Metal Stamping Applications: What Each Kind of Part Needs

Automotive brackets

Brackets and reinforcements hold other parts in place, so the position of the holes and the flatness of the mounting faces matter more than the outline. Cold rolled 1008/1010 covers most of them; HSLA grades with 340 to 550 MPa yield let a bracket go thinner and lighter but need more tonnage, larger bend radii and more springback correction in the die. Galvanneal or zinc-nickel plating and e-coat are the usual corrosion systems.

Weld nuts and studs are either projection welded after stamping or fed in die. Annual volumes are high and steady, so progressive dies dominate up to the size where the part no longer stays on a carrier strip; above that, transfer dies take over. Expect the buyer side of the program to ask for a PPAP submission. Our bracket guide lists the typical callouts.

Electrical terminals and contacts

Terminals are small, thin and made in very large numbers. Brass C260 is the low-cost choice, phosphor bronze C510 when the contact must flex many times, beryllium copper C172 for the highest spring force after aging. Strip is often bought pre-plated with tin or selective gold so the part comes off the press finished, which leaves the sheared edge bare; plating after stamping covers the edge at a higher cost.

Parts usually stay on the carrier strip and ship on reels for automatic crimping or insertion. Burr height is tight on contacts, typically 5 percent of thickness or less, because a burr changes contact force and can cut insulation. See copper alloy strip and pre-plated strip against plating after stamping.

Appliance parts

Washing machines, ovens, refrigerators and HVAC units use stamped panels, brackets, hinges, motor mounts and drawn covers. Galvanized and pre-painted steel keep finishing cost down; stainless 430 is used for visible trim and 304 where water or food contact demands it. Large panels run on transfer or tandem lines; brackets and hinges on progressive dies.

The cost driver is the surface. A pre-painted coil cannot be touched up after stamping, so dies need polished surfaces and protective film, and packing must stop parts rubbing. Mark the cosmetic faces on the print. More in the appliance stamping guide.

Enclosures and shields

EMI shield cans on circuit boards are thin (about 0.1 to 0.3 mm) tin-plated steel or nickel silver, drawn or formed into a shallow box with solder legs. The legs must sit flat on the board, so coplanarity is the critical callout. Electronics chassis and junction boxes use electrogalvanized SECC or hot-dip SGCC steel at 0.5 to 1.5 mm, and drawn housings use deep draw steel or aluminum 5052.

For drawn parts, the draw depth against the blank size decides how many draws the die needs, and the wall thins at the corners. Specify the minimum wall after draw, not the strip gauge alone. See EMI shield stamping.

Battery parts

Battery packs and modules use stamped busbars, cell contacts and springs, nickel or nickel-plated steel tabs, end plates and, for cylindrical cells, deep drawn cans in nickel-plated steel. Busbars are copper C11000 or aluminum 1050/1060, often 1 to 3 mm thick, with holes or slots for fasteners and welded joints.

Edge condition matters more than on most parts: a burr on a busbar edge can damage insulation film and reduce creepage distance. Flatness of contact faces, plating (tin or nickel) and any insulating coating or overmold belong on the RFQ. The busbar guide covers what to specify.

Hardware

Washers, spacers, hinges, straps, clips and simple brackets are the highest-volume, lowest-price stampings. Flat washers follow standards such as ISO 7089; spring clips run on fourslide machines in spring steel or stainless 301 and are heat treated after forming. The fight is over piece price, so strip layout and scrap rate decide the quote. Hardened steel parts that are zinc plated need a bake after plating against hydrogen embrittlement; name it on the print.