SH Auto Parts In-House Tooling Design

In-House tooling design has major benefits for accurate, high quality, manufacturing of suspension components. By designing jigs, dies and component handling systems alongside the parts themselves, SH Auto Parts can efficiently integrate tooling with the requirements of each engineering design and production process.

In-house tooling design improves suspension component production

SH Auto Parts implements an integrated approach to in-house tooling design that gives our suspension component engineers direct control over how parts are formed, machined, welded and assembled. It supports greater precision, improves production development and delivers more efficient manufacturing for OEM, OES, and aftermarket suspension components.

Instead of adapting external tooling to established production production equipment, or waiting for third party contractors to supply tooling, we build tools around our advanced manufacturing technologies. This means that at SH Auto Parts, we can create a closer match between component design, the tooling used to produce it and the automated systems that manage production.

Precision engineering using in-house tooling design

Our in-house tooling design systems place suspension component engineers in charge of designing the jigs and dies used throughout manufacturing. Tooling is developed to match the geometry of each individual component, and robustly integrated with the engineering capabilities of our stamping, forming, CNC machining, welding and assembly systems.

Bringing tooling design into the same engineering environment as suspension component development allows design information to move more directly between our component engineering teams and into our tooling process. This helps reduce delays and ensures absolute precision, optimized manufacturing processes, and extremely rapid prototyping and production setup.

In-house design of dies & jigs used to manufacture our suspension components

SH Auto Parts designs forming and stamping dies as well as CNC production jigs using integrated CAD, CAE and CAM technologies. Digital twin testing takes our engineers a step further allowing them to assess tooling performance before manufacturing even begins. Similarly, forming geometry, material spring back and deformation characteristics are also evaluated before die manufacturing.

Jigs are optimised for our robotic production systems. They must position and hold each part accurately while allowing manufacturing equipment to complete programmed operations efficiently. Designing these systems together means that they can support repeatable processing and improves the flow of manufacturing.

CAE simulations improve auto component engineering efficiency

CAE simulations allow engineers to analyse and adjust control arm stamping dies during the design process. By testing tooling digitally, the engineering team can identify potential forming issues and refine the auto component design before committing time and resources to physical die manufacturing.

The same simulation capabilities are used to optimize our CNC machining processes. In-house CNC jigs are virtually tested and adjusted for SH Auto Parts’ robotic production systems, which helps to reduce unnecessary work in development and ensures the machining process follows the planned sequence.

Patented loading and unloading systems for in-production auto parts

We custom-build component magazines and jigs for the efficient loading and unloading of formed and machined auto parts. These systems position components accurately as they move between production stages, as they help to prevent registration errors that can interrupt automated processes or create wasteful and avoidable registration errors.

For robotic CNC machining, smart magazine, rest and jig design supports accurate part registration and alignment. Patented interchangeable jigs allow robotic systems to switch rapidly between different suspension components, while component magazines support extended unattended operations and efficient use of multiple CNC workstations.

In-house tooling design facilitates rapid prototyping and increased production throughput

Effective tooling designs influence more than just the shape of the finished component, in-house tooling design also affects how quickly parts can be loaded, positioned, processed and transferred through our factory, and strengthens quality control by supporting consistent placement and easily repeatable manufacturing.

SH Auto Parts engineers can reduce prototyping time and accurately reproduce the approved engineering design by refining our in-house tooling designs, as engineers can respond to changes and easily make adjustments to the tooling design before physical production begins.

SH Auto Parts integrated tooling design for superior suspension component engineering

SH Auto Parts combines suspension component engineering with in-house tooling design, CAE simulation, virtual testing and advanced manufacturing. This integrated approach supports precise tooling, optimised production, rapid development and consistent manufacturing to IATF 16949 certified standards.

The accuracy of a suspension component depends on more than the capabilities of an individual machine. It depends on the jigs, dies and handling systems that position, form and guide the part throughout manufacturing. Contact us to discuss your OEM or aftermarket suspension component requirements and discover how our state of the art tooling design and automated manufacturing will benefit your business.