who know and understand your needs.
- What is it worth knowing as a customer before choosing a toolmaker?
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Let us first look at an everyday example.
We can probably agree that we do not need to know the intricacies of car manufacturing to choose a car. However, we do need to know what we are going to use it for, and which features are important for the vehicle to be suitable for our purpose.
Obviously, the same car will not be the best choice for commuting to work in the city as for business trips covering several thousand kilometres, or for transporting goods.
It may be less obvious, but the situation is surprisingly similar when choosing a toolmaker, so it is worth thinking about this in the same way.
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Let us briefly look at the questions that arise from the manufacturer's perspective when making a tool, for orientation:
• What type of product will we manufacture with the tool, and what material will it be made of?
• What service life, production volume and durability should the tool be designed for?
• Should it be modular, upgradeable, or a "disposable" design?
• Is it intended for cyclical or continuous production?
• On which machine will it be used? - The tool must also be adapted to the parameters of the machine!
• Where can we use standardized (cost-effective) components, and according to which standard, and which parts require completely customized solutions?
• And, of course; which solutions are also cost-effective within the budget over the entire planned life cycle?
Who are the key participants in the network, and why is this of interest to you?
• Material manufacturers, heat treatment specialists, who provide the foundation in the required quality.
• Product developers, designers, and product and tool management, who assess the requirements, align the various aspects with each other, and design the product and the tool.
• Machine shops, which manufacture the components with the required precision.
• Toolmakers, polishers and coating specialists, who carry out the final finishing and assemble the tool.
• Testers, whose feedback enables the others to carry out the necessary optimizations before the tool is handed over to you as a proven, functional solution.
Some companies offer comprehensive solutions, while others – like me – specialize in one particular area, supporting the joint work with their high level of expertise and capacity.
As a customer, it is in your interest that, whether you choose a partner offering a comprehensive solution or coordinate the individual tasks yourself, the resulting network provides a complete solution to your problem, precisely tailored to your requirements, as described below:
(Similar to building our own house, where we can choose between a general contractor and organizing the work ourselves.)
What is it that you decide when choosing a supplier or toolmaker?
• How much do you have to personally deal with the project, and how many tasks does the selected professional partner take over to ensure that production of the product can start properly and on time?
• How long should the supply chain be, e.g. if spare parts or repairs are needed?
• What happens if a problem arises during production (e.g. with the product's fit on the production line) that could not have been foreseen and the tool needs to be adjusted so that the product is suitable?
• In such a case, who can you turn to, and how much time and cost are required to solve the problem that has arisen and requires an on-site assessment?
• Does this local partner know the tool's design, material and history, as well as the design considerations behind it, so that they can respond to the problem immediately?
• At what physical distance is the required expertise and capacity available?
• What happens if the product or the requirements change and the tool needs to be developed or modified?
• Who will maintain and repair the tool, do they know it and understand how it should be properly handled?
• What are the warranty conditions and options?
Summary
- By choosing the toolmaker, you influence all of these consequences.
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For this reason, it is worth carefully considering the options over the life cycle of the tool and the product,
because it can easily happen that a lower initial cost (a cheaper tool) ultimately results in higher overall expenditure,
and is also associated with additional effort and ties up many resources that you could otherwise devote to production.
In other words, a solution that is not chosen appropriately can cause losses in two ways!
- Together with my partners, we are happy to help you find the solution that is truly most suitable for you in terms of value for money!
I can personally help you find a toolmaker who can be a suitable partner for your goals,
and I can also contribute to maintaining your production processes efficiently through my repair services:Surface Repair - PDF Presentation
The following link leads to the next article in my knowledge base, about cooperation, and from the end of that article to the next one.
Through my articles, I aim to provide both professionals and interested laypeople with further useful information to help them better understand the world of toolmaking and maintain cost-optimized, efficient cooperation on a win-win basis.